Children’s Homes Association says organisations must be ultimately owned in UK to be member
The Children’s Homes Association (CHA) has announced changes to its membership criteria from 6 April 2024, including a new requirement for organisations to be ultimately owned in the UK.
From 6 April, to be a member of the CHA, organisations must:
- Be ultimately owned in the U.K.
- Have wholly or majority shareholders who are registered as a UK tax payer
- Not receive loans or investments that originate from a tax haven.
The Association said: “While we reaffirm our commitment to a mixed economy of children’s social care and are proud to represent so many excellent providers across the private, public and charity sectors, corporate structures involving tax havens are contrary to the concept of social value and the ethics of social care and therefore do not align with the values and vision of The Children’s Homes Association.”
The CHA is the membership body for children’s homes in England and Wales.
In its announcement, the association noted that the majority of residential provision suitable for the most complex children and young people is developed in the independent, for-profit sector.
It warned: “At this time of unprecedented demand for increasingly specialist services, without continued investment from this independent sector there will not be sufficient expansion of provision, ultimately denying children and young people their best chance of a positive future, and in turn creating a multi-billion pound ‘ticking time bomb’ of potential lifetime financial costs of care to the state”.
At an evidence session with the Education Select committee last month (26 March) Dr Mark Kerr, CEO of the CHA, outlined barriers to the opening of children’s homes. He said: “For some of our most high-quality providers, it’s taking up to 12 to 18 months to get planning permission.
“If you combine high interest rates, the shortage of registered managers, problems with planning permission and the overall toxicity towards private providers – no one wants to open up more provision.”
Responding to the CHA’s membership announcement, the President of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS), Andy Smith, said: “ADCS welcomes the announcement from the Children’s Homes Association to change its membership criteria so that organisations are UK based and not benefitting from tax havens. This sends a positive signal about the need for a more stable care system that is committed to meeting the needs of our most vulnerable children and young people above all else. We now urgently need national government to create a set of national rules to ensure the system is reset in favour of children's best interests.”
Smith noted that the ADCS continues to call on government to initiate a shift away from "profiteering" in the placements market, and to invest in not for profit provision.
He said: “Our priority must always be on caring for children by providing them with homes that meet their needs, not maximising profits.”
Lottie Winson
