Adopted and looked-after children
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- 1. Navigate toMain facts and figures section
- 2. Navigate toThings you need to know section
- 3. Navigate to By ethnicity (looked-after and adopted children) section
- 4. Navigate to By ethnicity over time (looked-after children) section
- 5. Navigate to By ethnicity over time (number of looked-after children who were adopted) section
- 6. Navigate to By ethnicity over time (children who stopped being looked after due to adoption) section
- 7. Navigate toData sources section
- 8. Navigate toDownload the data section
1. Main facts and figures
- there were 78,150 looked-after children (children in care) in England on 31 March 2019, compared with 69,470 in 2015
- the number of looked-after children who were adopted went down from 5,360 to 3,570 – and the percentage of children that stopped being looked after because they were adopted went down from 17% to 12%
- White children were less likely to be in care (74%) and more likely to be adopted (83%) compared with their share of the population of all under-18 year olds (79%)
- Black children were more likely to be in care (8%) and less likely to be adopted (2%) compared with their share of the under-18 year old population (5%)
- Asian children were less likely to be in care (4%) and less likely to be adopted (1%) compared with their share of the under-18 year old population (10%)
2. Things you need to know
What the data measures
The data measures the number and percentage of children who were ‘looked-after’ (sometimes called ‘in care’) or adopted, by ethnicity.
A looked-after child is one who has been in the care of their local authority for more than 24 hours. They usually live:
- with foster parents
- in a children’s home
- in a residential setting, like a school or secure unit
Adoption is when a court transfers responsibility for a child from those with parental responsibility (usually their birth parents or local authority) to the adopters. It is usually considered after all other options have been explored for a child.
The data is based on a snapshot taken on 31 March every year.
Population data for under-18s is taken from the 2011 Census and shown for comparison.
Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number. Total numbers of children are rounded to the nearest 10.
You can read more about child adoption on GOV.UK.
Not included in the data
Adoption is not the only possible outcome for looked-after children. This data does not include figures for other outcomes including special guardianship orders, returning to birth parents or placement in long-term foster care.
Local authority data on adoptions by ethnicity is not included.
The ethnic groups used in the data
Data is shown for the 16 ethnic groups used in the 2001 Census, and 2 extra ethnic groups:
- White Gypsy and Roma
- White Irish Traveller
In some places, data is shown for the following 5 aggregated groups:
- Asian
- Black
- Mixed
- White
- Other (including Chinese)
This is to make sure numbers are large enough to be reliable.
Methodology
Read the detailed methodology document for the data on this page.
The data on this page does not take into account factors that might affect the likelihood of looked-after children being adopted, including:
- the child’s age
- how long they have been in care
- how many people are looking to adopt children
- where they live
3. By ethnicity (looked-after and adopted children)
| Looked after children | Looked after children who were adopted | Under 18 population | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Looked after children % | Looked after children Number | Looked after children who were adopted % | Looked after children who were adopted Number | Under 18 population % | Under 18 population Number |
| Asian | 4 | 3,480 | 1 | 50 | 10 | 1,136,293 |
| Black | 8 | 5,930 | 2 | 60 | 5 | 562,333 |
| Mixed | 10 | 7,560 | 11 | 390 | 5 | 590,017 |
| White | 74 | 57,780 | 83 | 2,960 | 79 | 8,903,313 |
| Other | 4 | 2,780 | 1 | 40 | 1 | 145,004 |
| Unknown | 1 | 620 | 2 | 70 | N/A* | N/A* |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity (looked-after and adopted children)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity (looked-after and adopted children)’ (CSV)
Summary of Adopted and looked-after children By ethnicity (looked-after and adopted children) Summary
Percentages of all under-18 year olds are taken from the 2011 Census.
The data shows that:
- there were 78,150 looked-after children in England on 31 March 2019
- Black children made up 5% of all under-18 year olds – they were more likely to be looked after (8%) and less likely to be adopted (2%)
- White children made up 79% of all under-18 year olds – they were less likely to be looked after (74%) and more likely to be adopted (83%)
- children with Mixed ethnicity made up 5% of all under-18 year olds – they were more likely to be looked after (10%) and more likely to be adopted (11%)
- children from Other ethnic groups made up 1% of all under-18 year olds – they were more likely to be looked after (4%) and as likely to be adopted (1%)
- children from the Asian ethnic group made up 10% of all under-18 year olds – they were less likely to be looked after (4%) and less likely to be adopted (1%)
4. By ethnicity over time (looked-after children)
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | 2015 % | 2015 Number | 2016 % | 2016 Number | 2017 % | 2017 Number | 2018 % | 2018 Number | 2019 % | 2019 Number |
| All | 100 | 69,470 | 100 | 70,410 | 100 | 72,610 | 100 | 75,370 | 100 | 78,150 |
| White | 77 | 53,600 | 75 | 53,160 | 75 | 54,330 | 75 | 56,380 | 74 | 57,780 |
