Three South London councils are paying outside organisations £10,000 per week or more to look after children in their care.

There were at least 22 children looked after by Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark councils whose residential care placements cost £10,000 or more last year, Freedom of Information (FOI) requests reveal.

Kids in expensive placements often have complex and severe mental health problems or serious behavioural issues.

Residential care placements can include children’s homes and secure children’s homes.

It previously also included unregulated accommodation, which since April has fallen under Ofsted’s remit.

In 2022/23, Lewisham spent £10,000 or more on 13 residential care placements. Lambeth had eight placements costing at least £10,000.

Southwark spent a five-figure sum on an undisclosed number of placements between one and 10. (The council refused to provide an exact figure, citing concerns about identifying individuals).

There is a nationwide shortage of suitable placements for children with complex needs and those that do exist are often offered by expensive private providers.

A 2022 report by government body the Competition and Markets Authority said the children’s social care market ‘left local authorities hamstrung in their efforts to find suitable and affordable placements in children’s homes or foster care.’

The number of children’s social care placements costing £10,000 or more per week has increased 1,150 per cent in five years, the Local Government Association (LGA) revealed last year.

Figures revealed through FOIs suggest the increased cost of placements is causing inner South London councils’ spending on accommodation for kids to balloon.

Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark were asked to detail the amount they spent on private children’s home placements for the five financial years up to 2022/23.

Lambeth Council said it shelled out more than £6.4 million on them last year compared to just over £4.1 million in 2018/19.

Southwark Council said it spent over £10.1 million on ‘all children’s residential placements’, including secure children’s homes. Five years ago in 2018/19, the council shelled out £7.32 million on these placements.

Lewisham Council replied saying that it spent £11.35 million on ‘independent fostering agencies’ in 2022/23. Five years ago in 2018/19, the council spent £8.34 million on such agencies.

Councillor Jasmine Ali, deputy leader of Southwark Council and cabinet member for children, education and refugees said: “Our preference is to find foster carers to provide a loving home close to our children’s local communities. However, we know that foster care isn’t always the best or preferred option for all our children.

“This is why we have expanded our offer to include children’s homes that accommodate very small numbers of children. There are exceptions where different placements are in the best interest of the child’s needs and safety, which can of course come at a higher cost.”

A Lewisham Council spokesperson said: “When making decisions about where to place a child or young person in our care, our first priority is securing a placement that meets their needs and ensures their safety and wellbeing.

"Value for money is also important and only a small proportion of residential placements cost more than £10,000 a week. This is when there are specific and complex circumstances or needs that we need to support, for example through specialist provision.”

A Lambeth Council spokesperson said: “The cost of children’s social care placements has risen for councils across the country, and Lambeth is no exception.

"The lack of children’s social care placements is driving up costs and we support wider local government sector calls for the government to both invest in the sector and act to address shortages.

“That includes new Department for Education programmes to support councils with the recruitment and retention of foster carers, the creation of more children’s homes and the availability of more support services for children with complex mental health needs.”