How to contact us for advice
We provide advice to parents, grandparents, relatives, friends and kinship carers who are involved with children’s services in England or need their help. We can help you understand processes and options when social workers or courts are making decisions about your child’s welfare.
Our advice service is free, independent and confidential.
To speak to an adviser, please call our free and confidential advice line 0808 801 0366 (Monday to Friday 9.30am to 3pm, excluding Bank Holidays). For Textphone dial 18001 followed by the advice line number. Or you can ask us a question via email using our advice enquiry form.
Our online advice forums are an anonymous space where parents and kinship carers (also known as family and friends carers) can get legal and practical advice, build a support network and learn from other people’s experiences.
Our get help and advice section describes the processes that you and your family are likely to go through, so that you know what to expect. Our webchat service can help you find the information and advice on our website which will help you understand the law and your rights.
Half of kinship carers have to give up their jobs to provide care for their children, many of whom have complex needs. With so many losing out on needed income, many kinship carers become dependent on welfare benefits. It’s no wonder that 3 out of 4 kinship carers say becoming a kinship carer has caused them severe financial hardship.
Like adopters, kinship carers provide love and support to children who cannot remain at home. Yet their workplace rights differ, and kinship families suffer as a result. This is why kinship carers, who often step up in times of crisis and support a child to remain safely in their family, need the right to paid employment leave and protection akin to adoption leave. A policy supported by 8 in 10 of the public when polled.
Thousands of family and friends step in every year to raise children who are unable to live with their parents. Such situations often arise out of tragedy or trauma. Often the children would otherwise live with strangers in the care system.
Kinship care can take different forms including kinship foster care, special guardianship, child arrangements orders, private fostering or private family arrangements.
There is no single definition of kinship care written into law.
Government and employers can act today to ensure that kinship carers are supported in the workplace. We have a three-step plan that would help all kinship carers who want to to stay in work.
We have worked with kinship carers on Family Rights Group’s panel to develop this campaign, building on work with the Kinship Care Alliance.
DownloadWe know from listening to the lived experience of kinship carers that a lack of support to remain in work can be devastating.
Unfortunately, Clare’s experience is not uncommon – taking on the care of a child unexpectedly can be expensive and disruptive.
If Government adopt the proposals of our Same Love Same Leave campaign, kinship carers like Clare will be supported to remain in work while stepping up for their children.
Click here to tweet this graphic
Click here to share this graphic to Facebook
You can also save the graphic to your device and share it. If you are on a phone, tap the image, hold your finger down and click save. If you are on a laptop or computer, right click and save the image to your downloads.
Your donation will help more families access expert legal advice and support from Family Rights Group.
Donate Now