Sandwell Council spending £130,000 on manager to oversee buying two children’s homes

Sandwell Council wants to buy two properties in the borough to care for up to four children with complex needs.

The local authority will be spending £130,000 recruiting a ‘project manager’ for up to 20 months to oversee it buying two children’s homes in partnership with Sandwell Children’s Trust, which run’s the borough’s children’s services on its behalf, and an “experienced third-party organisation.”

As much as £1.2million has also been set aside by the council to buy two detached homes – making them the first to have been run by the council since 2013.

Sandwell Council’s cabinet will discuss the plans at a meeting on February 5.

The report to cabinet said: “Research highlights that the current market for children’s homes is not benefiting local authorities, providers, or children due to a mismatch between demand and supply, and a lack of flexible, responsive residential options.

“By owning and managing our own children’s homes, the council and Sandwell Children’s Trust can ensure higher standards of care and better oversight, leading to improved outcomes for children.

“This approach can be more cost-effective compared to placing children in private homes, where demand led pricing can occur.”

Up to £600,000 could be provided by the Department for Education to buy and renovate the two properties – with Sandwell Council matching the government grant.

The cost of placements increased 14% in the last year according to the council.

The average cost of a placement in Sandwell in 2023/24 was £6,400 per child per week, the cabinet report noted. As many as 13 placements were costing £10,000 or more per week in the same year.

The weekly total cost for placements in April 2024 was approximately £403,000.

Many children with complex needs are forced into homes outside Sandwell due to a lack of facilities in the borough, many by a “considerable distance” away, according to the cabinet report, which pushes costs up for the council.

Sandwell also has a shortage of ‘short-term’ accommodation which forces the council to spend more than £15,000 on some placements.

In 2023, the local authority said it carried out research into smaller two-bed accommodation with exclusivity rights for Sandwell’s children but despite receiving interest over a potential contract from several providers, only one went on to make a bid and it was nevertheless non-compliant.