The majority of social workers support banning profit-making companies from providing children’s care, a Community Care poll has found.
This follows the publication of a bill in Wales to end profit-making from the provision of children's care placements.
Under the Health and Social Care (Wales) Bill, only not-for-profit organisations and councils would be able to provide fostering, children’s home or secure accommodation placements, following a transitional period.
Wales would be the first UK country to enact such a ban, though the Scottish Government is committed to doing the same and for-profit provision is scarce - though legal - in Northern Ireland.
In England, as of 2023, independent fostering agencies (IFAs) accounted for 47% of filled mainstream fostering places and private children’s homes accounted for 81% of residential placements.
But what would be the ideal way forward?
In a recent Community Care poll, 55% of practitioners backed a ban on profit-making companies providing care placements. A further 35% said they supported a ban in principle, but feared it would worsen placement shortages.The remaining 9% disagreed with children’s care placements only being provided by not-for-profit organisations or councils.
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