England · Councils · Children’s services

Children in Care by Council

England, 31 March 2025: 81,770 children looked after, 67 per 10,000 children

Down 1,760 (2.1 per cent) on 31 March 2024 (83,530).

44 per cent were placed outside their council's area. 3,040 were adopted in the year. 6,540 were unaccompanied asylum seeking children.

What “looked after” means

A child is looked after, or in care, when the council has taken on their care. DfE records each child’s legal status. Most are looked after under a care order made by a court; others under a voluntary agreement under section 20 of the Children Act 1989, where there is parental consent or no one with parental responsibility is in place; and some under a placement order, a court order allowing the council to place a child for adoption. A small number are detained for child protection reasons or under youth justice legal statuses.

In 2025, 75 per cent of children looked after in England were looked after under a care order, 19 per cent under a voluntary agreement and 6 per cent under a placement order (DfE).

The rate is children looked after per 10,000 children aged under 18 in the area. Children placed outside the council’s area are placed outside its boundary, which DfE counts whatever the distance. Unaccompanied asylum seeking children are children seeking asylum in the UK without a parent or carer; some councils look after many more than others.

This summary is from DfE’s release and its notes.

Rate per 10,000 children

Rank	Council	Children looked after	Rate per 10,000
1	Blackpool	531	184
2	Stoke-on-Trent	1,063	170
3	Hartlepool	332	157
4	Liverpool	1,416	145
5	Redcar and Cleveland	397	144
6	Middlesbrough	493	138
7	Halton	367	132
8	North East Lincolnshire	438	131
9	Stockton-on-Tees	564	125
10	Gateshead	503	124
11	Tameside	652	123
12	Hull	742	119
12	Shropshire	717	119
14	Durham	1,183	118
15	Darlington	266	117
15	St Helens	440	117
17	Torbay	282	114
18	Isle of Wight	258	110
19	Newcastle	654	107
20	Wirral	681	103
21	Rochdale	594	102
22	Plymouth	527	101
23	Herefordshire	344	100
24	Solihull	489	99
25	Manchester	1,280	97
25	South Tyneside	295	97
27	Bradford	1,366	96
28	Nottingham	639	93
28	Portsmouth	402	93
28	Telford and Wrekin	411	93
31	Sandwell	816	92
31	Sefton	506	92
33	North Tyneside	385	91
33	Oldham	582	91
33	Wigan	652	91
36	Blackburn with Darwen	375	90
36	Knowsley	325	90
36	Southampton	460	90
36	Sunderland	510	90
40	Wakefield	692	89
41	Derby	545	88
41	Salford	563	88
43	Cumberland	458	87
44	Worcestershire	1,036	86
45	Leeds	1,498	85
46	Bury	368	82
46	Cheshire West and Chester	584	82
46	Coventry	684	82
49	Bristol	753	81
49	Dudley	575	81
49	Walsall	578	81
52	Rotherham	476	80
52	Southend-on-Sea	316	80
54	Birmingham	2,317	79
54	Calderdale	355	79
54	Islington	282	79
57	Bolton	590	78
58	Northumberland	456	77
59	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole	560	75
59	Staffordshire	1,306	75
59	Stockport	485	75
62	City of Doncaster	504	74
63	Lambeth	377	73
63	Wolverhampton	501	73
65	Medway	495	72
65	Peterborough	416	72
67	Barnsley	366	71
67	Brighton and Hove	332	71
67	Lewisham	439	71
70	Reading	272	70
70	Southwark	387	70
72	City of York	240	69
72	Warrington	310	69
74	Milton Keynes	509	68
74	North Northamptonshire	568	68
76	Westmorland and Furness	261	67
77	Cheshire East	550	66
77	Derbyshire	1,024	66
77	East Sussex	688	66
77	Leicester	595	66
81	Barking and Dagenham	431	65
81	Dorset	437	65
81	Hackney	352	65
81	Lancashire	1,699	65
85	Kirklees	641	64
86	North Somerset	280	63
86	West Northamptonshire	602	63
88	Greenwich	404	62
88	Hammersmith and Fulham	197	62
88	Norfolk	1,069	62
88	North Lincolnshire	215	62
88	Trafford	353	62
88	Westminster	186	62
94	Haringey	325	61
95	Bath and North East Somerset	220	60
95	Cornwall	638	60
95	Hampshire	1,738	60
95	Suffolk	916	60
95	Thurrock	276	60
100	Bedford	261	59
101	Camden	205	58
101	Croydon	547	58
101	East Riding of Yorkshire	363	58
101	Luton	359	58
105	Devon	849	57
105	Gloucestershire	758	57
105	Swindon	307	57
108	Warwickshire	727	56
109	Somerset	624	55
110	Lincolnshire	805	54
110	Sheffield	624	54
110	West Sussex	975	54
113	Kent	1,896	53
113	Nottinghamshire	901	53
113	West Berkshire	189	53
116	Oxfordshire	800	51
117	Bexley	289	49
117	Cambridgeshire	705	49
119	Central Bedfordshire	337	48
119	Newham	404	48
119	North Yorkshire	561	48
122	Bromley	343	47
122	Kensington and Chelsea	106	47
122	Leicestershire	694	47
122	Waltham Forest	292	47
126	Enfield	372	46
126	Wiltshire	478	46
128	Tower Hamlets	284	45
129	Bracknell Forest	124	42
129	Havering	268	42
129	Sutton	215	42
132	Hillingdon	312	41
132	Wandsworth	240	41
134	Buckinghamshire	522	40
134	Rutland	32	40
134	Windsor and Maidenhead	139	40
137	Brent	296	39
137	Hounslow	263	39
139	Redbridge	299	38
140	Barnet	343	37
140	Slough	173	37
142	Hertfordshire	999	36
143	Essex	1,141	35
143	Surrey	932	35
145	Wokingham	149	34
146	Ealing	275	33
146	South Gloucestershire	207	33
148	Merton	145	31
149	Kingston upon Thames	113	30
150	Harrow	176	29
151	Richmond upon Thames	121	27
not ranked	City of London Corporation	not published, to protect confidentiality (DfE)	not published, to protect confidentiality (DfE)
not ranked	Isles of Scilly	not applicable (DfE)	not applicable (DfE)

