A Four-Nation Comparison of Kinship Care in the UK: The Relationship between Formal Kinship Care and Deprivation

Abstract

The practice of extended family and friends helping to care for children when their parents are unable to is an enduring tradition in many cultures. Kinship care provides the largest proportion of out of home care in Western society but many of these carers experience poverty and deprivation, and do not receive comparable levels of support, financial or professional, to other placement types. This study provides UK evidence for the relationship between kinship care and deprivation and examines how the welfare state frames kinship care in policy and practice.

Non-parental care in childhood and health up to 30 years later: ONS Longitudinal Study 1971–2011

“…33 If relative care is to become a more integral part of child welfare services across Europe, we would agree with recommendations by others that policies need to encompass all relatives and the children in their care, including those with informal arrangements. [34][35] For children where placements with non-relatives are unavoidable, further work could determine what interventions can be applied to mitigate their elevated risk of poor health in adulthood. Moreover, for all care leavers we suggest that the recommendation that care leavers programmes should facilitate easy access to diagnosis and treatment is extended to far beyond the transition-to-adulthood phase.…”

How did kinship care emerge as a significant form of placement for children in care? A comparative study of the experience in Ireland and Scotland

“…There are many challenges facing kinship carers including providing care at short notice and in times of severe crisis, negotiating tensions with the child's biological parents, establishing relationships with statutory services and seeking to get help for a child (or children) who may have complex health and educational needs (Aldgate, 2009;Black, 2009;McCartan et al, 2018). Analysis of UK census 2001 and 2011 data found children in kinship care families are disproportionately living in the poorest households and compared with parents, carers reported being in poorer health, have lower income, lower grade occupations and live in social rented accommodation (Nandy et al, 2011;Wijedasa, 2017).…”

“…Globally, kinship care is the most common form of alternative care for children not currently living with parents, arguably because of its relatively low cost and popularity among families and across cultures (EveryChild and Help Age International, 2012). Several writers have described the increasing use of formal kinship care by government agencies in different countries, including the UK and Ireland (Aldgate, 2009;McCartan et al, 2018;, New Zealand and Australia (Connolly, Kiraly, McCrae, & Mitchell, 2017), and USA (Ching-Hsuan, 2018). Explanations for the growing use of formal kinship care placements include the general preference for family-based care in social work practice (as opposed to residential / institutional care), and the requirement in certain jurisdictions to consider relative placement before non-relative foster care or residential care, often with statutory protection (Brown & Sen, 2014).…”

“…Various factors appear to contribute to the increasing importance of kinship care in many countries (McCartan et al, 2018;.…”

Introduction: Families, Social Work and the Welfare State: Where Contemporary ‘Family’ Meets Policy and Practice

“…In the second article of the section, McCartan et al . (2018) explore conceptions of ‘family’ beyond the nuclear and critically engage with whom the state recognises as responsible for care. This article presents variations in child placement types across four UK nations.…”