Placement & Homes Strategy for Children and Young People 2026 to 2030

This strategy sets out Buckinghamshire Council’s vision, priorities, and delivery plan for ensuring that children in our care – and those on the edge of care – are supported through high-quality, stable, and local placements that meet their individual needs. It is both a continuation and an evolution of our previous strategy (2021–2024) and its interim addendum (2023–2025), reflecting the progress we have made to date and the challenges we must continue to address.

Sufficiency is not simply about numbers – it is about relationships, stability, therapeutic support, and long-term outcomes. Our children need homes where they feel safe, where their identities are affirmed, and where they can recover from trauma and thrive. Achieving this requires joined-up action across social care, health, commissioning, housing, education, and wider partnerships.

The context in which we operate is increasingly complex. Like many local authorities, Buckinghamshire faces rising demand, greater placement complexity, and a constrained market, all within a financially challenging environment. We are also subject to increasing national scrutiny around placement quality, distance from home, and the use of unregistered or unsuitable settings.

This strategy is designed to:

• Provide a clear analysis of current and future placement needs.
• Identify key gaps in provision and how we will address them.
• Set out our strategic priorities for increasing local capacity and improving outcomes.
• Align with national policy and statutory requirements.
• Demonstrate how we will monitor delivery, manage risk, and evaluate success.

It is intended for a wide range of audiences: internal officers and operational teams, elected members and corporate parents, Ofsted and the Department for Education, and, most importantly, the children and young people we care for and support.

Our ambition is simple but powerful: to ensure every child and young person in Buckinghamshire has access to the right home, at the right time, with the right support – enabling them to feel safe, stay close to what matters, and build a positive future.