Looked after children

Placement types

On 31 July 2025, a total of 11,824 children were looked after. Placement data were recorded for 11,818 children,  20% of whom were placed at home and 80% away from home (Table 1). The number of children looked after has slightly increased since 2024 (11,778) but is still 23% lower than 2015. The majority of children looked after (88%) were placed in community settings. The most common community placements for looked after children were: kinship care (35%), foster care (28%), and at home with parents (20%). A smaller proportion of children (12%) were looked after in residential accommodation settings. Since 2022 kinship care has been the most common community placement, replacing foster care, which had consistently accounted for the largest proportion of placements in previous years.

Table 1 Number and percentage of looked after children by placement type, on 31 July 2015-25 [Note 1], [Note 2], [Note 3], [Note 4], [Note 5]

Placement type	2015 Number	2015 Percentage	2024 Number	2024 Percentage	2025 Number	2025 Percentage
In the community	13,871	90%	10,454	89%	10,435	88%
At home with parents	3,925	25%	2,298	20%	2,411	20%
Kinship Carers: friends/relatives	4,158	27%	4,067	35%	4,182	35%
Foster Carers provided by local authority	3,889	25%	2,534	22%	2,409	20%
Foster Carers purchased by local authority	1,587	10%	1,117	9%	968	8%
Prospective adopters	264	2%	146	1%	141	1%
In other community	48	0%	292	2%	324	3%
Residential accommodation	1,529	10%	1,324	11%	1,383	12%
Local authority home	564	4%	518	4%	509	4%
Voluntary home	133	1%	75	1%	77	1%
Residential school	402	3%	302	3%	317	3%
Secure care accommodation	79	1%	46	0%	59	0%
Crisis care	18	0%	0	0%	0	0%
In other residential [Note 3]	333	2%	383	3%	421	4%
Total	15,400	100%	11,778	100%	11,818	100%

[Note 1] Please note that 2024 figures have been revised since the previous year due to changes to data as part of improved year-on-year reconciliation checks.

[Note 2] Some percentage totals do not exactly equal the sum of their component parts due to the effects of rounding.

[Note 3] The bulk of the ‘other residential’ placements are private/independent residential placements for children with complex needs.

[Note 4] For 2024 the total figure excludes two individuals for which we were missing information on their most recent placement.

[Note 5] For 2025 the total figures excludes six individuals for which we were missing information on their most recent placement.

On 31 July 2025, the rate of looked after children per 1,000 children (0-17 years) was 11.8 – a slight increase from 11.6 in 2024 but  lower than the rate (15.1 per 1,000 children) in 2015 (Chart 1). The rate of children looked after at home with their parents declined overall from 3.8 per 1,000 in 2015 to 2.4 per 1,000 in 2025 (up slightly from 2.3 per 1,000 children in 2024). The rate for those placed away from home is also down from 11.0 per 1,000 in 2015 to 9.2 per 1,000 in 2025. More specifically, the rate of children placed with foster carers and prospective adopters decreased from 5.6 per 1,000 in 2015 to 3.5 per 1,000 in 2025, while the rate of children being placed in kinship care and other community placements increased slightly from 4.1 to 4.5 per 1,000 during the same period. For those children being placed in residential care settings, the rate has remained broadly stable, with a slight reduction from 1.5 per 1,000 in 2015 to 1.4 per 1,000 in 2025.

Chart 1 Rate of looked after children per 1,000 children, by placement type, 1988-2025 [Note 1]

[Note 1] Prior to 2010 figures are as at 31st March. From 2010 onwards figures are as at 31st July.

Care plans

As at 31 July 2025, 91% of looked after children had a current care plan (Table 2). Children looked after at home were as likely to have a current care plan (91%) as those looked after away from home (92%). This is similar to 2023-24 when 92% of children looked after away from home and 91% of those looked after at home had a current care plan. In terms of more specific placement types away from home, those placed with kinship carers (92%), foster carers (93%), and in residential care (92%) were more likely to have a current care plan than those with prospective adopters or in other community placements (80%).

