Disabled children spend and service provision

What was the council’s gross expenditure on children’s social services and expenditure on service provision in:

Please itemise each year by: Gross expenditure (£s) & Of which (£s) was spent on service provision

Year Amount 
2010/11 Relevant information at this time was recorded under Every Child Matters headings and due to changes in service structures and coding standards since this date locating and collating this information would take in excess of 18 hours therefore we are applying Section 12 of the Freedom of information Act – Cost of Compliance
2011/12 £46,448,000
2012/13 £50,854,000
2013/14 £72,325,000
2014/15 £75,309,000
2015/16 £81,346,000
2016/17 £76,098,000

Please note: Devon County Council has reorganised over the period of time in question and therefore year on year comparisons of spend are not meaningful, because for example key elements of the Integrated Children’s Services have been externalised, and children’s and adult social care protection and provision are reported together in some instances.

How many disabled children does the council currently have a record of, and what is their primary support reason?

Total
Autistic spectrum disorder
Learning disability
Mental health condition
Life limiting illness
Physical disability
Sensory impairment
Other

To collate information about how many disabled children the council currently has a record of would require an examination of thousands of cases in several different systems and databases and even if each one only required two minutes would require well in excess of eighteen hours, therefore we are exempting disclosure under Section 12 of the Freedom of information Act 2000 – Cost of Compliance .

Disabled children often have complex needs and support is provided to the whole child. We do not record a primary support reason therefore we do not hold that information.

How many disabled children did the council provide social care services to in:

2016/17
2015/16
2014/15
2013/14
2012/13
2011/12
2010/11

To collate information about how many disabled children the council currently has a record of would require an examination of thousands of cases in several different systems and databases and even if each one only required two minutes would require well in excess of eighteen hours, therefore we are exempting disclosure under Section 12 of the Freedom of information Act 2000 – Cost of Compliance.

Some children would receive social care services in the form of active involvement from a social worker, others would be supported through a financial arrangement only.

Of those disabled children to receive services in 2016/17, how many received the following service types and what was the total expenditure on each service type?

Short breaks/respite care
Portage services
Emotional support
Occupational therapy
Speech and language therapy
Leisure/play opportunities
Buddying/befriending
Daily living skills training
Transportation services
Provision of equipment
Home adaptations
Personal budgets and/or direct payments
Other

Support is provided as a package for each child according to their needs and expenditure is recorded per child therefore we do not hold information about the number of children who received each of the service types above. Services commissioned for disabled children will be in various forms from a range of providers, we record the combination and levels of service required to meet a child’s needs rather than numbers of children receiving each service. The services are also not commissioned against the specific categories requested.