What Is Kinship Care and Who Can Be a Kinship Carer?

Kinship care is an arrangement in which a child is raised by a relative, family friend or another person with whom they already have a close relationship because their parents are unable to care for them.

A kinship carer might be a grandparent, adult brother or sister, aunt, uncle, cousin, step-parent, godparent or close family friend. The arrangement may be temporary or may continue until the child reaches adulthood.

Kinship care can allow a child to remain within their wider family or existing support network. However, taking responsibility for a child can create significant legal, emotional and financial responsibilities. Advice should be obtained at an early stage.

Why Might a Child Enter Kinship Care?

A child may live with a kinship carer for many reasons, including:

■ Parental illness or disability
■ Drug or alcohol dependency
■ Domestic abuse
■ Imprisonment
■ Bereavement
■ Mental health difficulties
■ Abuse or neglect
■ Family breakdown
■ A parent being temporarily unable to provide safe care

Some arrangements are agreed privately within the family. Others involve children's services or are made under a court order.

Does a Kinship Carer Automatically Have Parental Responsibility?

No. Caring for a child does not automatically give the carer parental responsibility.

Parental responsibility means having legal authority to make important decisions about matters such as education, medical treatment, religion and where the child lives.

A kinship carer may have no parental responsibility, may share it with the child's parents and local authority, or may acquire enhanced parental responsibility through a court order. The position depends on the legal arrangement.

Informal Kinship Care

An informal arrangement occurs where a child lives with a relative or friend without children's services placing the child and without a court order being made.

The child's parents normally retain parental responsibility and remain responsible for major decisions. The carer may be able to make ordinary day-to-day decisions but could encounter difficulties when dealing with schools, doctors, travel documents or medical consent.

Informal kinship carers do not automatically receive a regular allowance from the local authority. They may, however, be entitled to Child Benefit, Universal Credit and other financial assistance, depending on their circumstances.

Private Fostering

A private fostering arrangement may arise where a child under 16, or under 18 if disabled, is cared for for more than 28 days by someone who is not a parent or close relative.

Close relatives for these purposes generally include grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and step-parents.

The local authority must be notified about a private fostering arrangement. A social worker will usually visit the home, carry out checks and consider whether the child is being properly cared for.

Kinship Foster Care

A child may be placed with a relative or friend by the local authority and remain a looked-after child. The carer will normally need to be assessed and approved as a foster carer, sometimes initially temporarily.

In this situation, the local authority shares responsibility for the child's care and must prepare and review a care plan.

An approved kinship foster carer should normally receive a fostering allowance intended to meet the cost of caring for the child. They should also receive support, training, supervision and access to relevant services.

What Is a Looked-After Child?

A looked-after child is a child who is being cared for by a local authority under a care order or under a voluntary arrangement with the parents.

If a child is looked after, the local authority has continuing duties towards the child even where the child is living with a grandparent or another family member.

The authority should assess the placement, monitor the child's Welfare and provide a care plan covering matters such as education, health, family contact and long-term arrangements.

Child Arrangements Orders

A Child Arrangements Order can state that a child is to live with a kinship carer. The order normally gives the carer parental responsibility for the duration of the order.

Parental responsibility will usually continue to be shared with the child's parents. However, the carer with the "lives with" order can generally make day-to-day decisions about the child's care.

The order usually lasts until the child reaches 18 unless it is brought to an end earlier.

Special Guardianship Orders

A Special Guardianship Order appoints one or more people as a child's special guardian. It is often used where a child needs a secure, long-term home but adoption is not appropriate.

A special guardian has parental responsibility and can generally exercise it to the exclusion of others with parental responsibility, except another special guardian. The child's parents do not lose parental responsibility, but their ability to make decisions is substantially reduced.

A Special Guardianship Order normally lasts until the child is 18. The local authority must assess before the order is made and should consider what support may be required.

Can a Kinship Carer Adopt the Child?

Adoption permanently transfers parental responsibility to the adopters and ends the legal parental responsibility of the birth parents.

Adoption may be suitable in some kinship arrangements, but it can significantly change legal family relationships. A grandparent adopting a grandchild, for example, would legally become the child's parent.

Special guardianship or a Child Arrangements Order may sometimes provide the required security without permanently changing the child's legal identity in the same way.

Financial Support

There is no single payment available to every kinship carer. Entitlement depends on the legal status of the child, whether the local authority arranged the placement and the carer's financial circumstances.

Possible sources of help include:

■ Fostering allowances for approved kinship foster carers
■ Special guardianship allowances
■ Child Arrangements Order allowances
■ One-off payments under children's services legislation
■ Child Benefit
■ The child element of Universal Credit
■ Guardian's Allowance in certain cases involving bereavement or a surviving parent who cannot care for the child
■ Disability-related benefits where the child qualifies
■ Help with childcare, education or housing costs

Some local authority payments are means tested, while fostering allowances are generally linked to the cost of caring for the child. The interaction between allowances and state benefits can be complicated, and carers should obtain an individual benefit calculation.

