Looked After Children and Care Leavers

This topic area covers statistics and information relating to looked after children and care leavers in Hull including local strategic need and service provision. General information relating to children and young people is covered within Children and Young People, and detailed information on our Young People Health and Wellbeing Surveys is covered within Tools and Resources.

This page contains information from the Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips. Information is taken ‘live’ from the site so uses the latest available data from Fingertips and displays it on this page. As a result, some comments on this page may relate to an earlier period of time until this page is next updated (see review dates at the end of this page).

Headlines

• As at 31 March 2024, there were a total of 747 looked after children in Hull (122 children per 10,000 population). This is 15th highest across the 152 upper-tier local authorities in England and almost twice as high as the national average (70 per 10,000 population). However, there had been a considerable decrease from 31 March 2021 when Hull was seventh highest nationally (out of 147) and there were 947 looked after children in Hull (160 per 10,000 population).
• In Hull, just under half (48%) of looked after children have emotional wellbeing which is a cause for concern in 2023/24 which is statistically significantly higher than England (41%) and higher than the regional average (42%).
• The average attainment 8 score is the sum of GCSE grades 1-9 for eight qualifying qualifications with maths and English included twice (thus the maximum score if 90). For children leaving school, the average attainment 8 score of all children in Hull was 42.2 but this was only 14.9 for looked after children for 2022/23. This represents a very substantial inequalities gap which will impact on future and employment options for looked after children. This inequalities gap was not unique to Hull, with a similar large gap in the average attainment 8 score for England (46.2 versus 19.4). Only qualifying subjects count so a pupil who achieves eight GCSEs including some non-qualifying subjects will received a lower score for another pupil who achieves eight GCSEs in all qualifying subjects. So looked after children obtain lower grades or undertake fewer qualifying subjects (or a mixture of both of these).
• Eight in ten of looked after children in Hull had their childhood vaccinations in 2023/24 compared to 82% for England and 86% for the Yorkshire and the Humber region. There was a sharp decrease in Hull to 51% for 2020/21 presumably due to the COVID-19 pandemic, however there was no such decrease nationally or regionally (only a very small decrease).

The Population Affected – Why Is It Important?

When a child or young person is cared for by the local authority this is called being looked after. Children and young people can be looked after for long or short periods of time. A child can become looked after for lots of reasons, but the main reasons are:

• if a child breaks the law, the court can decide that they should be looked after.
• if a child has been harmed and needs to be protected, a court can make an order that they should be looked after. This is called a care order.
• a parent can ask the local authority to look after their child, usually for a short time, if they are having family problems, are unwell or need a break.
• out of area looked after children placed in Hull.

If a court decides that the local authority should look after a child, the local authority has responsibility for them. If a parent has asked the local authority to accommodate their child, the child’s parents are still responsible for them. The local authority always work closely with children, their parents and families to make sure that they take their views into account in any decisions that are made. There are also a number of looked after children placed in Hull from other local authorities.

The local authority draws up a care plan when a child first becomes looked after. The plan lays out what help and support the child and their family need, and how the local authority will help them to get it. They talk to the child and the other people involved in their life, such as parents, carers, teachers, health visitors and other people who know them. As things change over time, the care plan needs to be looked at regularly to make sure it’s up to date and still works, through a looked after children review.

A local authority will:

• help children and families who are having difficulties dealing with everyday family life.
• protect children who are at risk of abuse and neglect.
• look after children who, for a variety of reasons, can not live at home.
• provide advice and support through key workers to families and children experiencing difficulties.
• advise about rights and benefits.
• prepare looked after young people for independent living.
• work with families in a preventative way, supporting families so that, wherever possible, children can stay in their own homes rather than go into care.
• provide respite and emergency fostering services.

Looked after children come from a range of different backgrounds and have varied experiences of care. Each child has their own different and specific set of needs. However, almost all looked after children are from backgrounds of deprivation, poor parenting, abuse and neglect. These experiences can leave children with complex emotional and mental health needs, and social and behavioural difficulties which can increase their vulnerability to abuse.

