Councillor Zena Brabazon, Cabinet Member for Children, Schools & Families, approved significant expenditure on commissioning independent fostering agencies and residential children's homes. These decisions aim to ensure the council meets its statutory duties to provide sufficient and appropriate accommodation for children in its care.

Commissioning Independent Fostering Agencies

The council has approved an expenditure of up to £22.5 million over four years to commission independent fostering agencies (IFAs) through a Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS). This move is intended to establish long-term relationships with providers, improve market management, control costs, and increase the number of foster placements available within the borough. In the 2023/2024 financial year, £5.8 million was spent on IFA placements for 123 children. The new DPS will allow the council to commission fostering placements until at least 2028, in line with the Procurement Act 2023.

The decision to approve the expenditure and the commissioning process was made to fulfil the council's statutory duty under Section 22G of the Children Act 1989 to provide sufficient local accommodation for looked-after children. The report highlighted that continuing to spot purchase foster care provision without a framework would lack purchasing control and fail to drive cost efficiencies, while also not being compliant with procurement regulations. An alternative of delivering services entirely in-house was discounted as it would not meet the sufficiency requirements for all children.

Authority has also been delegated to the Director of Children's Services, in consultation with Councillor Brabazon, to award, vary, or extend individual call-offs or block contract arrangements under the DPS up to £1 million per award. This delegation applies to contracts valued at £500,000 or more.

Commissioning Residential Children's Homes

A budget of up to £39.7 million over four years has been approved for commissioning residential children's homes placements via a Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS). This decision aims to ensure a sufficient range of local residential homes are available to meet the needs of children in the council's care. In the 2023/2024 financial year, £8.5 million was spent on these placements. The new DPS will allow the council to commission these placements until at least 2028.

The decision was made to comply with the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and to support the objectives outlined in Haringey's Looked After Children's Sufficiency Strategy 2022-2026, which aims to improve the availability and quality of placements. The council has a statutory duty under the Children Act 1989 and the Children and Young Person Act 2008 to secure sufficient accommodation for children in its care.

The report noted that in FY 2024/2025, £9 million was allocated for children's homes placements, with 26 children looked after placed in such homes as of January 2025. The estimated annual expenditure on providers for children with emotional/behavioural difficulties and learning disabilities is £6.9 million.

Similar to the fostering agencies decision, authority has been delegated to the Director of Children's Services, in consultation with Councillor Brabazon, to award, vary, or extend individual call-offs or block contract arrangements under the DPS up to £2 million per award for contracts valued at £500,000 or more.

The alternative of continuing to spot purchase without a framework was discounted as it would not be compliant with procurement regulations. Delivering services entirely in-house was also considered insufficient to meet the needs of all looked-after children, despite the council operating its own six-bedded children's home.