Introduction
Kinship care is any arrangement where a child is cared for by a friend, relative or someone with a significant connection to them when they cannot live with their parents. The arrangement can be short-term or long-term and aims to provide children with stability, security and continuity while remaining with people they know and trust.
Kinship carers are often grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, step-parents, family friends or other adults with an existing relationship to the child. The key principle is that, wherever it is safe and appropriate, children are generally best cared for within their family network rather than by people they do not know.
Types of kinship care
Kinship care includes a range of legal and informal arrangements, such as:
- Informal family arrangements where a relative or family friend cares for a child without a court order or local authority involvement.
- Private fostering arrangements, where a child under 16 (or under 18 if disabled) is cared for by someone who is not a close relative for 28 days or more.
- Child Arrangements Orders, where a court decides that a child should live with a relative or family friend.
- Special Guardianship Orders, which give a carer enhanced parental responsibility until the child reaches 18. Special Guardianship falls between fostering and adoption, resembling permanent fostering without the involvement of a social worker and numerous meetings, and differing from adoption in that the guardians do not become the child’s new parents but assume decision-making responsibilities previously held by the child’s biological parents or social workers.
- Kinship foster care, where a child is looked after by the local authority and placed with an approved relative or family friend foster carer.
- Adoption by a relative or family friend.
The local offer for Kinship Carers
Informal Family Care
Carers may receive:
- Information, advice and signposting on health, education, childcare, benefits and support services.
- Assessment of need through the Kinship Support Team if the child has additional needs or the placement is at risk of breaking down.
- Parenting support, practical help at home and support accessing activities and services.
- Family Group Conferences and Family Network Meetings.
- Advice around family time arrangements.
- Education support, including help with school meetings and access to the Virtual School where appropriate.
- Access to support groups, training and kinship family events.
- Discretionary Section 17 financial support in exceptional circumstances, including one-off purchases or short-term financial help where a child is assessed as being in need.
Private Fostering
Carers may receive:
- The same information, advice and support available through the Kinship Support Team.
- Access to Family Group Conferences, education support, support groups and training.
- Section 17 financial support where the child is assessed as a child in need and additional support is required.
Child Arrangements Order (CAO)
Carers may receive:
- Ongoing support from the Kinship Support Team.
- Advice and support regarding family time arrangements.
- Access to education support, training and support groups.
- Assessment for therapeutic support where eligible.
- Discretionary financial support if the child’s assessed needs warrant additional help.
- Assessment for additional financial support for children previously looked after by the local authority.
Access to Pupil Premium Plus through schools for previously looked after children.
Special Guardianship Order (SGO)
Carers may receive:
- All general kinship support services outlined above
- A formal assessment of the child’s needs, including financial support, if the child was previously looked after
- Access to therapeutic support through the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) for eligible children
- Financial support where the child’s assessed needs justify this
- Support with legal costs in certain circumstances, including:
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- Up to £250 towards independent legal advice
- Court application fees where Somerset Council supports the application
- Potential contributions towards further legal costs agreed in advance
- Possible 50% Council Tax reduction for eligible Special Guardians caring for a Somerset child previously in care
- Support from Somerset Council for up to three years after the order is made if the family lives outside Somerset
- Access to dedicated phone line open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm
- Training via The Learning Centre (TLC)
- Online group runs from 8pm to 9pm fortnightly on Wednesday evenings
- In person group on second Monday of the month, 10am to 12pm at Junction 24.
Kinship Foster Care (Children Looked After)
Carers may receive:
- A fostering allowance equivalent to that paid to approved foster carers.
- Support and supervision from a fostering supervising social worker
- Foster carer training and development opportunities
- Participation in reviews, meetings and planning for the child
- Transitional financial support if fostering payments end before other benefits become available
- Access to all wider kinship support services, including education support, family time support, support groups and therapeutic services.
Support available to all Kinship Carers
Regardless of legal status, kinship carers can access:
- Advice, information and support from an allocated supervising social worker
- Monthly newsletters
- Trips and events
- Assessments of need
- Family Group Conferences
- Face to face Connected Persons Support Group
- Education and Virtual School support
- 50% council tax discount for qualifying Kinship Carers
- Training exclusively for Kinship Carers
- Monthly online Support Groups
- Age-related weekly fostering allowance
- Participation and consultation opportunities
- Family time advice
- Therapeutic support assessments
- Leaving Care support for eligible young people.