Research suggests that when looked after children are compared with children who have not been in care, they tend to have poorer outcomes in a number of areas such as educational attainment and mental and physical health. However, this is not necessarily the case when they are compared with other groups of children who are likely to have had similar experiences, such as children in need. One study found that looked after children who were continuously in care in England had better educational attainment than children in need.

The Hull Picture

Estimated Numbers in Hull

As at 31 March 2024, there were 122 looked after children per 10,000 population. This is the 15th highest rate of 152 upper tier local authorities in England, and the second highest in the region, and almost twice as high as the England average.

Between 2010/11 and 2015/16, the rate of looked after children was 120 children per 10,000 children or slightly lower, but has been increasing since 2015/16, reaching a peak of 160 per 10,000 children in 2020/21. The rate has decreased in the last 2-3 years, although is still very high. The rate in Hull was seventh highest rate of the 147 upper tier local authorities in England for both 2020/21 and 2021/22, but was 12th highest (out of 145) for 2022/23 and is currently 15th highest (out of 152).

As at 31 March 2024, there were a total of 747 looked after children in Hull.

Emotional Wellbeing

Information is available on the percentage of looked after children whose emotional wellbeing is a cause for concern. This relates to children aged 5-16 years at the date of their latest assessment who have been looked after for at least 12 months on the 31 March of the year whose strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ) score is 17 or more.

The percentage in Hull for 2023/24 at 48% which is higher than England and among the highest across the Yorkshire and Humber region.

There has been some year-on-year variation in the percentage of looked after children whose emotional wellbeing is a cause for concern, but for most years there has been no statistically significant difference in the percentage between Hull and England (except for 2018/19 when the percentage in Hull was significantly lower than England). However, in the last year the percentage has increased in Hull and for 2023/24, the percentage is statistically significantly higher than England.

Educational Attainment

Outcomes for young people leaving school are much poorer among looked after children with considerably lower average Attainment 8 scores.

Attainment 8 measures achievements of a pupil across eight qualifications including mathematics and English with the latter two subjects double-weighted. Essentially this means that the highest score a pupil can achieve is 90 as the highest score in a single qualification is 9 thus there are 72 points for 8 qualifications but a further 18 points to add for mathematics and English as they are included twice. Only qualifying subjects count so if a pupil achieves eight GCSEs but only six of them are in qualifying subjects then they will score lower as two subjects will not be scored or counted. So comparisons depend on the range of subjects taken by pupils (which may differ for looked after children), and some independent schools may have other qualifications which don’t count towards the Attainment 8 score.

The old grades of A* and A are equivalent to numerical grades 9-7, grades B and C are equivalent to numerical grades 6-4 with 5 representing a ‘strong pass’ and 4 representing a ‘standard pass’, grades D to G are equivalent to numerical grades 3-1. Whilst there is no direct equivalence, the bottom of grade 7 is aligned with the bottom of grade A, the bottom of grade 4 is aligned with the bottom of grade C and the bottom of grade 1 is aligned with the bottom of grade G. Whilst grades 4-5 technically count as a pass, many sixth forms insist on a minimum of of 5s or 6s as a condition of entry for further study. The government school league tables are based on the percentage of pupils who achieve a 5 or above in English and maths GCSEs, and if you get a grade 3 or below in English or maths, you will have to resit next year.

The average Attainment 8 score for all children in Hull for 2022/23 was 42.2, but only 14.9 among looked after children. It is likely that looked after children obtain lower outcomes in their GCSEs, but it is also possible that they undertake fewer qualifying GCSEs.

The overall Attainment 8 scores increased in 2019/20 and 2020/21 and then decreased in 2021/22 to levels similar to those observed in 2018/19, but further decreased in 2022/23. It is difficult to ascertain the overall trend in recent years because there were no examinations in 2019/20 and 2020/21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualifications and educational attainment were determined on the basis of coursework and other factors for these two years. This means that the results in 2019/20 and 2020/21 are not comparable with earlier years. However, between 2021/22 (the first year there were examinations following the pandemic) and 2022/23, there has been a decrease overall.

