With around 107,000 children in care in the UK (datapoint: NSPCC), it is vital not to brush the conversation about care – and how it impacts people – under the carpet.

To put some of the impact into context, the National Centre for Social Research and ADR UK (Administrative Data Research UK) recently published a UK-wide report (https://natcen.ac.uk/news/new-report-reveals-long-term-outcomes-uk-care-experienced-children) which states:

➡️In the eight years after leaving school, 25% of care experienced children in England had never been in employment or education compared to 4% among all school leavers.

➡️A child’s postcode in Northern Ireland can affect their chances of entering care: in 2010, children from the most deprived 10% of areas were four times more likely to end in care than those from the least deprived 10%. By 2020 this disparity doubled.

➡️Data from Wales found that 63% of voluntary arrangements became compulsory within two years, a trend occurring more frequently and rapidly over time. In around 1 in 2 cases, care proceedings were issued within four weeks of initial voluntary arrangements.

➡️Data from Scotland found kinship care has become the most common arrangement with 34% living in kinship care in 2023 compared to 13% in 2006.

➡️Children with experience of kinship care continue to experience lower attendance rates, higher exclusion rates, and lower qualification attainment compared to the general population.

➡️Of those with youth justice involvement, care experienced children, on average, had four times the number of cautions or convictions than non-care experienced children.

Socioeconomic status has an impact too. The Child Welfare Inequalities Project found that in England, the rate of children on a child protection plan (CPP) in the most deprived 10% of the country was 2.4 times the national average. (Source: https://www.communitycare.co.uk/2025/02/26/our-finding-that-social-care-touches-a-quarter-of-children-shows-the-need-to-tackle-poverty/#:~:text=Higher%20rates%20of%20intervention%20in,2.4%20times%20the%20national%20average).

So it’s for these reasons that The Common Good Network wants to signpost, showcase and celebrate the organisations that are helping care experienced people to overcome barriers to employment and education opportunities.

To see the full list, head to: Care Experienced – The Common Good and if you know an organisation that you think should be on there, please ask them to submit a listing via the form here: Add Listing