Agenda item

The Strategic Director of Social Care and Education submits a report to provide an overview of children and young people who come to Leicester having arrived from abroad seeking safety, often referred to technically as “Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children”. The report relates specifically to children and young people who are looked after by the council or are eligible for support as care leavers and does not reference all new arrival families entering the city who do not receive support from social care.

The Strategic Director of Social Care and Education submitted a report to provide an overview of children and young people who come to Leicester having arrived from abroad seeking safety.

The Deputy City Mayor for Social Care, Health, and Community Safety introduced the item, noting the following:

• Sensitivity of language had been considered and the young people arriving from abroad were now known as ‘Children and Young People from Abroad Seeking Safety’ rather than ‘Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children.’ This was considered to be a more humanitarian term and was deemed to be more appropriate when supporting children experiencing trauma.
• Most young people arriving in Leicester were able to remain in the city. This differed to the situation for most other local authorities.
• The hard work of teams involved was acknowledged.

The Director of Children’s Social Work and Early Help gave highlights from the report. Points to note were:

·       There was a small increase in the numbers of children from abroad seeking safety. six additional children were now being looked after since the previous report came to scrutiny in June 2024.

·       There was a slight increase (to 61) in the number of young adults aged 18-25 being supported by The Local Authority Leaving Care teams.

·       There was an overwhelming majority of male young people being supported, with one female child within the Children Looked After Service. three female young people were supported by the leaving care team.

·       The children and young people supported were largely of Afghan heritage, this was followed by those of Iranian and Syrian ethnicity, having predominantly Kurdish heritage.

·       Pathways for children and young people arriving in Leicester were:

o   Spontaneous arrivals – such as those arriving on lorries.

o   The National Transfer Scheme – this had been created by central government to share responsibility for the number of children and young people across local authorities.

o   Those deemed by The Home Office to be of adult age and placed in adult accommodation (hotels) who were then referred to children’s services due to concerns that they were not adults.

o   Sometimes arrangements took place with other local authorities, such as to reunite siblings who had been separated.

·       Regarding placement options, children could be placed in foster care or children’s residential homes. All young people under the age of 18 would have an allocated Social Worker.

·       Those over the age of 18 were supported in semi-independent accommodation in the community. Assistance was given to access medical services such as dentists and opticians after an initial health assessment. Translation services were also provided.

·       Support would be provided in attending Home Office appointments.

·       Specialist provision provided included support from the Educational Psychology teams, support through creative arts, Leicester City in the Community football sessions, leisure passes, bus passes and support to maintain religious practices and faith.

·       Considerations were made for those who were not awarded permanent asylum. Assessment time frames could impact on appeal rights for those

     reaching the age of 18 during decision making process.

• Support is given by the Red Cross where families had become separated.
• The Creative Journey Intervention was a safe space where adults could explore the arts. Projects were also in place with Bullfrog Arts.

The Chair invited questions and comments. Points to note were:

• The was not a set timescale for accommodating 18-year-olds in the city. The current housing crises could impact on matters. Those in dire need could receive funding for private lets but this was arranged on a need-by-need basis.
• There was constant dialogue nationally and locally to develop regional pools of Foster Carers for children from abroad seeking safety, with carers accessing additional trauma training.
• Age assessments were robust, due to the legal framework, challenges tended to be costly but there was a high level of confidence in the assessment process.
• Paragraph 3.16 of the report gave figures on age assessment outcomes, with 4 of the 7 assessments since January 2024 leading to an outcome of the young person being over the age of 18 years.

• It was vital in terms of safeguarding to ensure that placements of children and adults were done appropriately.

• The £2m received by the local authority in grant funding did not cover all expenditure. This was a matter which was petitioned for by The Local Government Association. An acceleration in claim processing times had helped matters.
• A challenge was presented with young people over the age of 18 who were unsuccessful at an age assessment appeal. They would not have the right to work in the UK and would not be able to claim housing benefit. However, under the Leaving Care Act, there was a responsibility of care, this lead to strains on funding.
• Regarding Bullfrog Arts, Taiko drumming sessions were delivered as a means of stress relief.
• In terms of Ukrainian children, most were accompanied by family.
• Lessons learnt centred around incorporating local communities for trauma support. Collaboration work with other local authorities had included research on the experiences of children seeking safety on arrival in the UK and in other European countries. The voices of the children would be gathered to inform training.

AGREED:

1)    That the report be noted.

2)    For further 6 monthly updates to come to scrutiny.

3)    The proportions of 18+ and under 18’s to be included in the next report.

4)    For more information to come on trauma support provided by the Education Psychology service.

Councillor Dr Moore left the meeting during the discussion of this item.