Table 2 Number and percentage of looked after children with an without a current care plan by placement type, on 31 July 2025 [Note 1]

Care plan status	At home	Away from home	Total	With Kinship Carers: friends/relatives	With Foster Carers	With prospective adopters/ other community	In Residential Care
Number With a current care plan	2,191	8,622	10,813	3,844	3,128	372	1,278
Number Without a current care plan	220	785	1,005	338	249	93	105
Total	2,411	9,407	11,818	4,182	3,377	465	1,383
Percentage With a current care plan	91%	92%	91%	92%	93%	80%	92%
Percentage Without a current care plan	9%	8%	9%	8%	7%	20%	8%

[Note 1] Some children without a current care plan may have one in progress on this date; local recording may differ with regard to when a care plan is recorded as being in place.

Age and sex

Of the 11,824 children who were looked after as at 31 July 2025, 5,398 (46%) were female and 6,415 (54%) were male (Table 3). The proportion of males being looked after is higher amongst the older age groups. For example, 64% of looked after 17 year olds are male and 70% of those 18 years or older are male.  

Table 3 Percentage of children looked after by sex and age, 31 July 2025 [Note 1]

Age	Female Number	Female Percentage	Male Number	Male Percentage	All
Under 1 years old	142	45%	177	55%	319
1 years old	215	51%	207	49%	422
2 years old	222	49%	233	51%	455
3 years old	183	44%	231	56%	414
4 years old	234	52%	216	48%	450
5 years old	233	49%	246	51%	479
6 years old	239	48%	257	52%	496
7 years old	259	48%	277	52%	537
8 years old	279	48%	298	52%	578
9 years old	293	48%	320	52%	613
10 years old	295	47%	332	53%	627
11 years old	300	44%	379	56%	679
12 years old	359	46%	420	54%	779
13 years old	399	49%	414	51%	813
14 years old	426	43%	553	56%	981
15 years old	498	47%	565	53%	1,064
16 years old	438	43%	568	56%	1,009
17 years old	337	36%	608	64%	946
18+ years old	47	29%	114	70%	163
All	5,398	46%	6,415	54%	11,824

[Note 1] Where Male or Female sex is not specified, children are included in the "All" sex category.

Area deprivation

Of those whose home postcode at the time of becoming looked after was recorded (67% of all looked after children), almost half (46%) come from one of the 20% most deprived areas in Scotland. This is followed by just over a quarter (26%) from the 20-40% most deprived areas. 4% of looked after children were from one of the 20% least deprived areas in Scotland. (Table 4). In 2023-24, 54% of children whose home postcode was recorded came from one of the 20% most deprived areas in Scotland, followed by 24% from the 20-40% most deprived areas.

The difference between the proportion of looked after children whose home postcode is in the most deprived areas compared to in the least deprived areas is more pronounced among children in placements within the community (except for ‘other community’ placements) than among those in residential accommodation. Among children placed within the community, 47% come from one of the 20% most deprived areas in Scotland, while only 4% come from the one of the 20% least deprived areas. This is compared to those placed in residential accommodation, of whom 37% come from one of the 20% most deprived areas and 7% come from the 20% least deprived areas.

Table 4 Percentage of children looked after by home Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) Quintile, placement type, 31 July 2025 [Note 1]

Placement type category	Placement type subcategory	SIMD 1 Percentage	SIMD 2 Percentage	SIMD 3 Percentage	SIMD 4 Percentage	SIMD 5 Percentage
In the community	At home with parents	49%	28%	12%	8%	2%
In the community	With friends/relatives	50%	27%	12%	9%	3%
In the community	With foster carers	45%	24%	15%	10%	5%
In the community	With prospective adopters	44%	29%	19%	8%	0%
In the community	In other community	27%	25%	15%	10%	22%
In the community	Total	47%	26%	13%	9%	4%
Residential accommodation	In Local Authority home	39%	28%	17%	11%	5%
Residential accommodation	In voluntary home	21%	34%	15%	21%	9%
Residential accommodation	In residential school	36%	18%	18%	18%	10%
Residential accommodation	In secure accommodation	46%	22%	12%	15%	5%
Residential accommodation	Other residential	37%	26%	17%	15%	5%
Residential accommodation	Total	37%	25%	17%	15%	7%
All	Total looked after children	46%	26%	14%	10%	4%

[Note 1] Percentage totals exclude those whom we do not have SIMD information.

