Statutory guidance

Local offer guidance

Guidance for local authorities on the local offer for care leavers.

• From: Department for Education
• Published: 26 February 2018
• Last updated: 13 August 2026 — See all updates

Applies to England

Documents

Local offer guidance (effective until 30 September 2026)

Ref: DFE-00058-2018

PDF, 377 KB, 17 pages

Care leaver local offer: guidance for local authorities (effective from 30 September 2026)

HTML

Details

Section 2 of the Children and Social Work Act 2017 requires each local authority to consult on and publish a local offer for its care leavers. This guidance provides information for local authorities on the development of the local offer and an illustrative local offer.

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 introduced new measures to strengthen support for care-experienced young people as they move towards independence. The statutory guidance has been updated to reflect these changes.

Published 26 February 2018

Last updated 13 August 2026 — Show all updates

1. 13 August 2026

   Added 'Care leaver local offer: guidance for local authorities', which comes into effect on 30 September 2026.

2. 10 February 2025

   Updated the statutory guidance. We now recommend that the leaving care grant should be a minimum of £3,000. This is on page 14.

3. 26 February 2018

   First published.