the economics of supporting young people leaving care
DESCRIPTION
The economics of supporting young people leaving care. Coleen Clare Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare Melbourne. Successful entry into secondary school Continuation of academic trajectory Close within and across gender relationships Extra-curricular activities - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
The economics of supporting young people leaving care
Coleen ClareCentre for Excellence in Child and
Family Welfare Melbourne
Children’s developmental needs - adolescence
Successful entry into secondary school
Continuation of academic trajectory
Close within and across gender
relationships
Extra-curricular activities
Part-time work
Autonomy and independence
Self esteem
Transition patterns of young Australians
34 per cent aged 20-24 were still living at
home
Expenditure on a 18-24 year old is greater
than for a child aged 15-17
In Australia 79.2 per cent of 18-19 year olds
37 per cent of 23-24 year olds
18.7 per cent in their late 20s live with their parents
Over 40 per cent of young adults who leave
home for reasons other than marriage return
home at least once
The ProjectSupported by Telstra Foundation
Aims: To examine the life pathways of 60 young people
leaving care in Victoria and establish the costs/benefits
of providing leaving care support services to young
people
Recommend a viable service model to support young
people transitioning from care
60 young people aged 19-25 who had been
in care for at least 2 years as teenagers
Semi-structured interviews
Data analysis
Check sample composition against known characteristics of Leaving Care population.
Summarise outcomes for use in Cost Benefit Analysis
Differentiated Outcomes Methodology: Looking for relationships between
Outcomes and In Care characteristics Outcomes and Leaving Care characteristics
IN - CARE VARIABLES
40% entered care before the age of 12
35% entered care at 12 or 13
Of those who entered care after 12: 40% had more than 10 placements 15% had more than 20 placements
62% had attended more than five different schools
Difficulties at school: Primary school = 53% Secondary school = 60%
Participation in organised activity Primary school = 80% Secondary school = 68%
Attendance at school: Primary school = 33% never missed Secondary school = 3% never missed
LEAVING-CARE VARIABLES
Age when order lapsed: 25% were 16 or younger 27% were 17 years old
Case plan on exit 22% reported having no case plan 19% directed to use SAAP or THM
Activity when leaving care 20% working 42% unemployed
Preparation for leaving care 30% had some form of preparation Substantial variation in duration and
content Almost all felt it was at least somewhat
useful
Help from family 43% received no help 42% received some type of help
Financial help 57% received no help 8% received help sometimes
Accommodation 75% never had any help 15% had some help
Food and Clothing 66% never or very rarely got some help
Finding a job 78% received no help
Emotional support 53% had no support from family in the
initial 2 years after leaving care Help organising their lives 66% did not receive support from family
Help from unrelated people CSO worker – 60% Friend or partner 47% Previous carer – 20%
Type of help 48% received financial help all the time or
often 68% had accommodation help at least
sometimes 43% had help with food and clothing 65% had help finding a job 78% received emotional support 73% had some help organising their lives
OUTCOMES
Schooling, Occupation and Income
Highest level of formal school 48% had completed year 10 Only 13% had completed year 12 (VCE)
Current status 37% were involved in some study 5% were employed full-time (35+ hrs/wk) 71% were unemployed
Income Over half had a weekly income of $100-200
Housing
Living arrangements 10% were homeless; 5% lived with a
previous carer
Stability of living arrangements 45% were in very unstable situations 52% had been at current address for <6
months 36% had moved accommodation over 5
times in the previous 12 months
Debt and Crime
Debt 53% reported having problems with debts –
phone, rental, court fines, vehicles/transport, utility etc.
