There were 414 looked-after children in Enfield as of 31st March this year, up from 372 on the same date in 2020

The number of children in care in Enfield has risen 11% in four years to give the borough one of the highest rates in outer London.

Newly published government data shows there were 414 looked-after children in Enfield as of 31st March this year, up from 372 on the same date in 2020.

The rate of 51 per 10,000 children aged under 18 living in care puts Enfield joint fourth among 19 outer London boroughs, although still a long way below the national average of 70 per 10,000.

Across England, the number of children in care has risen 5% over this period to 83,632. According to analysis by the Local Government Association, there are now over 1,500 children in placements each costing the equivalent of over £500,000 every year, while the largest 15 private providers make an average of 23% profit.

The figures have been released as the new Labour government prepares to reform children’s social care by offering stronger regulation on placements and more support for families.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson says the reforms will “crack down on care providers making excessive profit, tackle unregistered and unsafe provision and ensure earlier intervention to keep families together and help children to thrive”.

The increasing cost of children’s social care is one of the biggest factors driving rising costs for local councils, with an Enfield Council finance report last week stating that this year’s budget for spending on looked-after children was likely to be overspent by £5.8m. Nationally, spending on these services has more than doubled in 15 years.

Announcing the government’s children’s social care reforms this week, Phillipson said: “Our care system has suffered from years of drift and neglect. It’s bankrupting councils, letting families down, and above all, leaving too many children feeling forgotten, powerless and invisible.

“We want to break down the barriers to opportunity and end the cycle of crisis through ambitious reforms to give vulnerable children the best life chances – because none of us thrive until all of us do.”

Council leader Ergin Erbil is backing the government’s reforms and said: “Looked after children in Enfield deserve high quality care – and taxpayers must be given value for money. That’s what these reforms are all about.

“Labour is fixing the foundations of a broken children’s social care system after years of neglect and ballooning costs under the Conservatives. Today, we are spending far too much money on crisis-level intervention, and some of the most vulnerable children are
being failed. That has to change and the work of change has begun.

“Labour will crack down on care providers making excessive profit, tackle unregistered and unsafe provision and ensure earlier intervention to keep families together and help children thrive.”

New government rules will require key placements providers to share their finances with the government, allowing profiteering to be challenged. Increasing financial transparency will ensure the providers that have the biggest impact on the market don’t unexpectedly go under and leave children without a home.

There will also be a “backstop” law to put a limit on the profit providers can make. Not-for-profit providers and those backed by social investment are being called on to come forward to set up homes to strengthen the system.

Ofsted will also be given new powers to issue civil fines to providers, working more quickly to deter unscrupulous behaviour than with existing criminal powers.

More widely, the government is beginning the process of rebalancing the whole children’s social care system in favour of early intervention, giving every family the legal right to be involved in decisions made about children entering the care system.

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