Children starting and ceasing to be looked after

During 2024-25, 3,195 children started to be looked after – a rate of 3.1 per 1,000 children (0-17 years; Chart 2). A total of 3,279 children ceased to be looked after – a rate of 3.2 per 1,000 children. Compared to 2023-24, this reflects both a slight decrease in the rate of children starting to be looked after (from 3.2 per 1,000) and a slight decrease in the rate of children ceasing to be looked after (from 3.5 per 1,000). There has been an overall reduction in both the rate of children starting to be looked after (from 4.1 per 1,000) and ceasing to be looked after (from 4.3 per 1,000) since 2014-15.

Chart 2 Rate per 1,000 children starting and ceasing to be looked after during the year, 2003-2025 [Note 1]

[Note 1] A child may start to be looked after more than once in a year and so may be counted more than once.

Children starting to be looked after 

During 2024-25, 3,195 children started to be looked after (Table 5). The number of children starting to be looked after has decreased by 1% since 2023-24 and by 24% since 2014-15. In 2024–25, 56% of children starting to be looked after were male, while 44% were female. This proportion of male children was slightly lower than in 2023–24 (57%) but higher than in 2014–15 (53%). Over the past decade, the proportion of children starting to be looked after who were under 4 years of age has declined, from 38% in 2014-15 to 32% in 2023-24 and 2024-25. Meanwhile the proportion of those starting to be looked after who were 16-17 years of age has been on an overall upward trend during the same period, rising from 1% in 2014–15 to 13% in 2023-24, though this has declined slightly to 11% in 2024-25.

Table 5 Number and percentage of children starting to be looked after during the year by sex and age of child 2015-2025 [Note 1], [Note 2], [Note 3], [Note 4], [Note 5]

Category	Subcategory	2015 Number	2015 Percentage	2024 Number	2024 Percentage	2025 Number	2025 Percentage
Sex	Male	2,238	53%	1,833	57%	1,788	56%
Sex	Female	1,960	47%	1,405	43%	1,405	44%
Age	Under 1 years	668	16%	458	14%	459	14%
Age	1-4 years	933	22%	567	17%	557	17%
Age	5-11 years	1,305	31%	918	28%	975	31%
Age	12-15 years	1,232	29%	890	27%	861	27%
Age	16-17 years	58	1%	406	13%	340	11%
Age	18+ years	2	0%	3	0%	3	0%
Age	Not known	0	0%	0	0%	0	0%
Total	Total	4,198	100%	3,242	100%	3,195	100%

[Note 1] A child may start to be looked after more than once in a year and so may be counted more than once.

[Note 2] Table excludes planned series of short-term placements.

[Note 3] Please note that 2024 figures have been revised since the previous year due to changes to data as part of improved year-on-year reconciliation checks.

[Note 4] Some totals do not exactly equal the sum of their component parts due to the effects of rounding.

[Note 5] For a very small number of children Male or Female sex was not specified, they are included in the "Age" category.

Children ceasing to be looked after

During 2024-25, 3,279 children ceased to be looked after (Table 6). The number of children ceasing to be looked after has decreased by 8% since 2023-24 (3,548) and by 25% since 2014-15 (4,371). Compared with 2014-15, the proportions of children ceasing to be looked after whose episodes of care lasted for periods less than 5 years have all decreased since 2014-15. Meanwhile, the proportion of children with long care episodes of 5 years and over increased overall since 2014–15, rising from 18% to 25% in 2024–25. However, this represents a decrease from a peak of 28% in 2023–24.

Table 6 Number and percentage of children ceasing to be looked after during the year by episode duration 2015-2025 [Note 1], [Note 2], [Note 3], [Note 4],

Length of time looked after	2015 Number	2015 Percentage	2024 Number	2024 Percentage	2025 Number	2025 Percentage
Under 6 weeks	293	7%	180	5%	179	5%
6 weeks to under 6 months	371	8%	293	8%	270	8%
6 months to under 1 year	578	13%	435	12%	369	11%
1 year to under 3 years	1,620	37%	1,074	30%	1,186	36%
3 years to under 5 years	740	17%	581	16%	464	14%
5 years and over	769	18%	985	28%	811	25%
Total	4,371	100%	3,548	100%	3,279	100%

[Note 1] A child may cease to be looked after more than once in a year and so may be counted more than once.

[Note 2] Table excludes children on a planned series of short term placements.

[Note 3] Please note 2024 figures may have been revised since the previous year due to changes to data as part of improved year-on-year reconciliation checks.

[Note 4] Some totals do not exactly equal the sum of their component parts due to the effects of rounding.

