Reporting year 2020

Outcomes for children in need, including children looked after by local authorities in England

Children in need, including children looked after by local authorities in England, national and local authority level outcomes including key stage 4 and absence

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• Produced by: Department for Education
• Published: 25 March 2021
• Last updated: 28 May 2021

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  Description of the data sets included in this release, including information on data sources, coverage, quality and any data conventions used.

• Data catalogue

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15 data sets available for download

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• National - Absence (autumn term)

  National

  Absence by type of school and social care group, Autumn term 2019

  • Number of rows: 61
  • Indicators:
    • Authorised absence percentage
    • Number of authorised absence sessions
    • Number of overall absence sessions
  • Filters:
    • School type
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2019/20

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• LA - Permanent exclusions and suspensions

  Local authority, National, Regional

  Permanent exclusions and suspensions by type of school for children in need (excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after), children on a child protection plan (excluding children looked after) and children looked after, 2016/17 to 2018/19

  • Number of rows: 1,477
  • Indicators:
    • Percentage of pupils permanently excluded
    • Percentage of pupils with one or more suspension
    • Total number of pupils
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2018/19

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• National - Permanent exclusions and suspensions

  National

  Permanent exclusions and suspensions by type of school and social care group, 2016/17 to 2018/19

  • Number of rows: 171
  • Indicators:
    • Percentage of pupils permanently excluded
    • Percentage of pupils with one or more suspension
    • Total number of pupils
  • Filters:
    • School type
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2018/19

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• National - Destinations

  National

  Destinations after completing key stage 4 by social care group,  2016/17 to 2017/18

  • Number of rows: 21
  • Indicators:
    • Percentage identified as DWP/HMRC customer
    • Percentage in UK higher education institution
    • Percentage in advanced and Higher apprenticeships (level 3 and above)
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2017/18

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• National - School type

  National

  Type of school by social care group, 2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 47
  • Indicators:
    • Total number of pupils
    • Total number of pupils in pupil referral unit
    • Total number of pupils in special school
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• LA - Free school meals (FSM)

  Local authority, National, Regional

  Free school meal eligibility for children in need (excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after), children on a child protection plan (excluding children looked after), 2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 1,311
  • Indicators:
    • Number of pupils
    • Number of pupils with free school meal eligibility
    • Percentage of pupils with free school meal eligibility
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• LA - Key Stage 4 (KS4)

  Local authority, National, Regional

  Key stage 4 attainment for children in need (excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after), children on a child protection plan (excluding children looked after) and children looked after,  2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 1,966
  • Indicators:
    • Average Attainment 8 score of all pupils
    • Average EBacc APS score per pupil
    • Percentage of pupils achieving grades 4 or above in English and mathematics GCSEs
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• LA - Special educational needs (SEN)

  Local authority, National, Regional

  Special educational need and primary type of special education need for children in need (excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after), children on a child protection plan (excluding children looked after) and children looked after, 2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 1,954
  • Indicators:
    • Percentage of pupils with SEN
    • Percentage of pupils with SEN support
    • Percentage of pupils with having primary type of need: Autistic Spectrum Disorder
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• LA - School type

  Local authority, National, Regional

  Type of school for children in need (excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after), children on a child protection plan (excluding children looked after) and children looked after, 2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 1,966
  • Indicators:
    • Total number of pupils
    • Total number of pupils in pupil referral units
    • Total number of pupils in special schools
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• National - Special educational needs (SEN)

  National

  Special educational need and primary type of special educational need by social care group, 2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 47
  • Indicators:
    • Percentage of pupils with SEN
    • Percentage of pupils with SEN support
    • Percentage of pupils with SEN support having primary type of need: Autistic Spectrum Disorder
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• National - Free school meals (FSM)

  National

  Free school meal eligibility by children in need social care group, 2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 31
  • Indicators:
    • Number of pupils
    • Number of pupils with free school meal eligibility
    • Percentage of pupils with free school meal eligibility
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• National - Absence (six half terms)

  National

  Absence by type of school and social care group, 2016/17 to 2018/19

  • Number of rows: 171
  • Indicators:
    • Authorised absence percentage
    • Number of authorised absence sessions
    • Number of overall absence sessions
  • Filters:
    • School type
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2018/19

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• National - Key Stage 4 (KS4)

  National

  Key stage 4 attainment by special educational need and social care group, 2016/17 to 2019/20

