CHILD'S CARE COSTS COUNCIL ALMOST £2MILLION A YEAR

CASE HIGHLIGHTED BY AUTHORITY TO SHOW HOW SOARING BILLS LEAVE FRONTLINE SERVICES SHORT OF CASH

- By RICHARD EVANS Local Democracy Reporter

A SINGLE care case is costing Denbighshire Council nearly £2m a year - the equivalent of thousands of residents’ council tax contributions, says the authority’s chief executive. At a full council meeting, chief executive Graham Boase revealed that one child recently brought into the council's care is costing the authority £35,000 a week.

Denbighshire claims frontline services must be cut year on year as the majority of the budget is being swallowed by increasing costs across adult care, children’s care, and education. “We've got one child that has come into our care; £35,000 a week we are paying to care for that child,” Mr Boase told councillors.

“It is massive amounts of money that we are spending that council tax contributions are going towards.”

This week, the council confirmed the figure is actually £37,500 a week, pushing the annual cost of care for the young person to just under £2m.

The child, who has significant disabilities and complex behavioural needs, is receiving 24-hour specialist care. The council said sourcing such care is difficult due to a shortage of registered providers with the right expertise.

A Denbighshire Council spokeswoman said: “We are trying to find alternative care solutions for this very vulnerable young person that meet their needs but is more cost efficient. This has proved difficult. However, our priority has to be protecting the most vulnerable in our communities and keeping them safe.”