Leaving Care

The information on this page is the National Leaving Care Advisory Service' interpretation of legislation. The information on this page will be kept as accurate as possible. Where possible, links are provided to the original legal source. For clarification for a particular case, please contact the nlcas enquiries service by email: ncas@raineronline.org or by calling us during office hours on 020 7336 4824.

The Legal Framework

The Children Act 1989 remains the general legal framework for young people in and leaving care. Most subsequent legislation has amended and supplemented its provision. It came into force on 14 October. Key principles of the 1989 Act in relation to looked after children and care leavers can be viewed here.

The Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 and the associated Regulations and Guidance were designed to improve the life chances of young people leaving care and provided important new entitlements. The Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 took a new, more prescriptive approach to the local authority’s responsibilities for care leavers. It gives local authorities a duty to provide services in many cases where before they had only discretion. Also, the types of services and the upper age limits for which they are responsible have been extended. However, the principle underpinning this approach is not new. It is the general Children Act principle, that local authorities with responsibility for the welfare and protection of young people who are separated from their families should provide them with the kind of support that parents provide their children at home. Purpose and Aims of the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000

The purpose of the Children (Leaving Care) Act is to improve the life chances of young people living in and leaving care. The main aims are:

To delay young people’s discharge from care until they are prepared and ready to leave
To improve the assessment, preparation and planning for leaving care
To provide better personal support for young people after leaving care
To improve the financial arrangements for care leavers

New local authority duties under the Children (Leaving Care) Act:

Assess and meet needs
Pathway Plans
Personal Advisers
Assistance to achieve goals agreed in Pathway Plans
Support and accommodation
Financial support
Keep in touch

Legal rulings since the Children Leaving Care Act

This section includes information about criminal injuries compensation, overnight stays at friends, access to files, parenting, maternity and paternity rights, dealing with the police, drugs, debt, hire purchase, utility bills, loans and credit, healthcare.

Young Persons Guide to Children (Leaving Care ) Act 2000 download