Other reasons

 

Involvement with the police

You might become a looked after child because you’ve been arrested by the police and they’ve asked the local authority to find you somewhere to live.

If you have been to court because you were charged with an offence, and you are aged 10-16, the court may have remanded you to the care of the local authority, which will find you somewhere to live. You might be placed in secure accommodation or in a secure children’s home.

 
 

Children in police protection

You might be looked after by your local authority because you are under police protection.  Police protection allows the police to take a child away from a dangerous situation or to stop a child being moved from a safe place, such as a hospital.

This doesn’t happen often – it’s usually where there isn’t enough time to go to court and get an emergency protection order, or because there is so much danger that the police think it’s best to act really quickly to make sure a child is safe.
 
Police protection cannot last longer than 72 hours and if the concern about the child is not sorted out by this time, children’s services may decide to go to court to get an emergency protection order.

 

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