Children looked after return: guide to submitting data
How local authorities should collect and submit data for the annual children looked after return (also known as SSDA903).
Applies to England
The children looked after return is an annual statutory data collection for all local authorities. You must complete statutory censuses by law unless there’s a good reason not to.
The data covers the financial year (1 April to 31 March). It records details of:
- every child your local authority looks after at any time during the year
- all young people who are eligible for care leaver support and whose 17th to 25th birthdays fall within the collection period
- information on the health of children who have been looked after continuously for 12 months
- information on adoptions of looked-after children
Under the Children Act 1989, a child is legally defined as ‘looked after’ by a local authority if he or she:
- gets accommodation from the local authority for a continuous period of more than 24 hours
- is subject to a care order (to put the child into the care of the local authority)
- is subject to a placement order (to put the child up for adoption)
Important dates
2025 to 2026 return
- collection opens Wednesday 1 April 2026
- data loaded by Friday 29 May 2026
- main children looked after data and social worker episodes data submitted by Tuesday 30 June 2026
Submit your data
You should submit your 2025 to 2026 data in XML or CSV format using the ‘CLA 2026 application’. We’ll publish the application before the return opens and notify all users.
See the guide for local authorities for more information on preparing the data.
Return documents
The following documents will help local authorities complete the children looked after return:
2025 to 2026 return
2026 to 2027 return
Help with submitting data
For complex questions, or if you want to request a username and password for the CLA application, use the service request form. We aim to answer your question within 5 working days.
Feedback
Use the feedback form if you have any comments about our data collection service, including the CLA system and the helpdesk service.