Reporting year 2024

Children in need: A focus on re-referrals

Data guidance

Published 26 February 2026

Description

This document describes the data included in the ‘Children in need: a focus on re-referrals' release's underlying data files. This is an ad hoc statistical release and uses the annual published data from the Children in need . A guide (opens in new tab) (opens in new tab) for the 2025 data collection provides further information on the data collected.

The methodology (opens in new tab) document for this subject should be referenced alongside this release. It provides information on the data sources, their coverage and quality and how the analysis is produced.

Some of the analysis in this release is based on the Longitudinal CIN Dataset (LCD). This dataset brings together the Children in Need data collected annually and links together records for each child within a local authority. This allows for analysis of re-referrals over a period longer than a year and also allows for the analysis of children's journeys through CSC. However, the LCD produces slightly different estimates for the number of referrals, children referred, re-referrals and children re-referred. Users should  be cautious when comparing results from the Children in need census with those from the LCD. 

The following data files are based on the Children in Need Census:

• A1. Referrals to children's social care 2017-24
• A2. Children referred by number of referrals 2017-24
• B1. Children referred to social services 2017-24
• B2. Referrals to children's social care by gender 2017-24
• B3. Referrals to children's social care by age 2017-24
• B4. Referrals to children's social care by ethnicity 2017-24
• B5. Referrals to children's social care by disability 2017-24
• C1. Referrals to children's social care by FSM status 2017-24
• C2. Referrals to children's social care by SEN provision 2017-24
• F1. Referrals to children's social care by LA and Region 2013-24 
• F2. Re-referrals to children's social care by Ofsted judgment and LA, 2025

The following data files are based on the Longitudinal CIN Dataset (LCD):

• A3. Re-referrals within three and five years 2017-23
• A4. Duration of episodes 2017-23
• A5. Source of referrals 2017-24
• A6. Primary need at assessment 2017-24
• D1. Assessment factors associated with referrals
• D2. Re-referral rate by assessment factor
• E1. Re-referrals by level of intervention by CSC, 2017-23

Coverage

Data is collected by the Department for Education in the annual Children in need census (opens in new tab) (opens in new tab) from all local authorities in England.

Each reporting year covers the year ending 31 March. The underlying data files include national, regional and local authority level information for the years 2017 to 2024.

File formats and conventions

Rounding and suppression

National and regional figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Local authority figures are unrounded.

Where any number is shown as zero, the original figure submitted was zero. 

The following symbols have been used in the releases (to align with GSS standards):

• ‘c’ to protect confidentiality. Secondary suppression may be required
• ‘z’ for not applicable
• ‘k’  used for a value that would round to zero but is not  zero, for example where a percentage is <0.5%

For percentages:

• to protect confidentiality some numbers are replaced by ‘c’
• they may not sum to 100% due to rounding
• they are rounded to whole numbers

Data files

All data files associated with this releases are listed below with guidance on their content. To download any of these files, please visit our data catalogue.

A1. Referrals to children's social care 2017-24

• Filename: Referrals.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number of referrals, re-referrals, children referred and children re-referred to children's social care in England, in the year to 31st March.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children_referred	Children Referred
children_rereferred	Children Re-referred
re_referrals	Re-referrals
referrals	Referrals

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

A2. Children referred by number of referrals 2017-24

• Filename: ChildMultipleReferrals.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number of children referred in England, in the year to 31st March, by number of referrals.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
re_referral	Referrals - Filter by number of referrals

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

A3. Re-referrals within three and five years 2017-23

• Filename: LongerRe-referrals.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2023
• Content:
  Number of re-referrals within one, three, and five years in England. Rate of re-referrals within one, three, and five years in England.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
pre_re_referrals_1year	Re-referrals within 1 Year
pre_re_referrals_1year_rate	Re-referral Rate within 1 Year
pre_re_referrals_3years	Re-referrals within 3 Years
pre_re_referrals_3years_rate	Re-referral Rate within 3 Years
pre_re_referrals_5years	Re-referrals within 5 Years
pre_re_referrals_5years_rate	Re-referral Rate within 5 Years
referrals	Referrals

Footnotes

1. The underlying data used here relates to the years 2017 to 2024. Hence it is not possible to calculate re-referral rates for three or five years for the later years of initial referrals.

A4. Duration of episodes 2017-23

• Filename: ReferralLength.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2023
• Content:
  Referrals and re-referrals in England, in the year to 31st March, by duration of episode.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral
referrals	Episodes
referrals_percent	Percentage
reflencat	Length of Episode - Filter by length of episode

A5. Source of referrals 2017-24

• Filename: ReferralSource.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Referrals and re-referrals in England, in the year to 31st March, by source of referral.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral
referrals	Episodes
referrals_percent	Percentage
refsource	Source of referral - Filter by source of referral

A6. Primary need at assessment 2017-24

• Filename: PrimaryNeed.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Referrals and re-referrals in England, in the year to 31st March, by primary need at assessment.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
primaryneed	Primary need at assessment - Filter by primary need at assessment
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral
referrals	Episodes
referrals_percent	Percentage

B1. Children referred to social services 2017-24

• Filename: ChildReferrals.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number and share of children referred and re-referred in England, in the year to 31st March.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral status

