‘Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind’: Assessing The Impact Of Markets For Children’s Residential Care

Abstract

This article is concerned with assessing the effectiveness of markets for complex professional services in social care. The issue is explored through an account of developments in the children’s residential care sector. Over the past five years there has been a steady expansion in the role of external markets in this area. However, this was not required by the Children Act 1989 and has become the subject of considerable debate between policy makers and practitioners. While some favour an extension of choice, others argue that a further decline in local authority run provision will be both costly and detrimental in terms of meeting key policy goals. In order to assess these claims, reference is made to the findings of a study of purchasing practices for children’s residential care in twelve local authorities in England and Wales. The impact of the emerging market is analysed along two dimensions. Firstly, we assess how far it is operating efficiently, concentrating on market structure, information and transaction costs. Secondly, attention is given to the impact of market changes on the policy objectives of: localized placements; ensuring adequate safeguards; and matching needs and services. The results reveal that there have been significant costs associated with markets in children’s services. In a context of government efforts to promote modes of service delivery on the basis of ‘what works’, these difficulties have certain implications. Not only do they draw attention to the need for greater collaboration between purchasers and providers, they also point to the continued relevance and usefulness of local authority managed provision.

Big Business in a Thin Market: Understanding the Privatization of Residential Care for Children and Youth in Sweden

“…Researchers also report ongoing problems of discovering and monitoring the quality of care, with social workers relying on ad hoc information sources, the reliability of which they often doubt (Höjer and Forkby ; Kirkpatrick et al . ). Poor regulatory oversight has been recognized as a problem, and while regulation has been increasing in both countries in recent years.…”

“…However, a strong expansion of private care providers has been identified also in Norway and the UK (Kirkpatrick et al . ; Nordstoga and Støkken ; Scourfield ).…”

Looked After Children: Non‐local authority placements and meeting educational needs

“…• Improve regional commissioning of provision. Kirkpatrick, Kitchener and Whipp (2001) suggest the privatisation of the children's residential care sector is incompatible with local authority objectives. Investigation is required into the long-term cost-effectiveness of paying non-local authority establishments for care and education compared to maintaining young people within the local authority with additional support for education and care.…”

Foreword

“…In the UK, for example, the child care field has experienced a huge expansion in the private sector, sometimes backed by investment from large venture capital funds, with all the predictable risks of the distortion of value-systems and the exploitation of the social needs of vulnerable groups for profit (Toynbee, 2005). More broadly, it is being increasingly recognised that there are considerable problems in using a market approach to welfare provision (Kendall, 2001;Le Grand, 1997), although the full impact of this approach in the child care sector has perhaps not yet been fully understood (Kirkpatrick, Kitchener, and Whipp, 2001).…”