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Annex 5
Some of the services and responses that kinship carers would like from agencies
- Emergency financial support
- Support to have Child Benefit transfer arranged as soon as possible
- Financial advice - Access to CAS specialist advice service at start of placement
- Support for kinship carers in poverty - to enable them to meet basic needs/ clothing, food, shelter etc
- Advice to kinship carers about what legal arrangements would be the most advantageous to the child and them
- Sound advice about Issues with legal documents/passport for carers
- Responsive services from all corporate parents in a local authority, particularly education, housing, recreation
- At the initial stage useful to have separate workers for a child and carers - but at later stage one person working with both child and carer confirms family focus.
- Kinship carers want help when children ask awkward questions - Why am I different?
- Importance of the role of a lead professional to help carers to hold everything together
- Family group conference/ Family meetings positive to help the family to meet and discuss issues in neutral supportive environment / opportunity to raise issues and find solutions
- Professional support - led by the family
- Recognition of the individuality of the support that is needed by a kinship care family and that it changes with time
- Specific support may include help to deal with emotional pressures, looking at the child's past
- How to access help should always be clear
- Regular support to children and kinship carers
- Mentors for young person in kinship care can be very positive- other young people often very helpful
- Information about services when the child reaches 16
- Transport - help if larger vehicle needed
- Respite/ holidays - involving people that children know/ befriending services
- Education - situations when children change schools/transfer of assessment for the child / 'Looked After' status should give automatic support / coordinated support plan
- Information about the Additional Support for Learning legislation
- Help to understand computers as well as the school curriculum
- Well-informed schoolteachers who are aware of the situation and are sensitive and help to prevent bullying.
- School trips - financial support when needed
- Early access to medical assessment for the child when problems arise
- Support for children with mental health problems- help to carers to be able to support the young person
- Physical health - greater understanding of the impact on children of substance misuse/ drug/alcohol problems
- Health visitors an important part of the support network for all children
- Finances to set up kinship care support/potential of a telephone support service / kinship carers supporting each other
- Support to local groups to be Listening Centres for kinship carers
- A Handbook for kinship carers to guide them through some of the complex processes
- Information days for carers
- Days out for children and kinship carer
- Support in specific areas which kinship carers find difficult: young person's emerging sexuality, wish to go back to parents, managing contact, management/response to risky behaviour
- Support to avoid overprotection of the child
- Shared opportunities for skills development with other carers, learning about the different aspects of caring for children who have experienced trauma and neglect in their early years
- Learning with other carers seen as enhancing the experiences and reducing fear of learning
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