New Financial Support Pilots

From April 2026, the government began trialling a kinship allowance in selected areas of England. The pilot applies to certain carers with a Special Guardianship Order or a Child Arrangements Order stating that the child lives with them.

The pilot does not create a national entitlement for every kinship carer. Eligibility depends on the area, the legal order and the particular scheme rules.

Child Benefit and Universal Credit

Child Benefit can normally be claimed by the person responsible for the child, but only one person can receive it for the same child at any one time.

A kinship carer may also qualify for the child element of Universal Credit. However, payments received from a local authority and the child's looked-after status may affect entitlement.

Approved foster carers do not normally receive Child Benefit for a foster child where the local authority is paying towards the child's accommodation or maintenance.

Since 6 April 2026, the former two-child limit on the Universal Credit child element has ended, although the amount payable will still depend on the claimant's overall circumstances.

Local Authority Support

Local authorities in England are expected to publish a local kinship offer explaining the support available to kinship families.

Support may include:

■ Advice about legal options
■ Financial assessments and allowances
■ Support groups
■ Training
■ Therapeutic services
■ Help with family contact
■ Education support
■ Respite or practical assistance
■ Support for special guardians

The support offered will vary between authorities and according to the legal status of the child.

Family Contact

Children living in kinship care may continue to have contact with their parents, siblings and other family members.

Contact can be emotionally difficult. It may need to be carefully managed, particularly where there have been safeguarding concerns, domestic abuse or parental substance misuse.

The arrangements should focus on the child's Welfare. The frequency, location and supervision of contact may be agreed by the family, included in a care plan or determined by the court.

A kinship carer should seek advice before preventing contact where a parent has parental responsibility or where a court order is in place.

Education and Medical Decisions

A kinship carer with parental responsibility can normally make appropriate decisions about the child's education and medical care.

An informal carer without parental responsibility may need the parent's agreement for significant decisions. Schools and healthcare providers may ask for evidence of the carer's authority.

Where obtaining consent from a parent is impractical or causes recurring problems, the carer may need advice about applying for a Child Arrangements Order or Special Guardianship Order.

Housing Issues

Taking in a child may create overcrowding or mean that the carer needs different accommodation.

Kinship carers should inform their local authority housing department, landlord, mortgage provider and benefits adviser where appropriate. However, being a kinship carer does not automatically guarantee a larger council or housing association property.

The child's needs and the circumstances in which the placement was made may be relevant to any housing assessment.

Employment Rights

Employees who become kinship carers do not currently have a general statutory right to paid kinship care leave.

Depending on the circumstances, a carer may be able to request flexible working, use annual leave, take unpaid parental leave where eligible or take emergency time off for dependants.

Some employers provide enhanced kinship care policies, including paid leave. Carers should check their contract and workplace policies.

What If the Local Authority Was Involved in the Placement?

A local authority should not avoid its responsibilities simply by describing an arrangement as private where it played a significant role in placing the child with the carer.

Disputes sometimes arise where relatives were told that the child would otherwise enter care but were then treated as having made an entirely private family arrangement.

The facts surrounding the placement are important. Relevant evidence may include social work records, emails, meeting notes and what the family was told when the child moved.

Legal advice should be sought where a carer believes the child should have been treated as looked after or that fostering support should have been provided.

Can a Kinship Carer Challenge the Local Authority?

A carer can ask the local authority to explain its decision, provide a copy of the applicable policy and carry out or review an assessment.

If the matter is not resolved, the carer may use the authority's complaints procedure. A complaint may later be referred to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman where the relevant requirements are met.

In some cases, a decision may be challenged by judicial review. Strict time limits apply, and specialist legal advice should be obtained promptly.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Kinship care law and financial support differ across the UK. Scotland has a separate system of kinship care orders, looked-after children procedures and nationally recommended allowances. Wales and Northern Ireland also operate under their own legislation and guidance.

Carers should therefore obtain advice based on the country in which the child lives and the authority responsible for the child.

Obtaining Legal Advice

Before agreeing to a long-term arrangement, a prospective kinship carer should understand:

■ Whether the child is or should be looked after by the local authority
■ Who has parental responsibility
■ What financial support will be paid
■ What contact the child will have with their parents
■ Whether a court order is needed
■ How the arrangement will affect benefits, housing and employment
■ What support will continue after an order is made

A solicitor specialising in children law can explain the available options, including Child Arrangements Orders, Special Guardianship Orders, fostering arrangements and adoption.

Important Information

Solicitors.com is not a firm of solicitors. This article is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal, benefits or financial advice. Kinship care law and local authority policies may change and differ across the UK. Their application will depend on the child's legal status and the individual circumstances. You should seek advice from a suitably qualified solicitor, Welfare rights adviser or relevant local authority before taking or refraining from action.