Sufficiency Strategy for Cared for Children 2026-2030
Appendix 2 - Data and intelligence
Gateshead's children and young people
- 40414 young people under 18 in Gateshead
- 6.5% from ethnic minority communities
- 27.6% aged under 16 in relative low income families
- 8,349 children on free school meals
- 774 children in receipt of early help
- 1370 children in need
- 191 children on a child protection plan
- 485 children in care
- 4219 school age children overall with SEN support (24/25 academic year)
- 2016 children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)
- 10 first time entrants to Youth Justice System
- 423 care experienced young people
- 223 children with a disability
Gateshead's cared for children
Children in our care
At the end of September 2025 there were 485 children in our care, a rate of 120 per 10,000 population. Gateshead's rate is higher than the Regional (111), Statistical Neighbours (106) and National (67) averages when compared to the latest data available from 2024/25.
21 (4.3%) of children in our care are unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC).
Of the 485 children in our care, 44% are aged 10 to 15, 25% aged 16 to 17, 18% aged 5 to 9, 7% aged 2 to 4 and 6% under 2.
Placement stability
Children's placement stability is strong in comparison to our benchmarks, and at September 2025, 10.3% of children experienced 3 or more placement moves in the previous 12 months, compared to 11% regionally and 10% nationally.
For longer term stability of placements, 71% of children have been in the same placement for at least 2 years, compared to 68% regionally and nationally.
Placement type
46% (222) of children in care are placed with our own Foster Carers, and 14% (70) are living in Kinship Care arrangements, with a further 13% placed with Agency Foster Carers.
Placement location
Of the 485 children in our care, 60% are living in Gateshead and 40% are living outside of Gateshead, with 12% living 20 miles or more from their home.
Entries and exits from care
For children entering our care we have seen a decreasing trend, with 53.1 children entering our care per 10k population in 2022/23, 52.4 in 2023/24 and 45.5 in 2024/25.
For children exiting our care, we have seen an increasing trend, with 48.8 children per 10k population in 2022/23, 52.1 in 2023/24 and a slight decrease to 50.8 in 2024/25.
