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    Children in Kinship Care

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    In September 2024, the role of Virtual Schools expanded further to specifically include championing the educational attendance, attainment and progress of children in kinship care.  

    What is Kinship Care? 

    Kinship care is when a child lives full-time, or most of the time, with a relative or close family friend, usually because their parents are not able to care for them. You might see kinship carers referred to as ‘family and friends carers’ or ‘connected people’ by local authorities and in some documents. 

    Types of Kinship Care 

    • Informal arrangements 
    • Special Guardianship Orders 
    • Child Arrangement Order 
    • Family and Friends Foster Care 
    • Private Foster Care 

    If you would like more information about the different types of Kinship Care, please click on the following link.  What is kinship care? - Kinship

    Previously Looked After Child (PLAC) Status  

    Children in kinship care can also be a Previously Looked After Child.  For a pupil to be a Previously Looked After Child, they will have been in local authority care, and to have immediately moved to a new order of permanency through: 

    • Adoption 
    • Special Guardianship Order (SGO) 
    • Residency Order (RO) ceased 2014 
    • Child Arrangement Order (CAO) 

    If a child is previously looked, after they can receive Pupil Premium Plus funding (PP+) and funding can be applied for from the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF). For more information, please go to the PLAC section of our Moodle. 

    Key Aims
     
    • Raise the visibility of the distinct needs of children in different types of kinship care arrangements and the disadvantages that they can experience 
    • Promote practice that supports attendance and engagement in education 
    • Promote practice that improves children in kinship care’s outcomes to narrow the attainment gap 
    • Provide advice and information, on request, to all kinship carers with Special Guardianship and Child Arrangements Orders 

    Click here to access important resources, including:

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    Responsibilities of Early Years Settings

    • Identify and know children living in kinship care and their families, ensuring accurate information is gathered sensitively and kept up to date
    • Ensure key staff work together (including the Designated Safeguarding Lead, SENCO, key persons, and leaders) to provide consistent and coordinated support for children in kinship care
    • Recognise the unique experiences and needs of children in kinship care and ensure they are visible within the setting's planning, support, and practice
    • Understand potential barriers to learning, development, attendance, wellbeing, and family engagement that may affect children in kinship care
    • Prioritise children in kinship care through an early and targeted response, providing appropriate support to help them thrive
    • Place strong, trusting relationships and the child's voice at the heart of practice, ensuring children feel safe, valued, listened to, and understood
    • Work in partnership with kinship carers and access wider support services, including health, social care, family support, and community organisations, to meet the child's and family's needs effectively
    • Promote a nurturing and inclusive environment where children in kinship care feel a sense of belonging and are supported to achieve positive outcomes in their learning, development, and wellbeing
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    Virtual School Support

    The Virtual School is working to: 

    • Develop early years settings understanding of different kinds of kinship care arrangements 
    • Support early years settings to understand the importance of greater focus and visibility for the distinct needs of kinship children and families 
    • Promote relational practice that ensures positive educational experiences and achievement for children in kinship care
    • Understand the role of the early years setting in identifying and supporting their kinship care families 
    • Training and development offer to early years settings and partners
    • Signpost to support and resources currently available to kinship care families  
    • Provide advice and guidance to all kinship carers with special guardianship orders and child arrangement orders, regardless of whether their child was previously looked after by the local authority. 
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    Early Years Funding

    Pupil Premium Plus Funding – From Reception Year

    Pupil Premium Plus (PP+) is additional funding provided to schools to help support the education of children who are previously looked after.  Children in kinship care may receive PP+ if they are also a previously looked after child. (For more information please look at our early years PLAC section.) This funding is designed to help close the attainment gap and ensure that previously looked after children have the best possible opportunities to succeed in school. The decision on use of PP+ spending sits with the school and it must be focused on education; however, the views of parents/carers should be considered.

    Once a school is ‘satisfied’ with the child’s status and they qualify as PLAC, they can amend their school census record. Ultimately, a headteacher takes responsibility for a school census, registers and DfE returns. PLAC status must be recorded on schools’ Autumn (October) Census in order to receive pupil premium plus (PP+) funding for the following financial year. Each child recorded as PLAC on the Autumn Census currently generates £2690 (2026-2027).
     

    Early Years Pupil Premium Funding – Preschools/Nurseries/Childminders
    The Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) aims to support early years settings in narrowing the achievement gap between children from potentially vulnerable groups, including previously looked after children living under Adoption Orders, Child Arrangements Orders or Special Guardianship Orders, and their peers. Its purpose is to enhance children's progress through focused and strategic interventions and support, encouraging practitioners to give particular attention to their development.

    Children aged 3 and 4 who are previously looked after and in kinship care arrangements under a Special Guardianship Order or Child Arrangements Order may be eligible for EYPP. Settings should work with parents and guardians to identify eligible children and claim the funding. Please see our Early Years PLAC section for further information.

    Early Years Funded Hours – Preschools/Nurseries/Childminders
    Early Years funded hours are government-funded hours for children to attend early years education (preschools, nurseries or childminders) before they begin formal schooling. Depending on the child's age and family circumstances, different amounts of funded childcare are available.

    Children in kinship care are not automatically entitled to additional funded hours because of their legal status. However, they may be eligible through the disadvantaged 2-year-old offer, if they have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), receive Disability Living Allowance, or meet other eligibility criteria. All children are entitled to the universal 15 hours of funded early education from the term after their third birthday, with some families eligible for up to 30 hours through the working parent entitlement.

    • All 3 and 4 year olds, including children in kinship care, are entitled to 15 hours per week of universal funded early education for 38 weeks of the year.
    • Eligible 3 and 4 year olds may receive an additional 15 hours per week (30 hours in total) if they meet the working parent eligibility criteria.
    • Children aged 2 who have been adopted from care are entitled to a funded early education place, regardless of family income, through the disadvantaged 2-year-old entitlement.

    Term time hours are calculated on the child attending for 38 weeks per year.

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    Key Documents