Destination of children ceasing to be looked after

Of the 3,279 children who ceased to be looked after during 2024-25, 43% had a recorded destination of at home with their biological parents (similar to the 44% the year before) (Table 7). This is the most common destination, but this figure is a considerable reduction when compared to that observed in 2014-15, when 61% of children ceasing to be looked after had a recorded destination of at home with their biological parents. In 2024-25, 12% of children had a recorded destination of kinship care with friends or relatives, down 2 percentage points from the previous year (14%), and compared to 17% in 2014-15. 12% of children who ceased to be looked after during 2024-25 had a recorded destination of ‘Other’ (including residential care, homeless, in custody and other destinations), compared to 5% in 2014-15.

Table 7 Number and percentage of children ceasing to be looked after during the year by destination accommodation 2015-2025 [Note 1], [Note 2], [Note 3], [Note 4], [Note 5], [Note 7], [Note 8]

Destination accommodation	2015 Number	2015 percentage	2024 Number	2024 Percentage	2025 Number	2025 Percentage
At home with parents	2,682	61%	1,573	44%	1,402	43%
Kinship Carers: friends/relatives	745	17%	491	14%	404	12%
Kinship Care Order	-	0%	161	5%	114	3%
Former Foster Carers	80	2%	90	3%	33	1%
Continuing Care	-	0%	334	9%	400	12%
Adopted	303	7%	194	5%	153	5%
Supported accommodation / own tenancy	295	7%	308	9%	380	12%
Other [Note 6]	219	5%	361	10%	385	12%
Not known	47	1%	32	1%	8	0%
Total	4,371	100%	3,544	100%	3,279	100%

[Note 1] A child may cease to be looked after more than once in a year and so may be counted more than once.

[Note 2] Table excludes planned series of short-term placements.

[Note 3] Please note that 2024 figures have been revised since the previous year due to ongoingn validation work.

[Note 4] Some totals do not exactly equal the sum of their component parts due to the effects of rounding.

[Note 5] Cells shown as "-" relate to 'Continuing Care' and 'Kinship Care Order' categories which were added in 2018. Prior to this, children in continuing care were mainly recorded in the former foster carers category, and those with Kinship Care Order were mainly recorded in the friends/relatives category.

[Note 6] 'Other' includes residential care, homelessness, in custody and other destinations.

[Note 7] Figure for 2025 includes two individuals under the age of 16 whose destination accommodation was recorded as Continuing Care.

[Note 8] Figure for 2025 includes thirty-one individuals whose destination accommodation was recorded as Continuing Care but whose final placement did not match eligibility criteria for continuing care (i.e. kinship, foster or residential).

Pathway plans for children ceasing to be looked after

During 2024-25, 76% of children who were 16 years or over on the date they ceased to be looked after had a pathway plan upon discharge and 57% had a pathway coordinator (Table 8). This is compared to 74% with a pathway plan and 56% with a pathway coordinator in 2023-24. Children whose final placement was at home were less likely to have a pathway plan (67%) than those who had been placed away from home (79%). Those whose final placement was away from home were more likely to have a pathway coordinator (59%) than those whose final placement was at home (49%).

Table 8 Pathway plans and co-ordinators of children who were 16 years old or over on the date they ceased to be looked after during 2024-25 [Note 1], [Note 2]

Pathway plan status	At home Number	Away from home Number	Total Number	At home Percentage	Away from home Percentage	Total Percentage
With a pathway plan on date of discharge	181	939	1,120	67%	79%	76%
Without a pathway plan on date of discharge	91	255	346	33%	21%	24%
With pathway co-ordinator	132	711	843	49%	59%	57%
Without pathway co-ordinator	140	484	624	51%	41%	43%
Total	272	1,195	1,467	100%	100%	100%

Table 8 continued

Pathway plan status	With Kinship Carers: friends/relatives Number	With Foster Carers Number	With prospective adopters/ other community Number	In Residential Care Number
With a pathway plan on date of discharge	262	246	175	256
Without a pathway plan on date of discharge	79	45	62	69
With pathway co-ordinator	199	175	136	201
Without pathway co-ordinator	142	116	101	125
Total	341	291	237	326

[Note 1] Figures include all episodes of ceasing to be looked after beyond 16 years of age (i.e. a child may be counted more than once).

[Note 2] It may be the case that some children who do not have a relevant pathway plan/coordinator may be receiving similar support from adult services instead.