Kinship Care Newsletter - Spring 2013 Newsletter

26th May 2013

Welcome to the Spring edition of the National Kinship Care Service Newsletter.

Contents.
- Regional Kinship Care Forums
- An update on the Scottish Government Financial Review of Kinship Care
- How the Children and Young People Bill affects kinship carers
- What Welfare Reform means for you
- ook out for The National Kinship Care Service survey
- The Poor Relations? Children and Informal Kinship Carers Speak Out
- Would you like to become a member of CHILDREN 1ST?
- Local Kinship Care News and Events

Regional Kinship Care Forums
We held three Regional Kinship Care Forums during February in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Kilmarnock. All events were well attended by a good mixture of kinship carers and social work staff and we would like to say a huge thanks to everyone who made it along.
At each Forum we discussed the financial review of kinship care being undertaken by the Scottish Government and ways to improve relationships with social work – a topic chosen by you.

We have already fed back to the Scottish Government the financial review data and the information on improving relations with social work is being used to shape our on-going discussions with local authorities.

We would again like to thank all the kinship carers, social work staff and organisations who attended.An Update on the Scottish Government Financial Review of Kinship Care
As many of you will be aware, the Scottish Government committed to undertake a review of the financial support provided to kinship carers. The objectives of the review were:
- To establish what financial support kinship carers of looked after children are
currently receiving.
- To establish 1) the typical up-front and ad-hoc costs and 2) weekly costs of maintaining a child in a kinship care arrangement covering a range of circumstances.
- To determine how to maximise income for kinship carers from relevant other sources.
- To consult kinship carers on how they think financial support should be provided.
- To develop an effective payment model for local authority use that will provide a consistent and fair process for financially supporting kinship carers (informal and formal) who require to be financially supported by the local authority.

CHILDREN 1ST were asked to carry out the consultation part of the review which took place throughout February and included: a written survey sent to all kinship carers, support groups on our database and Mentor UK; focus groups with kinship carers and facilitated discussions at each of our Regional Forums.

Through this range of engagement methods we were able to reach 24 out of 32 local authority areas and in total, engaged with approximately 250 kinship carers on their opinions, thoughts and ideas about how financial support should be provided to them.
A report was produced and submitted to the Scottish Government in March. Once the outcome of the review is known we will be holding a meeting with representatives from the Scottish Government and kinship care support groups. More details to follow.

How the Children and Young People Bill Update affects kinship carers
On 22 March CHILDREN 1ST facilitated a meeting between kinship carers and the Scottish Government on the Children and Young People Bill.

All kinship care groups across Scotland were invited to send a representative along to hear the latest developments on those sections of the Bill relating to kinship care from David Blair, Head of Looked After Children Unit, Scottish Government. The meeting provided kinship carers the opportunity to raise any concerns or queries they had.
David outlined the main implications for kinship care, namely the extension of support to care leavers, the kinship care order and the extension of early learning placements. A summary of each point is noted below:

Duty on Local Authority to Care Leavers
The Bill will place a duty on local authorities to assess care leavers (up to the age of 25). This will extend to looked after kinship care children who have make a request for support. If the assessment deems the young person to be in need of support, the local authority will be required to provide any advice, guidance and assistance necessary to meet these needs. This can be in the form of financial or non financial supports.

Kinship Care Order/ Needs Assessment for Kinship Care Children
Following on from the feedback received during the consultation process the Bill will use the existing s.11 framework and develop secondary legislation to place a duty on local authorities to provide advice and support to kinship carers. The Government explained that the regulations have still to be written, however, the intention is that any kinship carer with a s.11 order (including those with one at present) will be able to go to the local authority and ask for a needs assessment. The assessment will look at the full needs of the child to see what help is required for the family to provide long term stability. Again, the detail has yet to be confirmed, but this assistance could take the form of a start up grant (around £500), on going financial and nonfinancial support as well as advice, support and counselling.

Access to Flexible Childcare
Any child who is two-years-old who is, or at any point since their second birthday has
been, cared for by kinship carers who have a kinship care order will be entitled to a minimum of 600 hours early learning and childcare up to when they become universally entitled as three year olds. Within our response to the Bill consultation we highlighted the need for such childcare to be tailored to suit the individual needs of children and young people and families. Often this involves providing support – around key building blocks similar to those in the play, talk, read campaign and also, in establishing boundaries, routines and norms for family life – in families’ own homes, as well as in other facilities, such as nursery schools and our own resource bases. We advocated that this level of flexibility needs to be built in to ensure that the needs and interests of children are being met with the new provisions and are pleased to see that this has been recognised.

