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<p> </p><p>Secure children’s homes (SCHs) are children’s homes that provide a locked
environment and restrict a young person’s liberty. They provide care and accommodation
to children and young people who have been placed there on welfare grounds by local
authorities and the courts. They also accommodate and care for children and young
people who have been detained or sentenced by the Youth Justice Board (YJB), and those
who have been remanded to secure local authority accommodation.</p><p> </p><p>Funding
for local authorities to purchase welfare beds is included in the Revenue Support
Grant given to local authorities and is not ring-fenced, in line with our general
policy to increase the control that local authorities have over their budgets to meet
local needs.</p><p> </p><p>The YJB has a series of block-bed contracts with nine SCHs
across England and Wales. A recent tendering exercise let a number of new two-year
contracts.</p><p>The latest statistics on SCHs published on 4 June 2014 show that
there were 298 approved places in England and Wales at 31 March 2014, an extra two
places since 31 March 2013. These statistics are available online:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/317365/SFR14-2014_Text.pdf"
target="_blank">www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/317365/SFR14-2014_Text.pdf</a></p>
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