  • Number of rows: 311
  • Indicators:
    • Average Attainment 8 score of all pupils
    • Average EBacc APS score per pupil
    • Percentage of pupils achieving grades 4 or above in English and mathematics GCSEs
  • Filters:
    • Social care group
    • Special Educational Needs status
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2019/20

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• LA - Absence (autumn term)

  Local authority, National, Regional

  Absence by type of school for children in need (excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after), children on a child protection plan (excluding children looked after) and children looked after, Autumn term 2019

  • Number of rows: 2,446
  • Indicators:
    • Authorised absence percentage
    • Number of authorised absence sessions
    • Number of overall absence sessions
  • Filters:
    • School type
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2019/20

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• LA - Absence (six half terms)

  Local authority, National, Regional

  Absence by type of school for children in need (excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after), children on a child protection plan (excluding children looked after) and children looked after, 2016/17 to 2018/19

  • Number of rows: 7,381
  • Indicators:
    • Authorised absence percentage
    • Number of authorised absence sessions
    • Number of overall absence sessions
  • Filters:
    • School type
    • Social care group
  • Time period: 2016/17 to 2018/19

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Data guidance

Description of the data sets included in this release, including information on data sources, coverage, quality and any data conventions used.

Description

This document describes the data included in the ‘Outcomes for children in need, including children looked after by local authorities in England: 2020’ National Statistics release’s underlying data files. This data is released under the terms of the Open Government License (opens in new tab) and is intended to meet at least three stars for Open Data (opens in new tab).

The methodology document for this subject should be referenced alongside this release. It provides information on the data sources, their coverage and quality and how the data is produced.

Coverage

This statistical release provides a range of outcome measures at national and level authority level for children in need (CIN), including children looked after (CLA) by local authorities in England. 

The outcome measures cover:

• special education needs
• educational attainment (at key stage 4)
• destinations from school
• absence from school
• permanent exclusions and suspensions from school
• free school meal eligibility
• type of school attended

Detailed information on the social care groups and the all pupils comparisons is provided in the methodology document.

Abbreviations of social care group names used throughout this release 

• CIN - children in need.
• CINO - children in need, excluding children on a child protection plan and children looked after. This includes children on child in need plans as well as other types of plan or arrangements.
• CPPO - children on a child protection plan, excluding children looked after.
• CLA - children looked after (excludes children who are in respite care in their most recent episode during the reporting year).

Social care groups included in both national and local authority level data:

• CINO at 31 March
• CPPO at 31 March (where numbers are large enough).
• CLA 12 months at 31 March

Social care groups included in national level data only:

• All pupils comparison - from the national publications.
• CIN at 31 March
• CLA less than 12 months at 31 March
• CIN at any point - ‘any point’ means at any point during the reporting year (including at 31 March).
• CINO at any point
• CPPO at any point
• CLA at any point
• Ever CIN - last 6 years - children in need, at any point in the last 6 reporting years (including at 31 March).

At key stage 4 there are additional groups in the national level data on previously looked after arrangements (PLAA). These are Official Statistics on arrangements for previously looked after children.

• PLAA - Adoption - previously looked after children who left care through an adoption.
• PLAA - SGO - previously looked after children who left care through a special guardianship order (SGO).
• PLAA - CAO - previously looked after children who left care through a child arrangements order (CAO).
• PLAA - Total - previously looked after children who left care through an adoption, SGO or CAO.

File formats and conventions

Rounding and suppression

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

The following symbols have been used in the releases:

• ‘c’ to protect confidentiality. Secondary suppression may be required.
• ‘z’ for not applicable
• ‘:’ for not available
• ‘~’ for negligible – also used for a percentage (<0.5%) that would round to 0 but is not zero

For percentages:

• where the numerator or denominator is small then the figure is replaced by ‘c’
• they may not sum to 100% due to rounding

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Contact us

If you have a specific enquiry about Outcomes for children in need, including children looked after by local authorities in England statistics and data:

Children Looked After Data Team

Email: CLA.STATS@education.gov.uk
Contact name: Bree Waine

Press office

If you have a media enquiry:

Telephone: 020 7783 8300

Public enquiries

If you have a general enquiry about the Department for Education (DfE) or education:

Phone: 0370 000 2288

Opening times

Monday to Friday from 9.30am to 5.30pm (closed on bank holidays)