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

B2. Referrals to children's social care by gender 2017-24

• Filename: ChildReferralsByGender.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number and share of children referred and re-referred in England, in the year to 31st March, by gender.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
gender	Gender - Filter by gender
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

B3. Referrals to children's social care by age 2017-24

• Filename: ChildReferralsByAge.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number and share of children referred and re-referred in England, in the year to 31st March, by age.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
age	Age - Filter by age
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

B4. Referrals to children's social care by ethnicity 2017-24

• Filename: ChildReferralsByEthnicity.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number and share of children referred and re-referred in England, in the year to 31st March, by ethnicity.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
ethnicity_major	Ethnicity - Filter by ethnicity
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

B5. Referrals to children's social care by disability 2017-24

• Filename: Disability.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number and share of children referred and re-referred in England, in the year to 31st March, by disability status.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
disability	Disability - Filter by disability
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

C1. Referrals to children's social care by FSM status 2017-24

• Filename: ChildReferralsByFSM.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number and share of children referred and re-referred in England, in the year to 31st March, by FSM status.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
children_percent_nounknown	Percentage (excluding unknown)
fsm_status	FSM Status - Filter by FSM Status
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

C2. Referrals to children's social care by SEN provision 2017-24

• Filename: ChildReferralsBySEN.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number and share of children referred and re-referred in England, in the year to 31st March, by SEN provision.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
children	Children
children_percent	Percentage
children_percent_nounknown	Percentage (excluding unknown)
re_referral	Re-referral - Filter by re-referral
sen_provision	SEN Provision - Filter by SEN Provision

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.

D1. Assessment factors associated with referrals

• Filename: AF_Referrals.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2023
• Content:
  Number of referrals and re-referrals in England, in the year to 31st March, for each factor recorded at assessment

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
assessmentfactor	Assessment factor - Filter by assessment factor
caseshare	Percentage
referral_type	Referral type - Filter by referral type
referrals	Referrals

Footnotes

1. Figures exclude the category ‘no factors identified’.

D2. Re-referral rate by assessment factor

• Filename: AF_Re-referral_Rate.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2023
• Content:
  Re-referral rate in England, in the year to 31st March, for each factor recorded at assessment

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
assessmentfactor	Assessment factor - Filter by assessment factor
re_referral_rate	Re-referral Rate
re_referrals	Re-referrals
total_referrals_byAF	Total referrals for assessment factor

Footnotes

1. Figures exclude the category ‘no factors identified’.

E1. Re-referrals by level of intervention by CSC, 2017-23

• Filename: CSCjourneys.csv
• Geographic levels: National
• Time period: 2017 to 2024
• Content:
  Number of referrals by in England, in the year to 31st March, by highest level of intervention by children's social care services.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
level_description	Highest level of intervention - Filter by event
referral_type	Referral type - Filter by referral type
referrals	Referrals
referrals_percent	Percent

F1. Referrals to children's social care by LA and Region 2013-24

• Filename: RegionalVariation.csv
• Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
• Time period: 2013 to 2025
• Content:
  Referrals to children's social care services, referrals within 12 months of a previous referral, referrals which resulted in no further action and referrals which were assessed and resulted in no further action.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
deprivaion_2025	Level of deprivation (IMD 2025)
deprivation_2019	Level of deprivation (IMD 2019)
No_Further_Action	Referrals which resulted in no further action
No_Further_Action_percent	Referrals which resulted in no further action (%)
Not_in_Need	Referrals which resulted in an assessment and the child was assessed not to be in need
Not_in_Need_percent	Referrals which resulted in an assessment and the child was assessed not to be in need (%)
Re_referrals	Re-referrals within 12 months of a previous referral
Re_referrals_child	Children with a referral within 12 months of a previous referral
Re_referrals_child_percent	Children with a referral within 12 months of a previous referral (%)
Re_referrals_percent	Re-referrals within 12 months of a previous referral (%)
Referrals	Referrals in the year
Referrals_child	Number of children with a referral in the year
Referrals_rate	Rate of referrals in the year per 10,000 children aged under 18 years

Footnotes

1. Data for the years ending 31 March 2021 and 2022 is not available for Hackney local authority, therefore 2020 data for Hackney has been included in the 2021 and 2022 national totals and regional totals. Data for the year ending 31 March 2024 is not available for Hampshire local authority, therefore 2023 data for Hampshire has been included in the 2024 national and regional totals. Refer to the methodology page for more information.
2. Deprivation groupings determined with reference to 2019 Indices of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-indices-of-deprivation-2019 (opens in new tab)

F2. Re-referrals to children's social care by Ofsted judgment and LA, 2025

• Filename: RegionalVariation_Ofsted.csv
• Geographic levels: Local authority; National
• Time period: 2022 to 2025
• Content:
  Re-referral rates for local authorities by latest Ofsted judgement relative to Ofsted inspection year

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
ofsted	Ofsted judgement - Filter by LA judgement
re_referrals_ofstedyear	Ofsted year
re_referrals_post1	1 year after
re_referrals_post2	2 years after
re_referrals_pre1	1 year before
re_referrals_pre2	2 years before
re_referrals_pre3	3 years before

Footnotes

1. National figures shown in this chart refer to the median re-referral rate for local authorities receiving each Ofsted judgement (using Ofsted overall judgement as at end of January 2026).