One North Yorkshire councillor became visibly upset as it emerged a proposal to make care experience a protected characteristic was not going to be passed at a meeting today (WEDNESDAY).
The move would have meant the authority applying the same principles to someone who had spent time in care as those with other protected characteristics, including age, disability and sexual orientation.
But it was rejected after Conservative councillors, who have the majority on the authority, voted against the motion, with several saying the issue should be led by the government rather than their authority.
Tory councillor, Caroline Goodrick, said there was no evidence the proposal was anything more than a “tokenistic gesture”.
She added: “It is unknown, unhelpful and places and unnecessary financial burden on this authority in the current budgetary pressures and the motion has no legal basis and has no impact on anyone other than this authority that is already leading the way on children’s services.”
Another Conservative councillor, Yvonne Peacock, said she did not realise an officer would need to be appointed if the motion was approved.
She added: “There are many, many young people who don’t want the protected characteristics that we are putting forward because to some it means a stigma.”
But Liberal Democrat councillor, Monica Slater, who became visibly upset when speaking in favour of the proposal, said she was “appalled” at the comments opposing the motion.
She added: “The amount of work officers did (on the report) was phenomenal and you could see how much it mattered to them and how much they felt it could make a real difference to people.
“I’m literally getting upset — I cannot believe that we are going to turn this down.”
Labour councillor, Melanie Davies, said: “It’s such a simple thing to do. We should be supporting this wholeheartedly — you should be ashamed of yourselves.”
Speaking after the vote rejecting the proposal, Lib Dem councillor, Andrew Timothy, who moved the motion, said: “This is really bad news for care leavers, young people who have been under the care of the council.
“This is a group of young people who face barriers that others don’t. I hope that council reconsiders this change of policy at the first opportunity.”
According to a report prepared for the meeting, care leavers are “underrepresented in all of the areas we would want your children to be in and overrepresented in all of the areas we wouldn’t”.
Statistics from the Department for Education in 2024 show that if you are a care leaver in England aged 17 to 21, you are more likely to be a prisoner than you are to be an apprentice.
Councillors were told more than 100 local authorities had already taken the step to make care experience a protected characteristic.
