Out of a total of 22.5 full-time positions, 11.5 are vacant, justice minister Maria Eagle revealed in response to a parliamentary question tabled before the Christmas break.
Funding arrangements for the positions, introduced in 2005, have been up in the air since July 2009 after attempts to fund them collectively through councils floundered.
The posts were initially funded by the government and the Youth Justice Board but the Department for Children, Schools and Families shifted responsibility to local authorities in April 2009.
Last November Youth Justice Board chief executive John Drew called for fresh talks between central government and local authorities over who should foot the bill for social workers in young offender institutions.
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