For looked after children their Attainment 8 scores also increased between 2018/19 and 2020/21 due to the pandemic, although there has also been an increase subsequently and as a result, the percentages in Hull for 2021/22 is higher than it was prior to the pandemic in 2018/19. However, between 2021/22 and 2022/23, there has been a very significant decrease to a new low of 14.9 for the Attainment 8 score.

Childhood Vaccinations

The percentage of looked after children who had been looked after for at least a year at the 31 March who had had their childhood vaccinations in the year was 80% for 2023/24 which was lower than England and among the lowest in the region.

Between 2013/14 and 2016/17, the percentage of looked after children who had had their vaccinations was similar to or higher than England, but decreased in 2017/18. Whilst the percentage increased slightly for 2018/19 it was still statistically significantly lower than England and lower than the percentages between 2013/14 and 2016/17.

The percentage decreased again for 2019/20 and decreased sharply for 2020/21 with only just over half of children having their vaccinations. Examining the take up figures for Hull alone, it might be speculated that the reductions were due to the COVID-19 pandemic, however, this was not the case for England or across the region were rates only fell by one or two percentages points between 2018/19 and 2020/21. That said, for Hull, the figure increased sharply in 2021/22, to 87%, a level not seen since 2016/17. However, this has been followed by a decrease to 80% for 2022/23 and the percentage has remained at 80% for 2023/24.

For 2023/24, around 109 looked after children did not have their childhood vaccinations.

Strategic Need and Service Provision

Hull City Council’s ‘looked after children pledge’ is of significant importance in relation to this very special group of children and young people, and it confirms the commitment to them as corporate parents.

The Pledge has been developed working with children and young people in Hull who have experience of being looked after, and focuses specifically on what they need from the local authority to do to support them in reaching their full potential.

As background, in 2007 the Government released a White Paper entitled ‘Care Matters, Time for Change’. The recommendations from this White Paper were aimed at improving outcomes for looked after children and young people. One of these recommendations was that each local authority would develop a ‘Children in Care Council’ (CiCC). The main aim of the CiCC was to develop a pledge to looked after children which would be adopted by the local authority and be unique to their area. Once adopted the Pledge would provide each CiCC across the country with a benchmark from which to measure the effectiveness of the services children and young people in care receive. It was left to each local authority to determine who should facilitate, maintain and develop the Children in Care Councils. In Hull the job was given to the ‘Rights and Participation Project’, (RAPP), as they had a history of working creatively and consulting with looked after children. In 2008 RAPP invited a group of children and young people in care to come together to begin discussing the idea of a CiCC. They decided at this point to call the group ‘Young Voices in Care’ (YVIC). YVIC began the process of gathering the views of children and young people about the pledge and what should be included. Some of the group attended National Conferences which gave them an idea as to how others were progressing. By August 2011 the pledge was complete.

Hull City Council’s pledge to children and young people –

• support you in reaching your dreams.
• help you to have fun and get involved in clubs and activities so that you make new friends and develop your interests.
• provide you with a safe and comfortable home where you can feel part of a family or group.
• keep you safe from harm where you live, at school and in the city.
• support and guide you with any health or emotional needs.
• help you to get quick and useful information and appointments.
• help you to do the best you can at school and give you support with reading, writing, maths or any other subjects when you need it.
• support you in taking up education and training opportunities after you leave school.
• support you to become successful adults with a positive future.

Resources

The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/

Rahilly T and Hendry E. Promoting the wellbeing of children in care: messages from research, 2014.

Bazalgette L, Rahilly T, and Trevelyan T. Achieving emotional wellbeing for looked after children: a whole system approach, 2015.

Luke N, et al. What works in preventing and treating poor mental health in looked after children? 2014.

Sebba J, et al. The educational progress of looked after children in England: linking care and educational data, 2015.

Updates

This page was last updated / checked on 6 March 2025.

This page is due to be updated / checked in September 2025.