| White British | 73 | 50,400 | 71 | 49,870 | 70 | 50,910 | 70 | 52,820 | 69 | 54,060 |
| White Irish | ~0 | 290 | ~0 | 260 | ~0 | 240 | ~0 | 230 | ~0 | 230 |
| Irish Traveller | ~0 | 80 | ~0 | 90 | ~0 | 90 | ~0 | 90 | ~0 | 100 |
| Gypsy/Roma | ~0 | 260 | ~0 | 280 | ~0 | 330 | ~0 | 380 | 1 | 440 |
| White other | 4 | 2,570 | 4 | 2,660 | 4 | 2,760 | 4 | 2,860 | 4 | 2,950 |
| Mixed | 9 | 6,400 | 9 | 6,450 | 9 | 6,830 | 10 | 7,290 | 10 | 7,560 |
| White/Black Caribbean | 3 | 2,400 | 3 | 2,360 | 3 | 2,450 | 3 | 2,590 | 3 | 2,630 |
| White/Black African | 1 | 670 | 1 | 670 | 1 | 720 | 1 | 800 | 1 | 890 |
| White/Asian | 2 | 1,230 | 2 | 1,240 | 2 | 1,330 | 2 | 1,380 | 2 | 1,490 |
| Mixed other | 3 | 2,100 | 3 | 2,180 | 3 | 2,330 | 3 | 2,520 | 3 | 2,560 |
| Asian | 4 | 2,670 | 4 | 3,080 | 5 | 3,380 | 5 | 3,400 | 4 | 3,480 |
| Indian | ~0 | 290 | ~0 | 290 | ~0 | 290 | ~0 | 330 | ~0 | 310 |
| Pakistani | 1 | 870 | 1 | 850 | 1 | 880 | 1 | 930 | 1 | 1,020 |
| Bangladeshi | 1 | 460 | 1 | 420 | 1 | 410 | 1 | 410 | 1 | 410 |
| Asian other | 1 | 1,040 | 2 | 1,520 | 2 | 1,790 | 2 | 1,730 | 2 | 1,730 |
| Black | 7 | 4,990 | 7 | 5,240 | 7 | 5,270 | 7 | 5,400 | 8 | 5,930 |
| Black Caribbean | 2 | 1,490 | 2 | 1,390 | 2 | 1,410 | 2 | 1,340 | 2 | 1,340 |
| Black African | 4 | 2,590 | 4 | 2,950 | 4 | 2,840 | 4 | 2,990 | 4 | 3,410 |
| Black other | 1 | 910 | 1 | 900 | 1 | 1,010 | 1 | 1,080 | 2 | 1,180 |
| Other | 2 | 1,590 | 3 | 2,250 | 3 | 2,480 | 3 | 2,490 | 4 | 2,780 |
| Chinese | ~0 | 60 | ~0 | 80 | ~0 | 80 | ~0 | 90 | ~0 | 100 |
| Any other | 2 | 1,530 | 3 | 2,170 | 3 | 2,400 | 3 | 2,400 | 3 | 2,690 |
| Unknown | ~0 | 230 | ~0 | 240 | ~0 | 330 | 1 | 420 | 1 | 620 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity over time (looked-after children)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity over time (looked-after children)’ (CSV)
Summary of Adopted and looked-after children By ethnicity over time (looked-after children) Summary
The data shows that, between 2015 and 2019:
- the number of looked-after children went up from 69,470 to 78,150 – an increase of 12%
- the percentage of looked-after children who were from Black, Mixed and Other ethnic groups combined went up from 18% to 22%
- the percentage of looked-after children who were White went down from 77% to 74%
5. By ethnicity over time (number of looked-after children who were adopted)
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | 2015 % | 2015 Number | 2016 % | 2016 Number | 2017 % | 2017 Number | 2018 % | 2018 Number | 2019 % | 2019 Number |
| All | 100 | 5,360 | 100 | 4,710 | 100 | 4,370 | 100 | 3,850 | 100 | 3,570 |
| Asian | 2 | 90 | 2 | 90 | 1 | 60 | 1 | 50 | 1 | 50 |
| Black | 2 | 120 | 2 | 120 | 2 | 90 | 2 | 70 | 2 | 60 |
| Mixed | 11 | 580 | 11 | 500 | 11 | 460 | 10 | 380 | 11 | 390 |
| White | 83 | 4,430 | 83 | 3,890 | 84 | 3,660 | 84 | 3,230 | 83 | 2,960 |
| Other including Chinese | 1 | 50 | 1 | 40 | 1 | 40 | 1 | 50 | 1 | 40 |
| Unknown | 2 | 100 | 2 | 70 | 1 | 60 | 2 | 80 | 2 | 70 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity over time (number of looked-after children who were adopted)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity over time (number of looked-after children who were adopted)’ (CSV)
Summary of Adopted and looked-after children By ethnicity over time (number of looked-after children who were adopted) Summary
The data shows that, between 2015 and 2019:
- the number of looked-after children who were adopted went down by 33%, from 5,360 to 3,570
- the number of looked-after children from White and Mixed ethnic backgrounds who were adopted went down by 33%
- the number of Black looked-after children who were adopted went down by 50%
6. By ethnicity over time (children who stopped being looked after due to adoption)
| Ethnicity | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | |
| All | 17 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 |
| Asian | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Black | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Mixed | 20 | 18 | 17 | 15 | 15 |
| White | 20 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 15 |
| Other including Chinese | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Unknown | 24 | 21 | 19 | 20 | 20 |
Download table data for ‘By ethnicity over time (children who stopped being looked after due to adoption)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘By ethnicity over time (children who stopped being looked after due to adoption)’ (CSV)
Summary of Adopted and looked-after children By ethnicity over time (children who stopped being looked after due to adoption) Summary
The data shows that:
- between 2015 and 2019, the percentage of children who stopped being looked after because they were adopted went down from 17% to 12%
- in 2019, 15% of children from the Mixed and White ethnic groups stopped being looked after because they were adopted, down from 20% in 2015
- 2% of children from each of the Black and Other ethnic groups and 3% of Asian children stopped being looked after because they were adopted
7. Data sources
Source
Children looked after in England including adoption: 2018 to 2019
Type of data
Administrative data
Type of statistic
National Statistics
Publisher
Department for Education
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
This data gives information about looked-after children in England, including:
- their characteristics
- their placement type
- the number of children starting to be looked after, and the number stopping
- children who go missing or are away from their placement without authorisation
- health and behavioural outcomes
- children who were placed for adoption, who were adopted and the average time between stages of the adoption process