Kinship care is any situation in which a child is living in the care of a friend or family member who is not their parent.
Types of kinship care arrangements
Kinship care arrangements can be temporary or long term. There are different types of kinship care arrangements, these can include:
- an informal family arrangement in which a child’s parents have arranged for their child to live with a very close family member, for example an uncle, aunt, grandparent, or step parent, without the involvement of social workers or the Family Courts
- a private fostering arrangement, where a child is under the age of 16 (or 18 if disabled) and is living with a friend or an extended family member (rather than a close family member like an aunt or uncle or grandparent) for more than 28 days
- an arrangement where it has been agreed by the Family Courts that a child will live with someone other than their parents, for example, through a Child Arrangement Order or Special Guardianship Order
- an arrangement where a child is formally ‘looked after’ by the Local Authority and is living with a friend or family member who has been assessed and approved to be their official kinship foster carer
Who can be a kinship carer?
- Kinship carers can include:
- a close relative of the child
- a close relative of the child’s maternal or paternal sibling
- someone who was formerly the child’s step-parent or in a cohabiting relationship with the child’s parent
- a close friend of the child, or of the child’s parent(s)
- a close friend of the child’s close relative
- someone with a prior connection to the child who does not fall within one of the categories above, for example a teacher, youth worker, childminder or former foster carer
Help if you’re a kinship carer
Whether it’s an informal or formal arrangement, support is available to children and their kinship carers in Cornwall.
Immediate safeguarding concerns: Cornwall MARU (Multi-Agency Referral Unit)
If you have immediate concerns or are worried about a child or young person's safety, contact the Cornwall MARU (Multi-Agency Referral Unit), using the following methods:
Complete an inter agency referral (you will need to save this and email it to us)
- Email multiagencyreferralunit@cornwall.gov.uk
- Tel: 0300 123 1116
Further available support
The Early Help Hub is the 'front door' to Early Help services; it is led by Cornwall Council and Cornwall Foundation Trust.
Requests for early help can be submitted by young people (13+) parents and / or professionals with consent, and will identify:
- the right help
- at the right time
- by the right service
The Family Information Service is a free and impartial support service. It gives information on local services for children and young people. It is for children aged 0-19 years (up to 25 years with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, SEND).
A range of parenting support programmes run throughout Cornwall. Find out more on the Parenting - Cornwall Council .
For NHS services (including CAMHS) for children and young people, visit Children and young people's services | Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
Cornwall's Neurodiversity Hub forms a part of our early help offer of support for children, young people, and their families.
Click on the following link to find out more about Services that offer extra help - Cornwall Council.
Looking after someone else’s child - provides government guidance on support and benefits you can get if you’re looking after someone else’s child.
Family Rights Group - Family Rights Group is a charity that advises families whose children are involved with children’s services. They have a confidential advice service for parents and family and friend’s carers.
Kinship.org - is a national charity that provides a range of advice, support and guidance to kinship carers.
PAC-UK - provides specialist independent advice, counselling, training and educational advice for those affected by adoption, Special Guardianship and other forms of permanent care.
CoramBAAF - is a charity dedicated to improving lives for children and young people in care.
Child Law Advice Service - Child Law Advice is operated by Coram Children’s Legal Centre, the UK’s leading children’s legal charity and part of the Coram Group of charities.
Kinship Carers UK - Kinship is a national charity supporting and advising kinship carers. Kinship Carers UK is run by professional kinship carers. Their purpose is to advocate and help the carers and children through their journey.
Cornwall’s virtual school provides support to children and families, education settings, social workers and other professionals. Their aim is to help children and young people achieve their potential through education, employment or training opportunities. The virtual school can provide graduated advice and guidance to all kinship care arrangements, regardless of legal status.
For general information:
- The Kinship charity has some useful advice around education and childcare: Childcare and education advice - Kinship
For information around education in Cornwall:
- Visit the virtual school’s website for PLAC and Kinship Care in Cornwall – Education
For more specific advice and guidance:
- Contact the virtual school’s PLAC and kinship team kinshipandplac@cornwall.gov.uk
Cornwall Local Offer sets out the services available to children and young people with Special Educational Needs and disabilities, aged 0 to 25.
Wellbeing Support
We understand that being a kinship carer, while deeply rewarding, can also be demanding. Taking care of yourself is essential, and we want to highlight the range of wellbeing support available to you in Cornwall and online:
- The Cornwall Council Mental Health pages give help and advice on a range of mental health issues.
- Healthy Cornwall promotes and support healthy eating, mental health support and making positive lifestyle changes.
- Pentreath is an award winning charity based in Cornwall Promoting good mental health through personal development, education and employment.
- Man Down Cornwall supports men’s mental health in the UK.
- Cornwall Mind is a local mental health charity aiming to help people in our local communities to improve their mental health and wellbeing.
- NHS Every Mind Matters advice – How to meditate for beginners and What is mindfulness?
- NHS Talking Therapies provide treatment for common mental health difficulties such as low mood, stress, and anxiety.
- Traveller Space is a registered charity supporting Gypsies, Irish Travellers and New Travellers in Cornwall and the Devon.
- Penhaligon's Friends supports bereaved children, young people and their parents.
There is also mental health and wellbeing support for children and young people:
- Mind Your Way | Help with your mental health and wellbeing is a project set up by the Your Way partnership that helps 11-25 year olds look after their own mental health and wellbeing.
- StartNow Cornwall offers advice and support for young people on a variety of issues
- Young People Cornwall - From drop-in youth groups to one-on-one mental health sessions, they offer a huge range of support – all over Cornwall.
- Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) | Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust delivers a range of teams for children and young people and covers the spectrum of ages 0 to 18 years old.