Disregard of Kinship Care Allowance
In addition, the Scottish Government confirmed that kinship care allowance will be disregarded in full in calculating eligibility for both Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank both kinship care groups and individual kinship carers who fed into our consultation on the Bill and hope that working together we have been able to make a difference. The Bill has now been introduced to Parliament and we will keep you updated on its progress.

What Welfare Reform means for you
CHILDREN 1ST gave oral evidence to the Welfare Reform Committee on Tuesday 19 March. We were invited to comment on how the Welfare Reform Regulations will impact upon Scottish kinship care families and in particular drew the Committee’s attention to the confusion and inconsistency surrounding the under occupancy provisions of the Welfare Reform Act, more commonly known as the ‘bedroom tax’.

In addition, we highlighted the need for kinship carers, in particular those relying upon state pension and pension credits, to be given specific consideration when Universal Credit is rolled out across Scotland.

Kinship Carers Exempt from Bedroom Tax
As many of you will now be aware, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) published amended Housing Benefit Regulations, on 21 March, which have a direct impact on Scottish kinship care families. The amended regulations clarify Iain Duncan Smith's announcement on the 12 March to exempt foster carers from the under-occupancy rules on housing contained in the Welfare Reform Act - more commonly known as the "bedroom tax".

We are pleased to report that the amended regulations provide some clarity on the subject and confirm that approved kinship carers in Scotland (as defined by Regulation 10 of the Looked After Children (Scotland) Regulations 2009) will be caught by the exemption. This means that approved kinship carers with an additional bedroom used by the child/children they look after will not be subject to a cut in their housing benefit. The changes will apply to tenants in both the social and private rented sectors.

Look out for the National Kinship Care Service Survey
We are contacting all kinship carers and kinship care support groups across Scotland to complete a survey on their experiences of the National Service. If you would like to take part please visit the CHILDREN 1ST website.

The Poor Relations? Children and Informal Kinship Carers Speak Out
On the 15 April Buttle UK and the University of Bristol published the findings of their recent study on informal kinship carers across the UK. Funded by the BIG Lottery, The Poor Relations? is the largest report to look at both the child’s perspective of living in an informal kinship care setting and the views of their carers.

The report highlights the financial hardship many informal kinship care families face, looks at how well these children are doing both emotionally and educationally and makes a number of key recommendations, including:
- a national allowance for kinship carers; a culture change in statutory services so that informal kinship care families can be referred on to the supports and services they need;
- information for kinship care families on a national level (this is already available in Scotland via the Mentor UK Guide);
- improved kinship care policies and practices so that the needs of kinship care children and families are better understood; and
- better awareness among universal services such as GPs, teachers and solicitors of kinship care in general as well as the complex needs these families often have.

A summary of the report and recommendations as well as the full report can be
downloaded from the Buttle UK website: http://www.buttleuk.org/pages/kinship-carereport-april-2013.html

Would you like to become a member of CHILDREN 1ST?
CHILDREN 1ST is a membership organisation as stipulated in our Royal Charter. Our members play an important part in the structure of the organisation as, through their voting rights at our AGM, they can influence the charity’s governance and direction.

By becoming a member you could make a vital contribution to the important work of CHILDREN 1ST in supporting vulnerable children, young people and families in Scotland. Members receive an invite to and voting rights at our AGM, a copy of our bi-annual newsletter, regular e-news updates on what is happening within the organisation and invites to local service open days.

Becoming a member is free and you can join for as long or as short as you would like. If you would like more information on becoming a member of CHILDREN 1ST, please contact: membership[AT]children1st.org.uk or call 0131 446 2331.

Local Kinship Care News and Events
South Lanarkshire’s Kinship Care Support Group held a launch on 18 February. The event was well attended by a range of kinship carers, local authority and NHS staff and councillor Jim McGuigan who spoke about his commitment to kinship care. The group is keen to increase its membership and reach out to kinship carers in the local area, if you would like more information about the group please contact the Kinship Care Helpline on 08000 28 22 33.

North Lanarkshire Kinship group held an awareness raising event on 22 April. MSP Michael McMahon and a range of speakers spoke about the need for increased awareness and support for kinship care. Again, the group is keen to extend its reach so if you would like more information, please contact the Kinship Care Helpline on 08000 28 22 33.

Aberdeenshire Kinship Care Team held an open event on Tuesday 23 April. The
event provided kinship carers with an opportunity to meet and chat to other carers who may be experiencing similar issues and find out about agencies and organisations who may be able to provide some support.

Going forward we will be sending out a monthly newsletter. If you would like to highlight any local events or stories for inclusion in May’s edition, please contact the Kinship Care Policy and Outreach Officer at lisa.marshall[AT]children1st.org.uk

Children 1st Web Site - www.children1st.org.uk/

Children 1st - Highlands and Islands has its own section on the web site.