If I look at safely reducing the numbers of children in care, the Minister's already given the figures, and we've heard from Siân the range of factors that affect this, but the number has gone up, and it's not always clear why that number is increasing. Deprivation; triggers like domestic abuse—and I should say on White Ribbon Day, it's a really important factor and it's something that needs to be remembered—the influence of ACEs, but there are also policy differences and differences in practice, not only in local authorities but in the courts also, which has a big impact on the numbers we being taken into care, though that incidence is now starting to reduce, but the cumulative figure is still going up. But as the Minister said, it is important to note that the incidence has started to decline.

The Thomas commission, I think, made some really interesting remarks on family justice, and we need to reflect on that. But, do you know, at the end of the day, it's the local authority that goes to court and requests a court order, or care order? So, we can't just say it's a problem with the family courts, though, clearly, they do oversee this practice in different ways in different parts of Wales.

One of the things that we've done to really try to understand these differences between local authorities is conduct an appreciative inquiry. So, we went into six local authorities and really examined what they were doing to reduce numbers and preventative services, edge-of-care services. We've had some really valuable lessons there.

If I turn to what we really need to achieve, we've always known that high-quality placements are key to successful services. Stable placements close to home are really, really important, but as our data shows in the annual report, those experiencing three or more placements in 2017-18, that was 9.6 per cent of children, and this year 9.2 per cent are getting three or more placements. That's really not acceptable and we need to ensure that that figure comes down.

If we look at educational attainment at key stage 2, the indicator is met by 60.2 per cent of children, or was last year. This year, that's gone down a little bit to 58.3. But at key stage 4, when we're often dealing with children with more complicated needs, sometimes, and also they may have come into the system later, so there are many other pressures on achieving good outcomes, but that indicator is really not good at all. Those achieving it last year, 9.5 per cent, and this year, a little improvement to 10.9 per cent. So, that's a reminder.

If I look at NEETs, those who are NEET after 12 months, after leaving care, last year, 48.6 per cent, this year 46.5 per cent. So, again, a very large figure. Local authorities have improved their practice in becoming more like the family business and ensuring that they can provide a lot of the opportunities for their care leavers, and that's really, really useful.

And we're also looking at housing. The number of care-experienced young people who have experienced some homelessness in the last year was 11.5 per cent. So, that's really problematic.

I don't have long enough to look at the other areas of the work other than to say I'm really looking forward to the task and finish group on corporate parenting. One of our tasks is to come up with a more humane, loving—as Dan Pitt, our vice-chair would say—term than 'corporate parenting'. So, if anyone's got ideas, please drop them to me in an e-mail. And there have been many innovations as well. Siân mentioned kinship caring. We'll really look at this important area. New adoption registers being launched, implementing the strategy on a national fostering framework, and our foster carers are so important. And the THRIVE report looking at emotional and mental health support. So, lots of things being done, much to do.

But let me finish with this stat: 71 per cent of care-experienced children report that they had positive outcomes of their care, and that's very important for us to remember. It's nearly 20 years since Sir Ronald Waterhouse's report 'Lost in Care' was published, and we will have a conference in the Pierhead the day before the general election to commemorate that report and a few of us in the Chamber remember the days when we were on the Health and Social Care Committee in that first Assembly, the first months of our work looking at that report. We must ensure that no-one is lost in care, and it's my privilege to have been asked, as an opposition Member, to chair the ministerial advisory group, and I thank the Government for the opportunity they've given me and the constructive way in which they've worked with the ministerial advisory group. Thank you, Llywydd.