Involvement with police 47% had some involvement with the law –
charged with an offence, detention, IO, eviction
Cycle of care
Young people with children 28% of YP had children (26 children) Some young people had three children Nearly half of the YP who had children had
their children while they were still in care
Cycle of care More than half of the children of YP were in
care Reasons included – YP being in care when
the child was born, domestic violence, drug use/abuse, mental health, child abuse
Health
Disability 65% had been diagnosed with a disability
23% had physical disability or illness – Hep-C; diabetes; vision impairment; arthritis; cancer
32% had mental disability or illness – schizophrenia; depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress; obsessive compulsive behaviour; bi-polar
22% had intellectual disabilities – ADHD; learning disabilities; short-term auditory memory disorder
Only 14% were accessing disability support pension
Engagement with community
Community involvement 23% involved with community organisation
(sport, social, youth etc)
Emotional support 1/3 turned to a friend or partner for support 1/3 turned to a former carer/CSO worker
Confidence levels
Confidence about living independently Only 17% were not sure or confident about
their ability to live independently
Feelings about life 27% - happy or very happy 43% - okay
Feelings about future 68% - hopeful or somewhat hopeful 23% - unsure
SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN VARIABLES
Lapse of order and leaving school
Placement stability and employment
Type of care and age at which a young person left school
Type of care and highest level of schooling completed
Age at which order lapsed and age at which young person left school
Leaving care case plan and: Employment status Housing stability Debts
Housing stability and leaving care
preparation
Help to find a job and employment status
Age at which young person entered care
and use of D&A services
Leaving care preparation and visits to GP
and accessing MH services
Involvement in leaving care preparation and: Confidence to live independently (1.5 times) Feeling about life now (2.2 times) Feeling about the future (1.5 times) Positive recollections about their time in
care (3.3 times)
Cost benefit analysis
YP from care
YP from general population Difference
Child protection $98,812 $540 $98,272
GST revenue -$67,317 -$119,434 $52,117
Health $39,887 $16,074 $23,813
Mental Health $45,012 $6,302 $38,710
Drug & Alcohol $18,853 $1,244 $17,609
Police $240,134 $4,543 $235,591
Justice System & Corrective Services $175,598 $2,918 $172,680
Housing $108,883 $8,934 $99,949
Total $659,862 -$78,879 $738,741
What that means
Efficiency Gap is around $738,000 per young person over their life-time.
Approximately 450 young people have left care in Victoria during 2003/04.
The State Government could save approx. $332 million annually, if life outcomes for young people leaving care could be made comparable to those of the general population.
Preparation young people said they needed
Communication skillsFinancial management / budgetingInformation about affordable housingInformation about community servicesHome making skillsHygiene and grooming; healthy lifestyleRisk and safetyCareer assistanceLiteracy and numeracy skills
Post care support young people said they needed
HousingJob or study CounsellingSocial networks and mentoringFinancial assistance and adviceFitness and healthHelp for own children Help with their information
Wrap around model
Type of support Duration of intensive support
Duration of flexible support (needs basis)
Accommodation and life skills as a package
2 years immediately after leaving care
Access up to 25 years on a flexible basis
Mentoring and networking support
Ongoing, as required to 25 years
Education or training 2 to 3 years to complete apprenticeship, or TAFE or University course
Access any time up to 25 years
Health concession - General Health- Specialist (Mental
health, D&A etc)
3 yearsIntensive in the first 6 to
12 months on a need basis
Access to 25 years Access to 25 years
Job search/ employment support
Intensive initially for 2 years
Access to 25 years
Help with identity, learning about family, genealogy
Access to 25 years
Service/ Support description Estimated costs
Mentoring $30,429
Education & Training $15,000
Accommodation $42,703
Life Skills Training, Social Worker $61,061
General Health Assumed as NIL cost
Specialist Health $6,000
Job search / employment support
$15,867
Identity $1,000
Total Costs $172,060
Costs of the wrap around model
Cost of wrap-around model
Estimated full costs - $172,000 per individual
Estimated utilisation based on a ‘risk-profile’ of young people in care
– 54.7 per cent based on ‘resilience profile’ of young people in
our sample – 52.2
Equates to an average total cost of $86,000 per young person leaving care, over 7 years
Is it worthwhile?
The economic argument Sunk costs Federal costs, population effects Community capacity building
UK experience
The moral argument Duty of care Social trends