Latest news with #Become
BBC News
25-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Plans for Bedworth children's care home withdrawn after concerns
Plans to open a children's care home in Bedworth have been withdrawn after concerns from proposal would have seen a semi-detached property in Gallagher Road turned into a home for three children under the age of 18, however some neighbours believed the street was the wrong location and worried it could cause anti-social behaviour as well as parking and Bedworth Borough Council, the local planning authority responsible, confirmed on Wednesday that the application had been withdrawn. The BBC has approached the applicant for comment. Sylvia May, 67, has lived on the road with her husband Alan for nearly 40 years. She said she felt "frightened" and would be wary of confronting any children if there were to be any trouble as she feared she could be "attacked".Mr May added that he was concerned the care home would "upset" the area and the children would "cause problems". The planning application outlined that the property would operate with two staff on duty at all times and would have a driveway big enough for up to three resident, Natalie Morris, 58, who had lived on the street for 12 years, said the street was a "very peaceful area", however there had recently been a increase in the number of traffic issues. Ms Morris was worried that the plans would lead to "an influx of staff members" and add pressure to chief executive of Become, a charity for children in residential care, Katharine Sacks-Jones, told the BBC the proposal would have been no different to the house being put on the market."They [residents] don't know the children who will be living there the same as they wouldn't know a family who'd move in."The plan was due to be decided on by the council's planning committee in July. Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
25-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
West Sussex teenager in care 'not able to access education'
A woman who went through the care system says she feels her education became "not really a priority" for the from West Sussex, who is now 21, only completed eight months of schooling between the ages of 13 and 18, because of the number of times she was moved to different care-leavers charity Become says 30% of children in care are moved during their A-levels, and 13% during their Department for Education (DfE) says planned legislation will be "the biggest overhaul of children's social care in a generation". West Sussex County Council said it worked closely with families and professionals "to maintain stability and ensure continuity of care". Iesha had 14 different placements in Sussex and London, leading to long periods when she was not enrolled at school."My education became not really a priority," she said, saying it effectively ended in Year 10."I kind of tuned out of education because it was something I couldn't control, I couldn't make these applications myself, I can't get myself into school."She went back to college at the age of 18 to sturdy for her GCSEs, but said she feared the damage had already been done."There's always going to be someone that's more suitable for a role than I am, because of the lack of education, because of those missed gaps," she told BBC South East. Katharine Sacks-Jones, CEO of Become, said: "Moving disrupts any child's education, but for children in care, school is often their lifeline and can be the one constant in their life."When they're uprooted mid-way through studying for their GCSEs or A-levels or actually during exam periods, years of hard work vanish overnight. Friendships end. Teachers disappear." A DfE spokesperson said: "Our landmark Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill represents the biggest overhaul of children's social care in a generation and is a key step towards delivering the government's mission to break the link between young people's background and their future success."Through our Plan for Change we're also investing £2 billion over the course of this parliament to give more children a safe, loving home, including by expanding the children's home estate, delivering more foster care placements and helping keep families together by providing targeted support before problems escalate." Moves 'less often' A West Sussex County Council spokesperson said: "There are occasions when we need to move children, which we recognise is disruptive."However these moves occur far less than they did five years ago," they said. "In a small number of cases, particularly for our children and young people with additional and complex needs, we may need to place them outside the local area to ensure they receive the specialist care and support they require."We work closely with families and professionals to maintain stability and ensure continuity of care."
