Councils need to keep costs under control through efficient commissioning.
For instance, in many cases councils with high costs for residential and foster care also have high numbers of out-of-authority placements. The commission also acknowledges that if costs are too low, it may mean the quality of care is low.
The higher figures are partly explained by unexpectedly high rises in the numbers of looked-after children. This often leaves councils with no choice but to fall back on the more expensive placement options. Birmingham is projecting a 28.3m budget overspend for this year, mainly because it planned to have 1,700 children in care and ended up with 2,300. In Lincolnshire, which expects a 5m overspend, the impact was felt from a small number of very complex cases.
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