Moray Council’s out of area placement budget has been overspent by £187,000.
And the increase has been caused in part by court decisions to detain young people in secure units.
Placements are usually made to meet the care or educational needs of children that are not available locally.
Placements made as a last resort
The £187,000 brings the out of area spend for the last financial year to just over £4.6million.
Members raised the issue at a meeting of the education, children and leisure services committee on Thursday.
Independent councillor for Speyside Glenlivet Derek Ross asked why the council could not meet the needs of the young people.
And Juli Harris asked what was being done to make savings in the out of area placement budget.
The SNP councillor for Speyside Glenlivet said: “There’s real concern that £4.6 million is being spent on out of area placements.
“It’s more than the entire education central services budget.”
Head of education Vivienne Cross explained not all young people’s needs can be met by services available in Moray, and to provide that would come at “great cost” to the council.
She added there was always a high level of scrutiny of each out of area placement including costs.
‘All options are exhausted’
A panel including social workers, education managers and reviewing officers decide whether one should be provided.
Mrs Cross said: “When a decision has been made for an out of area placement to be considered it is because everything in Moray has been exhausted.
“And we don’t have the resource to meet the needs of that particular young person at that time.
“Therefore what the panel will look at is an options appraisal of various different establishments or settings that could be considered for that young person.
“But placements are made as a last resort, and they’re also made because we cannot meet needs locally.”
She added every effort was made to ensure a smooth transition for those returning to Moray from an out of area placement.
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