Recognising Kinship Carers
Kinship Carers include grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles and family friends who are caring for children when their parents are unable too. Following a consultation earlier this year, the Government has published a definition of kinship care which aims to improve visibility and understanding. This has been set out in new statutory guidance. More widely, the Government will replace use of the term ‘family and friends care’ with kinship care.
Building a new Kinship Care System
On the 15 December 2023 the Government published a National Kinship Care Strategy for England ‘Championing Kinship Care’. This followed on from a commitment made in the Government’s children’s social care reform implementation strategy, Stable Homes, Built on Love, which was published in February 2023. The kinship care strategy sets out the Government’s vision as: to build a children’s social care system where more children who cannot live with their parents are supported to live with people who are known to them and love them. Kinship care will be the first consideration for a child who can no longer live with their parents. By receiving the right support at the right time, kinship carers will be empowered to provide care for children that allows them to thrive. The arrangement may be temporary or longer.” Kinship carers are sometimes also referred to as “family and friends’ carers” or “connected people.”
More information on Championing Kinship Care can be found:
Championing kinship care: the national kinship care strategy (publishing.service.gov.uk)
Defining Kinship Care
There are different types of kinship care. You may become a different type of kinship carer as your situation changes over time. Your rights, responsibilities, and the support you can get will depend on your specific circumstances.
Family and Friends Care (proceduresonline.com)
Private foster care is when someone who is not a child’s parent or close relative, such as a great aunt, cousin, mum’s friend or neighbour), looks after them for 28 days or more. Private fostering arrangements are agreed by the parent and private foster carer and not the local authority. As a private foster carer, you may be asked to make day-to-day decisions for the child, but you do not have parental responsibility.
Private Fostering (proceduresonline.com)
Kinship foster care is when a family member or friend becomes a child’s official foster carer. You must be assessed and approved before the child comes to live with you. The child is considered ‘looked after’ by the local authority, which shares parental responsibility with the child’s parents.
Placements with Connected Persons (proceduresonline.com)
Special Guardianship Orders (SGO)-is a legal order given by a family court. When you become a Special Guardian, the child will live with you permanently until they are 18 years old. Special Guardians share parental responsibility with the child’s parents but can make nearly all major decisions about the child without asking for their permission.
Applications for Special Guardianship Orders (proceduresonline.com)
Adoption is not appropriate or recommended for most kinship carers. When you adopt a child, the link between the child and their birth parents is legally and permanently broken – it changes family arrangements forever. As an adopter, you gain complete parental responsibility for the child.
Adoption Support (proceduresonline.com)
Training for Kinship Carers
Whether you are new to Kinship Care or have some experience, we have training that is available for you to access whether this be face to face or online. If you would like to access the training available, please contact Karen Noble, training and development officer, telephone number: 01925 442675 or email: karen.noble@warrington.gov.uk
Support for Kinship families
Fostering Team
The fostering team provides advice, support and guidance to Kinship Foster Carers during pre-approval and post approval helping to support families during and after your fostering assessment. The team support families to understand the role of a Kinship Foster Carer, supporting families to manage family time, supporting families with any change in the child or young person’s emotional and behavioural development and wellbeing, supporting with accessing training and additional support services and linking families up with a carer mentor, Mockingbird and the Systemic Hub Practitioner. The fostering team run a monthly support group for Kinship Foster Carers which is ran by two of our Kinship carers, Marie and Julie.