Looked-after children are missing out on education support worth £500 a year because of differences in the way councils manage budgets, CYP Now has learned.
Personal education allowances, which were introduced as part of Care Matters, exist to provide looked-after children with £500 a year towards personalised education support.
But the money is not ringfenced and is provided to councils as part of their area-based grant, so some children are missing out.
Sarah Gentles, education manager at charity Shaftesbury Young People, warned that provision of allowances is patchy.
"There is a huge variation between local authorities with personal education allowances. It's a bit hit and miss, so not all looked-after children are getting it. It can often depend on whether or not the young person has a social worker that applies for the allowance on their behalf," she said.
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