Commissioner guide · Duties
Sufficiency, suitable accommodation & joint protocols.
The statutory duties that shape how councils secure accommodation for care leavers — what "sufficiency" and "suitable accommodation" actually require, how joint housing protocols work, and what the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 changes.
By the Milestone Young People practice team · Reviewed: August 2026
Three duties sit behind every care-leaver placement: the sufficiency duty (secure enough local accommodation), the suitable accommodation duty (what a young person is placed in must be suitable), and joint housing protocols (children's services and housing must cooperate). Together they explain why councils are trying to build local supply, and what "good" looks like when they place.
This guide consolidates duties that are scattered across the Children Act 1989, the Care Leavers Regulations, statutory guidance and — now — the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026. It is written for commissioners and social workers who need the duties in one place.
What is the sufficiency duty?
The sufficiency duty, in section 22G of the Children Act 1989, requires a local authority to take steps that secure, so far as reasonably practicable, sufficient accommodation within its area to meet the needs of the children it looks after. It is a strategic duty, not a duty owed to one child — councils discharge it through a sufficiency strategy that forecasts demand and plans supply across fostering, residential and supported accommodation. DfE statutory guidance on securing sufficient accommodation for looked-after children sets the expectations.
The duty matters commercially and practically because most authorities cannot meet it from existing supply. Demand in the 16-plus and care-leaver cohort has grown sharply, and where local capacity runs short, councils place at a distance and at a premium — often through high-cost, out-of-area spot placements. The whole logic of a sufficiency strategy is to shrink that gap by growing local, planned provision. A quality local provider is part of how a council meets its sufficiency duty.
What counts as suitable accommodation?
For a relevant child aged 16 or 17, the local authority must provide or maintain suitable accommodation, and the Care Leavers (England) Regulations 2010 set out what "suitable" means. Suitability is judged against factors including the condition and health-and-safety of the accommodation, the support attached to it, its location relative to the young person's needs (education, health, relationships), and whether it promotes the young person's welfare and development. The assessment must take the young person's views into account.
Some forms of accommodation are treated as presumptively unsuitable. Bed and breakfast, in particular, is generally regarded as unsuitable for 16- and 17-year-old care leavers except in a genuine emergency and then only for the shortest possible time. For 18-plus former relevant young people the authority must keep the pathway plan — including accommodation — under review, so suitability remains a live question past 18, even though the accommodation itself is no longer an Ofsted-regulated activity.
| Cohort | Accommodation duty (in outline) |
|---|---|
| Relevant child (16–17) | LA must provide/maintain suitable accommodation and maintain the young person; suitability assessed against the 2010 Regulations factors |
| Former relevant (18–25) | Keep the pathway plan (including accommodation) under review; support with accommodation, including vacation accommodation where in education |
| All looked-after children | Covered by the strategic sufficiency duty (s22G) to secure enough local accommodation |
What is a joint housing protocol?
A joint housing protocol is an agreement between children's services and the housing service — often with registered providers — setting out how they cooperate to secure and sustain accommodation for care leavers. Government good practice expects every authority to have one. A strong protocol covers how and when a care leaver is referred to housing; how homelessness is prevented before it happens; how priority is given for social housing; how the two services share responsibility rather than passing the young person between them; and how emergencies are handled. The protocol is where the sufficiency and suitable-accommodation duties become an operational reality.
What the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 changes
The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (Royal Assent 29 April 2026) strengthens the accommodation duties for care leavers in four ways that matter here. Individual provisions commence on dates set by regulations, so confirm what is in force before relying on it.
| Provision | Effect |
|---|---|
| Local Offer strengthened (s8) | Councils must publish arrangements for supporting the transition to adulthood, anticipating future needs, cooperating on housing and homelessness, and financial support |
| Homelessness (s9) | Care leavers are not to be regarded as having become homeless intentionally — strengthening rehousing after a placement breakdown |
| Staying Close (new s23CZA) | A statutory duty to assess whether "staying close" support is needed, and to provide it — including help finding and keeping accommodation |
| Regional cooperation | Support for regional cooperation on accommodation for looked-after children, aimed at planning sufficiency across authorities |
The direction is unmistakable: a more corporate-parenting-serious commissioning environment, in which councils are expected to plan sufficiency, cooperate on housing, and prevent care leavers falling into homelessness. For providers, the message is to build the kind of relational, move-on-focused service the reforms assume — and to be locally available so councils can meet the duties in area.
Rising demand plus a sufficiency duty plus a strengthened homelessness protection equals sustained commissioning appetite for good local supported accommodation. Councils that currently export care leavers out of area at crisis rates have every legal and financial incentive to build planned local capacity instead.
How Milestone fits the duties
We are a local provider built to help councils meet these duties well: a settled home, a keyworker who sticks around, and a move-on pathway designed around the strengthened homelessness and Staying Close expectations. We keep young people close to their education, health services and relationships wherever we can, and we design our support so that a placement ends in a sustained tenancy rather than a return to crisis. That is what discharging the suitable-accommodation duty looks like in practice.
Frequently asked questions
What is the sufficiency duty?
Section 22G of the Children Act 1989 requires a local authority to take steps that secure, so far as reasonably practicable, sufficient accommodation within its area for the children it looks after. Councils discharge it through a sufficiency strategy that forecasts demand and plans local supply.
What counts as suitable accommodation for a care leaver?
For a relevant child aged 16 or 17, the authority must provide or maintain suitable accommodation. The Care Leavers (England) Regulations 2010 define suitability by the condition and safety of the accommodation, the support attached, its location relative to the young person's needs, and whether it promotes their welfare. Bed and breakfast is generally unsuitable except in a genuine emergency and for the shortest time.
What is a joint housing protocol?
An agreement between children's services and housing (often with registered providers) on how they cooperate to secure and sustain accommodation for care leavers — referrals, homelessness prevention, priority, shared responsibility and emergencies. Government good practice expects every authority to have one.
What did the 2026 Act change?
It strengthened the Local Offer to include housing and homelessness cooperation, provided that care leavers are not to be treated as intentionally homeless, created a statutory Staying Close duty including help with accommodation, and supported regional cooperation on looked-after children's accommodation. Provisions commence by regulations.
Sources. Children Act 1989, s22G and the leaving-care provisions (ss23A–24D), legislation.gov.uk; Care Leavers (England) Regulations 2010; DfE statutory guidance on securing sufficient accommodation for looked-after children, and Volume 3: Planning Transition to Adulthood for Care Leavers; Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (c.21). Commencement of individual 2026 provisions should be confirmed before relying on them. See also our commissioning guide.
Planning local sufficiency?
We are a local provider built to help you meet the accommodation duties well — close to home, focused on move-on. Talk to us about placements and capacity.