Councils struggle to cope with influx of child refugees as number in local authority’s care doubles in a year

‘A huge influx of child refugees arriving in Britain has left councils struggling to find homes for thousands of troubled teenagers.
More than 4,200 child asylum seekers were in council care last year – a 54 per cent increase on the previous year – and local authorities have warned that they cannot find enough foster care places.
The increase in numbers has left many councils facing massive budget shortfalls, with one local authority, Kent County Council, reporting that it spent £34million on care for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) in the last financial year.
Officials warned that such children were likely to suffer psychological problems because of horrors witnessed in their home country, or on their journey to Britain.’
Read more: Councils struggle to cope with influx of child refugees as number in local authority’s care doubles in a year