Kinship arrangements and legal orders

Kinship carers are family or friends who step up, often during an unexpected crisis, to care for a child when their parents aren't able to. Kinship care is a commitment to bring love and hope to a child who has experienced trauma.

Watch this helpful video to learn more about kinship care.

Find out more about the Kinship Support Service and read the one-minute guide.

What different kinship arrangements are there?

Kinship arrangements may be informal family agreements, however these are sometimes made into formal arrangements by applying to court for a court order.

Private arrangement made within the family

The parent (or person with parental responsibility) makes the arrangement with a close family member to care for their child because they are not able to or a family member steps in.
No court is order made.

Friends and family foster carers

Children are placed with a member of the family or connected person as a foster carer by the local authority.
The child remains 'looked after' (unless a child arrangement order or special guardianship order is made) and the carer becomes a friends and family (kinship) foster carer.
In these circumstances, the child will continue to have a social worker who will work with family to develop a care plan.
For more information see the Foster Carer Reviews and Fostering Independent Reviewing Officers one-minute guide.

Child arrangement order or special guardianship order

A family member, friend of the family or non-related foster carer can be awarded this legal order.
The local authority may have placed the child, the parent may have made the arrangement or a carer may have stepped in because the parents were not able to care for their child.
A child arrangement order was previously called a residence order.

Private fostering

This is when a child is living with a more distant family member (such as a great aunt/uncle or family friend).
The child is under 16 and doesn't have a disability.
If the arrangement is intended to last for 28 days or more, as decided by the person with parental responsibility, the arrangement needs to be approved by the local authority.
This would then be called a private fostering arrangement.

Special guardianship order (SGO)

A SGO is an order made by the family court. The person or people named on the order will become the child's special guardian(s).

Special guardians will have parental responsibility for the child until they are 18 years old. The child will live with them permanently. They will make both day-to-day decisions about their care and more important decisions about their life.

There are two routes to becoming a special guardian:

Public Law: If children's social care are involved in the arrangement, then people will go through public law proceedings.
Private Law: If children's social care were not involved in placing the child, and the carer and the parent decide that special guardianship would be in the best interests of the child, they will go through private law proceedings. This is an arrangement between individuals, such as family members.

Watch the helpful video on SGO's to learn more.

Child arrangements order (CAO)

A CAO was previously called a residence or contact order and is a legal order made by the family court that states where a child will live, who a child can spend time with and for how long. It can state when a child will spend part of the week living with or having contact with a parent or other family member.

Watch the helpful video on CAO's to learn more.

Private foster arrangement

Private foster care is when a child is looked after for 28 days or more by someone who knows or is connected with them but is not a close relative. This could be a great aunt or great uncle, a friend or neighbour, or a cousin.

The family need to notify children's social care about a private foster care arrangement.

Watch the helpful video on private foster care to learn more.