Children looked after at 31 March 2025. England: 67 per 10,000 children.

Change on the year

Rank	Council	Change (per cent)	Looked after, 2024 to 2025
1	Milton Keynes	up 23.8	411 to 509
2	Rutland	up 18.5	27 to 32
3	North Yorkshire	up 12.0	501 to 561
4	Cambridgeshire	up 11.7	631 to 705
5	North Somerset	up 10.2	254 to 280
6	Wandsworth	up 10.1	218 to 240
7	Richmond upon Thames	up 10.0	110 to 121
8	Newcastle	up 9.7	596 to 654
8	North Tyneside	up 9.7	351 to 385
10	Wokingham	up 8.8	137 to 149
11	West Sussex	up 7.6	906 to 975
12	Croydon	up 7.5	509 to 547
13	Blackburn with Darwen	up 7.4	349 to 375
14	Bury	up 7.0	344 to 368
14	Lincolnshire	up 7.0	752 to 805
16	Westminster	up 6.9	174 to 186
17	Kirklees	up 6.5	602 to 641
17	Somerset	up 6.5	586 to 624
19	North Northamptonshire	up 6.4	534 to 568
20	Northumberland	up 5.8	431 to 456
21	Westmorland and Furness	up 5.7	247 to 261
22	North Lincolnshire	up 4.9	205 to 215
23	East Sussex	up 4.4	659 to 688
24	Medway	up 4.0	476 to 495
25	Barnet	up 3.9	330 to 343
25	Oxfordshire	up 3.9	770 to 800
27	Bolton	up 3.7	569 to 590
28	East Riding of Yorkshire	up 3.4	351 to 363
29	Cornwall	up 3.1	619 to 638
30	Hertfordshire	up 2.9	971 to 999
30	Southend-on-Sea	up 2.9	307 to 316
32	Plymouth	up 2.7	513 to 527
33	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole	up 2.6	546 to 560
34	Cheshire West and Chester	up 2.5	570 to 584
34	Tower Hamlets	up 2.5	277 to 284
36	Reading	up 2.3	266 to 272
37	Blackpool	up 2.1	520 to 531
38	Coventry	up 1.8	672 to 684
39	Cheshire East	up 1.7	541 to 550
40	West Berkshire	up 1.6	186 to 189
41	Wakefield	up 1.5	682 to 692
42	Bath and North East Somerset	up 1.4	217 to 220
43	Tameside	up 1.2	644 to 652
44	Sandwell	up 1.0	808 to 816
45	Birmingham	up 0.9	2,296 to 2,317
46	Wiltshire	up 0.6	475 to 478
47	Salford	up 0.5	560 to 563
48	Buckinghamshire	up 0.4	520 to 522
48	Shropshire	up 0.4	714 to 717
50	Dudley	up 0.3	573 to 575
51	Portsmouth	no change	402 to 402
52	Staffordshire	down 0.1	1,307 to 1,306
53	Leicester	down 0.2	596 to 595
53	Telford and Wrekin	down 0.2	412 to 411
55	Bedford	down 0.4	262 to 261
56	Barking and Dagenham	down 0.5	433 to 431
57	Hull	down 0.7	747 to 742
57	Windsor and Maidenhead	down 0.7	140 to 139
57	Worcestershire	down 0.7	1,043 to 1,036
60	Bexley	down 1.0	292 to 289
60	Essex	down 1.0	1,152 to 1,141
62	City of York	down 1.2	243 to 240
62	Hartlepool	down 1.2	336 to 332
64	Rochdale	down 1.3	602 to 594
64	Suffolk	down 1.3	928 to 916
66	Bristol	down 1.4	764 to 753
66	Merton	down 1.4	147 to 145
66	Oldham	down 1.4	590 to 582
66	Peterborough	down 1.4	422 to 416
70	Stockport	down 1.6	493 to 485
71	Manchester	down 1.7	1,302 to 1,280
72	Hillingdon	down 1.9	318 to 312
73	Bromley	down 2.0	350 to 343
74	Durham	down 2.1	1,208 to 1,183
75	Calderdale	down 2.2	363 to 355
75	Dorset	down 2.2	447 to 437
75	Harrow	down 2.2	180 to 176
78	Southwark	down 2.5	397 to 387
79	Devon	down 2.7	873 to 849
79	Haringey	down 2.7	334 to 325
81	Lancashire	down 2.9	1,750 to 1,699
81	Stockton-on-Tees	down 2.9	581 to 564
81	Sunderland	down 2.9	525 to 510
84	Derbyshire	down 3.0	1,056 to 1,024
85	Kent	down 3.1	1,956 to 1,896
85	Leeds	down 3.1	1,546 to 1,498
85	Lewisham	down 3.1	453 to 439
85	Wolverhampton	down 3.1	517 to 501
89	Redbridge	down 3.2	309 to 299
