Kinship's Practice Lead, Tim Fisher, reflects on discussions from our Knowledge Exchange event about the kinship care local offer and the value of co-production in local authorities.
We are Kinship
The leading kinship care charity in England and Wales. We’re here for kinship carers – friends or family who step up to raise a child when their parents aren’t able to. Let’s commit to change for kinship families.
Get support and advice
Are you a kinship carer? Help us develop a new advice tool
Kinship is starting to develop an AI-powered chatbot that, in time, will be available on our website to support kinship carers to access information quickly.
We are at the earliest stage of development. It will take time and careful thinking to make sure we’re able to introduce a useful tool alongside our advice, information resources and other services to support kinship carers to find the information they need quickly.
As we start on this journey, we want to build in kinship carer experience and the voice of kinship carers from the start. That’s why we’re asking members of our Kinship community to get involved.
At this stage, we’re asking kinship carers to share some questions they might want to ask a chatbot by Monday 30 June. Find out more and take part now.
Please note, we will not be able to respond to your submissions. If you need support, please contact our advice team.
Join us at a Kinship Roadshow
You might have heard about our Kinship Roadshows, but what’s it like to attend one, and what should you expect? Watch as we follow Kieron, a kinship carer to his 3 grandchildren, as he attends a Kinship Roadshow for the first time.
We have a number of free roadshows coming up across England. Sign up now for a chance to connect, share, and discover support in a welcoming space.
Other upcoming training and events
As well as our roadshows, we run lots of free workshops for kinship carers, both in person and online. These cover a range of subjects to offer support for every step of your journey. See all upcoming workshops on:
Watch our Young Champions' animation
We’re so excited to share this new animated film about growing up in kinship care.
Written and voiced by young people in kinship care, the film explores what life is like in a kinship family. It was created as part of our Young Champions project, funded by BBC Children in Need.
Kinship care in England and Wales
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More than 141,000 children are in kinship care in England and Wales
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Nearly 1 in 5 kinship carers feel lonely often or always
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More than 1/3 of kinship carers experienced an income drop of more than 50% after stepping up to take on the care of a child
Kinship Compass: find independent information, support and advice in your area
We know kinship care is complex and confusing. Use Kinship Compass to discover what support is available to you, both locally and nationally, to help you navigate your kinship journey.
Latest news and highlights
Take a look at some of our latest news and highlights from across Kinship.
Kinship is pleased that the government is today finally revealing more details about the long-awaited £40 million pilot of financial allowances for kinship carers in up to 10 local authority areas in England, following last week’s Spending Review.
A dedicated member of the Kinship staff team has been awarded an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours for her ‘services to kinship care and for advocating for and supporting families.’
Find out how we're campaigning for change
Kinship care has been undervalued for too long. Research shows that kinship carers contribute £4.3 billion to the economy per year. Yet many are struggling to make ends meet. We think that’s not fair.
That’s why we’re calling on the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, to give all kinship carers the financial support they need.
Get information and expert advice
We provide information and advice on all issues affecting kinship carers. Browse our advice collections, take a look at some of our most popular advice articles below or contact our advice team for free, expert information and advice.
Find out how you become a kinship carer, and what to expect from the process.
Stepping up to raise a child can be expensive, and money worries are common for kinship carers. Find out what financial support and benefits are available to you.
How to plan and organise contact time with family to reduce stress and make it a positive experience for the child.
Join our community
Sign up for emails to keep up to date with the information that’s important to you, from support and advice for kinship carers, to our latest news, events and campaigns.