LEAVING CARE
10. There were 4,386 children who ceased to be looked after in 2008-09, a decrease of 3 per cent on 2007-08 (Tables 1.15, 2.6). Children are counted for each episode of being looked after ( i.e. a child may be counted more than once).
11. Nine per cent of children ceasing to be looked after had been looked after for under six weeks. Just over a quarter (27 per cent) had been looked after for three years or more, including 12 per cent who had been looked after for five years or more. Thirty four per cent had been looked after for less than a year ( Table 1.19).
12. In 68 per cent of the episodes of care that ended during 2008-09, the child's destination was home with parents (biological or newly-adoptive). The remaining children had a range of destinations, with no more than 11 per cent in any one destination category. ( Table 1.16)