Daily Mirror
18-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Domestic abuse victims and care leavers given help to get social housing
Deputy PM Angela Rayner said vulnerable groups must not face 'unfair barriers' to social housing as she confirmed plans to scrap the need for local links from next month Care leavers and domestic abuse victims will get easier access to social housing from next month under an overhaul of the rules. The Government will scrap the "local connection" requirement for both groups, which means someone has to have a link to the area to qualify, such as living there recently, working in the area or having family nearby. It will apply to all councils in England, nearly 90% of which currently use this test to decide who qualifies for social housing. But from July 10, care leavers under 25 and domestic abuse survivors will no longer be unfairly penalised for lacking a local connection. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said: 'It breaks my heart to hear countless stories of people leaving the care system or fleeing an abusive relationship and not having a place they can truly call home. "We're rewriting the rules to help get them a roof over their heads and the security they deserve. Our changes will make sure these vulnerable groups do not face unfair barriers to safe and secure housing. "This is backed by our commitment to secure the biggest boost to social and affordable housing in a generation, and through our Plan for Change we are going further and faster to make this a reality.' It comes after Keir Starmer promised vulnerable people would get a "guaranteed roof over their head" in a speech to the Labour conference in September. Local connection rules were waived for veterans last year and councils were ordered to prioritise ex-forces families to drive down homelessness among those who served their country. It comes after Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveiled a £39billion cash injection for affordable and social homes in the Spending Review. Hundreds of thousands of new affordable homes will be built over the next decade as the Government battles to turn the tide on the housing crisis. Katharine Sacks-Jones, Chief Executive of Become, which supports children and young people in care, said: 'Too many children in care are moved away from the people and places that matter to them and then made to move back to their local authority area once they turn 18 to access social housing support. 'Removing the local connection test will prevent forced moves, could help reduce homelessness and give care leavers a more positive start to adulthood.' Balbir Kaur Chatrik, Director of Policy and Prevention at Centrepoint, said: "Removing this barrier will reduce homelessness and rough sleeping amongst care leavers and help them to thrive. 'Care leavers are often extremely vulnerable young people and lack the support networks that many of us take for granted. Despite this they often find it a real struggle to access the stable housing they need to thrive because they lack a local connection. The government's change will hopefully stop this practice and ensure young people can get the stable and affordable homes they deserve. 'It's also an important step towards ending youth homelessness and protecting the most vulnerable. Taken together with funding for prevention and housebuilding, this brings us a bit closer over the short- and long-term towards ensuring young people are getting the support they need.'
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
How housing scheme aims to help children in care
Children in care face "support dropping away overnight" when they turn 18, with some being taken to the homelessness department on their birthday, a charity has said. Become Charity has welcomed a move by Bury Council to ringfence homes specifically for care leavers as it said teenagers faced a "care cliff" when they transitioned into adulthood. Under the scheme, 44 flats or houses will be made available to care leavers on former council-owned sites across the borough. Katherine Sacks-Jones, Become's chief executive, said more local authorities should be following Bury Council's lead. The local authority is believed to be one of the first councils in England to ringfence homes specifically for care leaves. A direct let and local lettings policy will be devised, meaning that a select number of homes within each development will be ringfenced for care leavers. "Young people leaving care face a care cliff where support drops away overnight and they have to leave care and become independent," Ms Sacks-Jones said. "That can often happen on their 18th birthday. "We've heard of young people on their actual birthday being taken down to the homelessness department. "We want to see an end to the care cliff so young people get the support they need to make that transition into adulthood at a time that's right for them in a managed way." Councillor Lucy Smith said: "Starting your own home is always challenging and it can be especially difficult for our care leavers. "Finding high-quality housing to help transition into adulthood is just one of the many improvements we have recently made for our care leavers." University student Jessica-Rae Williamson is among those who would have benefited from a scheme like this had it been in place at the time. Ms Williamson, who moved out of her foster home the week before her 18th birthday, described the scheme as a "really good idea". "We all have the worry of our local authority just deciding not to support us anymore," she said. "It's happened to me before and that was ripped away from me. "So I think we all have the same worries that that support is going to be taken away before we were ready for it." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230. 'We thought we were too young to be foster carers' Bury Council
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
How housing scheme aims to help children in care
Children in care face "support dropping away overnight" when they turn 18, with some being taken to the homelessness department on their birthday, a charity has said. Become Charity has welcomed a move by Bury Council to ringfence homes specifically for care leavers as it said teenagers faced a "care cliff" when they transitioned into adulthood. Under the scheme, 44 flats or houses will be made available to care leavers on former council-owned sites across the borough. Katherine Sacks-Jones, Become's chief executive, said more local authorities should be following Bury Council's lead. The local authority is believed to be one of the first councils in England to ringfence homes specifically for care leaves. A direct let and local lettings policy will be devised, meaning that a select number of homes within each development will be ringfenced for care leavers. "Young people leaving care face a care cliff where support drops away overnight and they have to leave care and become independent," Ms Sacks-Jones said. "That can often happen on their 18th birthday. "We've heard of young people on their actual birthday being taken down to the homelessness department. "We want to see an end to the care cliff so young people get the support they need to make that transition into adulthood at a time that's right for them in a managed way." Councillor Lucy Smith said: "Starting your own home is always challenging and it can be especially difficult for our care leavers. "Finding high-quality housing to help transition into adulthood is just one of the many improvements we have recently made for our care leavers." University student Jessica-Rae Williamson is among those who would have benefited from a scheme like this had it been in place at the time. Ms Williamson, who moved out of her foster home the week before her 18th birthday, described the scheme as a "really good idea". "We all have the worry of our local authority just deciding not to support us anymore," she said. "It's happened to me before and that was ripped away from me. "So I think we all have the same worries that that support is going to be taken away before we were ready for it." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230. 'We thought we were too young to be foster carers' Bury Council
