Towards a London-wide care offer

We estimate that there are 15,270 care leavers aged 18-25 across London.

Like all young adults in London, care leavers will find themselves moving across the city to be closer to opportunities, love, friendships, or to live somewhere more suited to their preferences. However, as they balance moving across local council boundaries with the transition to adulthood, numerous challenges arise.

Once care leavers move out of the area they grew up in, they will almost immediately face a drop-off in support available to them, ranging from no longer being a priority on the housing register, to receiving no help with their council tax bill.

Care experienced young people lack the support networks many of us take for granted. When faced with an unexpected bill or illness they don’t have the ability to turn to friends or family.

This is why it is so important for councils across London to co-ordinate their support on offer to care leavers, so that they can move around the city and live a happy and healthy life without facing significant barriers.

The report highlights that care leavers often aren’t aware about the support available in their local offer. You can’t access something if you don’t know about it and this lack of awareness of rights and entitlements creates further challenges for care leavers.

Furthermore, there are different levels of financial support available to care leavers across London, ranging from support with Council Tax Bills, assistance with savings, to providing help resolving immigration and asylum status. Care leavers who move around the city, therefore, will face significant cuts to their income.

The report also highlights that there is a lack of joined-up referencing within local offer documents. Information about social housing priority status often isn’t included, neither is it clear if care leavers are priority groups on Local Welfare Assistance Schemes. Care leavers may not be aware of their status, instead having to rely on their Personal Advisor knowing about it, leading them to miss out on much needed support.

All London Councils and the Greater London Authority should come together to agree to a pan-London ‘common core’ offer for care leavers. This would mean that care leavers who have been in the care of any London authority will have a consistent minimum package of support available to them as they begin adulthood.

This common offer should include some of the below priorities:

• A London care leavers digital hub which sets out entitlements and opportunities for care leavers in London in one place
• A pan-London council tax exemption, meaning that care leavers who have been in the care of any London authority will be exempt from paying council tax wherever they live in the capital, up until the age of 25
• Local authorities in London should ensure that all looked after children have their immigration status secured before they leave care
• A commitment that local authorities across London reserve a set number of their in-house apprenticeships for care leavers, ensuring that they are given guidance and support from the application process through to the end of their placement
• Free or subsidised prescriptions for all care leavers in London aged 18-25