Looked After Children

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The term ‘looked after’ has a specific, legal meaning based on the Children Act 1989. A child is looked after by a local authority if he or she is provided with accommodation for a continuous period of more than 24 hours (under Section 20 and 21), or if he or she is subject to a care order (Children Act 1989, Part IV) and/or placement order. Our belief in County Durham is that children are best supported to grow and achieve within their own families. However, there are exceptional circumstances where, despite our best efforts to support families, there are a small number of children for whom it is not in their best interests to be cared for by their immediate family (Children Looked After).

Children Looked After are children and young people for whom the Local Authority becomes their Corporate Parent. This means that the Local Authority is responsible for finding them a safe and stable home. Where it is in the best interests of the child this could be a short term arrangement whilst the family is supported so that children can safely return home; or this can lead to the children and young people being in our care for the longer term. ‘Looked After’ is a term introduced in the Children’s Act 1989 and many legal aspects have been amended or updated in the Children and Families Act 2015.

The documents we publish on this page are either legally required to be made available for inspection, for information and analysis purposes or may have been supplied by the public and so in some cases may not be fully accessible. If, for any reason, you cannot access the documents and need an alternative format, please email ina@durham.gov.uk.

Factsheet: Looked After Children Factsheet (PDF; 619Kb)

  • The rate of children looked after (CLA) in County Durham is statistically significantly higher than England, but lower than the North East and statistical neighbours.
  • As at March 31st 2022 the children looked after rate in County Durham was 99 per 10,000 children aged under 18 years, compared to 110/10,000 in the North East, 106.8/10,000 for statistical neighbours and 70/10,000 in England. Rates have been increasing over time in all areas.
  • All North East Local Authorities display CLA rates that are statistically significantly higher than England, other than Northumberland (73/10,000).
  • In County Durham the number of children looked after has increased from 630 in 2013 to 985 in 2022. A rise of 56%.
  • Of these 985 children and young people being looked after by the local authority, 10% were placed for care outside the Local Authority and further than 20 miles from where they used to live.
  • In 2021/22 the percentage of looked after children whose emotional wellbeing is a cause for concern in County Durham was 39%. This is not statistically significantly different to the North East (39%) or England (37%).
  • In 2021, at Key Stage 4, the average Attainment 8 Score for children looked after in County Durham was 26.6 . This is similar to regional, statistical neighbour and national benchmarks.
  • Children Looked After are known to have high rates of Special Educational Need (SEN) when compared to the general population. In County Durham the proportion of children looked after with SEN i.e. SEN Support or an EHC Plan was 53.3% (2021/22), which is less than the average for all English unitary authorities.
    • In Durham, the proportion of looked after children with SEN support is 28.5% (2021), which is greater than the average for All English unitary authorities (26.6%).
    • In Durham, the proportion of looked after children with an EHC plan is 24.8% (2021/22), which is less than the average for All English unitary authorities (31.4%).

Links to data

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