Children’s home providers in England putting profit over need, says Ofsted

Unregistered children’s homes providers were charging increasingly exorbitant costs, up to £30,000 a week in some cases, the inspectorate said. Photograph: Jack Sullivan/Alamy

The number of registered children’s homes in England has risen to a record high, but providers are increasingly prioritising profit over care needs, Ofsted has warned.

The watchdog said new children’s homes were proliferating in areas of the country where housing was cheapest, suggesting the rise was driven mostly by profit and this was “bending the system out of shape”.