The Independent Children's Home Association (ICHA) has called for the Department for Education to intervene and do more to support admissions after 58 per cent of children's home providers who responded to a survey said they do not think the Schools Admissions Code for Looked-After Children is being honoured by mainstream schools.
The code specifies that looked-after children should be given the highest priority in school admissions, even where there is oversubscription for places, according to the ICHA, which commissioned the poll of 53 members.
The average period before a mainstream place is secured is 3.1 months, with 54 per cent of providers reporting one or more instances where children have waited for up to three months - around a term and a half - for a mainstream school placement.
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