Department for Education written question – answered at on 25 June 2020.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what are the current legal monitoring requirements for children placed on short break placements.
Local authorities are required to monitor short break placements as set out in Regulation 48 of the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (England) Regulations 2010. The Adoption and Children (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 amended Regulation 48 to provide temporary flexibility, allowing visits to take place at regular intervals during a short break, as agreed with the child’s parents (or anyone else with parental responsibility for the child) and their Independent Reviewing Officer. The 2020 Regulations also specify that these visits can be conducted by telephone, video-link or other electronic means.
Timings for reviews of the child’s case have also been temporarily amended by the 2020 Regulations. The responsible authority must first review the child’s case as soon as is reasonably practicable from the start of the first placement, and subsequent reviews must be carried out at regular intervals during any short break.
These flexibilities should only be used when necessary on a case by case basis and only when consistent with the child’s safety and wellbeing.
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