In launching the government's Care Leaver Strategy last October, children's minister Edward Timpson issued a rallying cry for central and local government to improve support for this vulnerable group of young people.
The strategy highlights the stark differences in outcomes between care leavers and their peers (see graph), and calls for improvements across every aspect of their life - from education, employment, benefits and health, through to housing and the justice system. Ensuring support travels with them into adulthood is a key focus of the strategy.
One of the most eye-catching measures is the Department for Work and Pensions' introduction of a "marker" system. This will enable Job Centre Plus staff to identify and prioritise care leavers in the benefits and employment support system.
The Department for Education has also pledged to amend statutory guidance so that all councils pay a minimum of £2,000 leaving care grants to help care leavers set up home. Housing support is another area of reform, with the Department for Communities and Local Government pledging to give care leavers better access to social housing through a residency test.
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