'Relocating Adolescents': The Costs of Out-of-Area Placements as a Response to Extra-Familial Risk/Harm

In the UK, there has been increased awareness of the harm adolescents face beyond their families. There is no national strategy for safeguarding adolescents. One intervention that comes with particularly high costs is relocation placements by children's social care that move adolescents some distance from their communities. This research aims to contribute to the evidence about the relocation of adolescents exposed to, or at risk of extra-familial risk/harm. The research reported here sought to explore the costs associated with relocation placements. Data were gathered about the time taken to carry out the social work processes associated with relocation placements and about the costs associated with the placements. Two interviews and six focus groups were conducted with twenty-four participants. The findings highlight that each adolescent had a unique context, which was influenced by the type of extra-familial risk/harm. The service response therefore needed to be tailored, and unit costs are presented as a range from 22,000 pound to 170,000 pound for six months. There is substantial variability in the use and costs of relocation placements. The findings offer evidence for earlier intervention to avoid extra-familial risk/harm. The financial costs of relocation placements need to be considered within the context of the well-being of adolescents. In the UK, in recent years, there has been an increased awareness of the types of harms adolescents can experience in their peer groups, schools and neighbourhoods. These harms, commonly known as 'extra-familial risk/harms', have become a matter for children's social care. One intervention when adolescents are at risk of harm beyond their families is 'relocation'; the use of out-of-area placements to move an adolescent away from the harm they are experiencing. These placements can come at a high cost to children's social care teams. Recent research has evidenced a range of negative impacts that such placements can have on adolescents and their families, despite reducing risks of physical harm. This research project aimed to investigate, for the first time, the rate, impact and cost of relocations across England, Wales and Scotland. The data on the rate and impact have been previously published in the British Journal of Social Work; this article presents data on the estimated costs of relocations in England. It is concluded that these costs indicate a need for early intervention to prevent significant harm in adolescence.