Plans to provide care and supported accommodation for unaccompanied child asylum seekers in Bridgend County Borough have moved a step forward.
The council’s cabinet have given their approval for the relevant modifications to be made to an existing contract with supported accommodation provider Dewis Ltd.
As part of the mandated National Transfer Scheme, the Home Office operates a rota, which requires local authorities within each region to ‘take it in turns’ to accept children into their care.
The Home Office previously advised that the Cwm Taf Morgannwg region has a maximum allocation of 91 unaccompanied children, which equates to an overall total of 29 children for Bridgend.
To date, the council has successfully placed six children by using our supported accommodation and independent foster agencies. However, placements in these environments are very limited.
Two more children are required to be placed into the care of Bridgend County Borough Council in the coming months. They are expected to arrive between January and March 2023. The duration of the mandatory placements is currently unknown.
A registered social housing landlord has recently offered the council a three-bedroom property, which is deemed to be very suitable for young people.
The service requires a support team to be based in the home at appropriate times during the day to support young people in line with their specific needs.
The current supported accommodation contract in place with Dewis only allows a 10% change regarding the value of the contract, but to meet the requirements of this mandatory scheme a change of 36% is needed. The approval from cabinet, will now allow this change to be put into place.
It’s really important that we do all we can to make sure unaccompanied child asylum seekers receive all the support that they both need and deserve in Bridgend County Borough.
The contractual modifications will play a vital role in making sure that the children receive support that meets their individual needs.
Councillor Jane Gebbie, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Social Services and Early Help
