Looking after someone else's child: Kinship carers

You're known as a kinship carer (or connected carer) if: 

• you're looking after a child who can't be cared for by their birth parents, and
• you're a grandparent, aunt, uncle, brother, sister, family friend, or connected to the child in another way

This often happens because a child is separated from their parents, or their parents can't provide the care and support the child needs.

This information is for kinship carers (also known as connected carers). There is separate information if you're private fostering.

We will help to find the right option for the child 

If there are doubts about whether a child can live with their parents, South Tyneside Council will explore whether the child can live safely with family, friends or someone else who is connected to the child.

Initially, we will speak to the child's parents and do an assessment with the potential carer.

We will support kinship carers

As a kinship carer in South Tyneside, you will get support from the Council, which includes: 

Support during your assessment

The Social Worker who is dealing with your assessment will offer you supervision at least every 4 weeks, which will offer support and guidance.

Training

We will support you with training in your role as a kinship carer. 

• Preparation training - This is offered to all potential carers who are going through an assessment with South Tyneside Council. This training will explain and discuss the expectations of a kinship carer, discuss family dynamics, family time, trauma-informed approach to care, and the different legal orders. This will help you to be more informed before deciding to progress with the role.
• Training handbook - This will support before, during and after training.
• Family time training - We offer this to all kinship carers who will be expected to facilitate family time. This training will discuss safe family time, managing difficult family dynamics, monitoring and reporting on child and parent presentation and support to promote family time.

Family Support Worker

Support and early intervention via the Family Support Worker from the Connected Carers team, if needed. 

Mental health support

Therapeutic support and advice is available from a Primary Care Mental Health Specialist.

Consultations are available via appointment on a weekly basis.

Support group with other kinship carers

A monthly peer support group is in place, with events including guest speakers, peer support, advice and consultation.

Applications for funding

We can help to make applications to the Adoption Support Fund, to pay for essential therapeutic services that will support the stability of the child in your care.

If the child's family is already involved with the Council 

If the child's family is already involved with the Council, they will have a Social Worker who you can contact directly. 

If you're a potential carer, we would normally contact you after speaking to the child's parents. 

If the child's family is not involved with the Council 

If you're caring for someone else's child, are not private fostering, and are not involved with the Council, you can call Children and Families Social Care on:

• 0191 424 5010
  Monday to Thursday - 8.30am to 5pm
  Friday - 8.30am to 4.30pm
• 0191 456 2093
  Outside of the above time

To help decide on the right option for the child, South Tyneside Council will do an assessment with the potential carer.

We will speak to the child's parents

We will usually meet with the child's parents first.

We'll ask them who they would like to look after their child if they can't do it themselves.

If you're put forward as a potential carer, we'll contact you to ask if you are willing to be considered as a carer for the child.

At this stage, no final decisions have been made.

We will do a short assessment with the potential carer

We will do a short assessment with the child's potential carer. This is known as a viability assessment. 

This will help us decide if further assessment is appropriate and in the child's best interest. We will discuss the next steps with you after the viability assessment.

The viability assessment will be completed by a Social Worker from the Connected Carers team at the Council. 

If you're a potential carer and don't take part in the assessment, we can't place the child with you.

What to expect from the assessment

The viability assessment is about getting some key information, to help us decide if further assessment is in the child's best interest.

The assessment will usually take place at your home. 

The Social Worker will visit your home and look around. They will look at the child's bedroom or where they'd sleep if they came to live with you.

They will talk to you about: 

• your background, such as what your family life was like growing up and your education
• your experiences of looking after children
• how things are with your partner if you are in a relationship
• what your health is like
• how you manage your money
• what time you would be able to spend with the child if they came to live with you
• what has been happening with the child, whether you understand how that might make the child feel and how you would be able to keep the child safe

They will also ask your permission to do some checks, including: 

• a criminal records check
• whether you or anyone you live with has ever been involved with the police
• whether there have ever been any concerns about your own children

Everything about the assessment doesn't have to be perfect. There may be some questions that need more investigation or more time to look into.

This assessment can be done via video or telephone call in exceptional circumstances, for example if you live far away.

The Social Worker will write a report and make recommendations

The Social Worker will:

• Talk to you about what they intend to recommend. They will tell you about anything that worries them, and give you the chance to explain. 
• Write up the information they gathered, and their recommendations, into an assessment report. They will give you a copy of this. 

If you do not agree with something included in the assessment report, you should explain this in writing to the Social Worker.

Other people who may need to see the assessment report include: 

• the judge who is making decisions about the child's future
• other people at the Council who have to make recommendations about the child
• the child's parents
• the legal team
• the child's court appointed guardian
• the fostering panel

What happens next

If a decision is made to progress

You will usually go on to have a full assessment. This normally takes up to 12 weeks, but can sometimes take longer. This might be done by the same person who did the viability assessment, or it might be a new person.

The Social Worker will give you more information about how the full assessment will work. 

There might be some reasons why a full assessment is not done, for example:

• you might have changed your mind about being the child's carer
• the court might have decided that the child will go to live with their parent
• viability assessments may have been done with several potential carers (if this happens, a discussion is needed with the Council and the family to decide which person would be best placed to care for the child)
• a viability assessment is sometimes done as a contingency, so full assessment may not be needed

It may be advisable to get independent legal advice at this point. For free, independent specialist advice, contact Family Rights Group. For advice, visit Kinship.

If a decision is made not to progress

We will give you a letter that explains your options. The options are likely to include:

1. Accepting the decision -
   If you disagree, you can write a letter to explain why you disagree, or whether you think things in the report are wrong. This can be attached to the report so that anyone who reads it sees your side.
2. Getting independent legal advice -
   For free, independent specialist advice, contact Family Rights Group.
   You may wish to seek advice from a solicitor who has Children Law Accreditation, although this may not be free. Make sure you find out any costs first.
3. Going to court -
   You could ask the court to be party to proceedings which may lead to the making of a legal order, so that the child comes to live with you if they can't be with their parents.

You might want to go with more than one option. If you disagree with the outcome, it is likely that you will want to explain to the Council why you disagree, get independent legal advice, and perhaps also go to court.

There are different types of kinship caring arrangements. 

Arrangements by the family

In this case, the parent makes the arrangement. 

Or, a close family member (grandparent, brother, sister, uncle, aunt or step-parent), steps in because the parents were not available.

The length of the arrangement is decided by the person with parental responsibility or someone who has been granted a legal order to care for the child.

Temporary arrangements

There are some interim caring arrangements that may be used during assessment.

For full details, speak to the family's Social Worker or the Connected Carers team at the Council.

Care order 

A care order allows the Council to share parental responsibility.

The Council approves the carer and places the child. If the carer is a relative or friend of the family, they are called a family and friends foster carer.

The child remains cared for unless a child arrangements order or special guardianship order is made.

See government information on care orders.

Child arrangements order 

This is a court order that sets out where the child lives, who they live with, and who they should spend time or have contact with.

In this case, the Council may have placed the child, or the parent made the arrangement, or a carer stepped in because the parents were not available.

This was previously known as a residence order.

See more about child arrangements orders from the Family Rights Group.

Special guardianship order 

This is a court order that places a child or a young person to live with someone other than their parents.

The special guardian will get higher parental responsibility than other persons with parental responsibility for the child.

It offers more security than a child arrangement order because a parent cannot request for it to be removed unless the court has given permission to do so.

Parental responsibility is shared between parents and the special guardian carer, with the special guardian carer having the ability to make day-to-day decisions.