90	Surrey	down 3.4	965 to 932
91	Brent	down 3.6	307 to 296
91	Knowsley	down 3.6	337 to 325
93	City of Doncaster	down 3.8	524 to 504
94	Halton	down 3.9	382 to 367
94	Hammersmith and Fulham	down 3.9	205 to 197
94	Middlesbrough	down 3.9	513 to 493
94	Sheffield	down 3.9	649 to 624
94	South Tyneside	down 3.9	307 to 295
94	Waltham Forest	down 3.9	304 to 292
100	Swindon	down 4.1	320 to 307
101	Camden	down 4.2	214 to 205
102	Greenwich	down 4.3	422 to 404
102	Leicestershire	down 4.3	725 to 694
102	Luton	down 4.3	375 to 359
105	Gateshead	down 4.7	528 to 503
106	Thurrock	down 4.8	290 to 276
107	Cumberland	down 5.0	482 to 458
107	Liverpool	down 5.0	1,490 to 1,416
109	Newham	down 5.2	426 to 404
109	Rotherham	down 5.2	502 to 476
111	Nottingham	down 5.3	675 to 639
111	Redcar and Cleveland	down 5.3	419 to 397
113	South Gloucestershire	down 5.5	219 to 207
114	Havering	down 5.6	284 to 268
115	Islington	down 5.7	299 to 282
115	Nottinghamshire	down 5.7	955 to 901
117	Southampton	down 5.9	489 to 460
118	Torbay	down 6.0	300 to 282
119	Trafford	down 6.4	377 to 353
120	Brighton and Hove	down 6.5	355 to 332
121	North East Lincolnshire	down 6.6	469 to 438
122	West Northamptonshire	down 7.1	648 to 602
123	Norfolk	down 7.2	1,152 to 1,069
124	Hounslow	down 7.7	285 to 263
124	Stoke-on-Trent	down 7.7	1,152 to 1,063
126	Bradford	down 7.9	1,483 to 1,366
126	Central Bedfordshire	down 7.9	366 to 337
128	Sutton	down 8.1	234 to 215
129	Hampshire	down 8.2	1,893 to 1,738
130	Hackney	down 8.3	384 to 352
131	Isle of Wight	down 8.5	282 to 258
132	Ealing	down 8.6	301 to 275
133	Derby	down 8.9	598 to 545
134	Barnsley	down 9.4	404 to 366
135	Warwickshire	down 9.7	805 to 727
136	Gloucestershire	down 9.8	840 to 758
136	St Helens	down 9.8	488 to 440
138	Enfield	down 10.6	416 to 372
139	Darlington	down 10.7	298 to 266
140	Herefordshire	down 11.1	387 to 344
140	Wigan	down 11.1	733 to 652
140	Wirral	down 11.1	766 to 681
143	Bracknell Forest	down 11.4	140 to 124
144	Solihull	down 11.7	554 to 489
145	Warrington	down 12.4	354 to 310
146	Sefton	down 12.9	581 to 506
147	Kensington and Chelsea	down 13.1	122 to 106
147	Kingston upon Thames	down 13.1	130 to 113
147	Walsall	down 13.1	665 to 578
150	Slough	down 13.9	201 to 173
151	Lambeth	down 19.6	469 to 377
not ranked	City of London Corporation	not published	7 to not published, to protect confidentiality (DfE)
not ranked	Isles of Scilly	not published	not applicable (DfE) to not applicable (DfE)

England: down 2.1 per cent. A small council’s percentage can move a lot with a few children.

About these figures

Children looked after on 31 March, from the SSDA903 return each council makes to DfE. Unless stated, the figures leave out children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements (DfE). DfE rounds England’s figures to the nearest 10; council figures are not rounded. Where DfE gives no figure it shows a symbol: not published, to protect confidentiality (DfE); not applicable (DfE). A council with no figure is not ranked.

Source: Department for Education, Children looked after in England including adoptions, reporting year 2025. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Children in care by council last updated 28 October 2026. Source: DfE Children looked after in England including adoptions.