Should children’s services think about kinship care for a child who is already looked after in the care system?

If a child is already looked after in the care system, then children’s services have a legal duty to place the child with people in a certain priority order. This duty is in section 22C of the Children Act 1989 and says children’s services should:

1. See if a child can be safely cared for by their parent(s). If not, then
2. See if a child be safely cared for by someone else who holds parental responsibility for them
3. Next look at anyone who was caring for the child under a child arrangements order just before they came into the care system
4. Next, look to place the child in the most appropriate placement looking first at  wider family, friends and other people already connected with the child who are already approved by children’s services as foster carers
5. Only where this is not possible, should children’s services go on to arrange for a child to live with unrelated carers. This could be foster care, or if not possible then in residential care (a children’s home).