Children in care under the age of 16 were placed in unregulated accommodation for a total of 82 days by Bracknell Forest Council over the course of a year, it has been revealed.

Government rules say it is illegal for councils to house children under 16 in care homes that aren’t regulated by the Ofsted inspectorate. But a national shortage of regulated places means that councils sometimes have to place children temporarily in unregulated accommodation despite the ban.

Bracknell Forest Council placed children in unregulated accommodation on three occasions between March 2022 and March 2023, a freedom of information request published on the What Do They Know website has revealed.

Katharine Sacks-Jones, chief executive of the Become charity for children in care, said unregulated accommodation could cover any type of accommodation – including caravans and tents – that isn’t registered with Ofsted. There’s no suggestion that children in Bracknell were housed this way.

Ms Sacks-Jones said the placement of children in such accommodation was a sign of a care system in crisis.

She said: “It’s unacceptable that children under 16 are still being placed in unregulated accommodation despite the ban.

“Sadly, this is a sign of a care system at breaking point with record numbers of children in care and not enough safe and suitable places for them to live.”

READ MORE: House in Earley to become Wokingham council children's home

Bracknell Forest Council said that it works hard to make sure all the children in its care are housed in safe accommodation. It noted that, due to the national shortage of places, Ofsted has a process for fast-tracking registration for urgently-needed accommodation.

Grainne Siggins, the council’s executive director for people, said: “We work hard to ensure all children in our care have a good quality, bespoke plan in place to provide safe, stable and appropriate placements. We have a strong record in achieving this.

“There is a nationally recognised shortage of good quality regulated placements for children who need to be looked after outside of their own families in the UK.

“As a result, Ofsted has a fast track for registration in operation, for providers who can offer a placement match for a child but are not yet registered for that category of care.”

Ms Siggins also said the council is seeking to take on more foster carers to make sure children can be housed in regulated accommodation with families.

She said: “The council is seeking to increase its pool for local foster carers who can make a massive difference to ensuring local children have local regulated placements with families where possible.

“Anyone who lives in or near (within 20 miles) of Bracknell Forest can make an enquiry about fostering by emailing fostering@bracknell-forest.gov.uk.”