Unregistered placements for vulnerable young people “highly unsatisfactory”, senior judge tells MPs

There is “legitimate public concern” as to the accommodation where vulnerable young people are being placed, the President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, has warned MPs.

Giving evidence before the House of Commons Justice Select Committee, Sir Andrew warned that state run premises to provide secure accommodation for children and young people are of a “limited number” and are “very oversubscribed”.

He told MPs: “Often, it's ad hoc arrangements which are organised by a commercial agency, often for commercial benefit of a high order. The fees that are charged for looking after a youngster are very high, and come out of a local authority's budget.

“Ofsted have a duty to ensure that all children’s homes are regulated. Often unregistered places do not want to be regulated but because they’re often the only resource available, the child has to be placed with them.”

Earlier this month, an investigation by The Observer revealed that hundreds of vulnerable children in England are being sent to homes not registered with Ofsted every year because of a “chronic shortage” of places in secure local authority units.

The study found that councils placed 706 children, the majority of them under the age of 16, in homes that were not registered with Ofsted in 2022-23.

The Family President also raised the issue of court security, following an incident in November last year where a family court judge was attacked in Milton Keynes County Court during a hearing.

Sir Andrew warned that there was “apprehension” among judges about security.

He said: “It’s quite striking this difference between the security arrangements in a criminal court and those in a family court, where often domestic abuse is an issue. Not frequently, but not out of the ordinary, some people become very excited by what’s going on and some people lose control of their behaviour. And it could happen in any court.”

The committee heard that the Family President, the Lady Chief Justice and Senior President of Tribunals are looking at changes that could be made.

Turning to the Family Drug and Alcohol Court (FDAC), the President highlighted to MPs its role in dealing with domestic abuse.

He said: “The FDAC has found a way of supporting victims who may have been through a number of abusive relationships, to break the cycle.”

He added: “I am keen that we somehow use the D and A in FDAC for domestic abuse, even if there are no drug or alcohol issues. […] We've learnt enough to see that if we can get a parent, often a mother, at an impressionable stage, it's an opportunity to break a cycle which might not otherwise be broken.”

The Select Committee meeting can be seen here.

Lottie Winson