Handle With Care: Annual survey of kinship carers 2025
2 October 2025
Published ahead of Kinship Care Week 2025, Handle With Care shares key findings from our 2025 annual survey of more than 1,900 kinship carers to provide an updated ‘state of the nation’ overview of kinship families and the current policy context.
Kinship families in 2025
Financial hardship remains a core part of many families’ lives, experiences of sleeping in unsuitable conditions are common, and poor support presents a significant continued risk to children’s stability. However, there are some signs of improving kinship family experiences and local authority support, albeit from a very low base.
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1 in 5 said a family member had slept in unsuitable conditions in the last year
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Twice as likely as UK adults to be using credit more than usual
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18% said they never feel lonely, up from 9% in 2023
Policy context in 2025
There are several opportunities for governmental activity to deliver further and faster reform. Current action in England fails to meet the ambition for kinship care set out by the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care, and some activity could even exacerbate the dysfunctionality within our current system.
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Half of kinship foster carers say they would move to other arrangements if an equitable financial allowance was guaranteed
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26% had participated in family group decision making (FGDM)
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1 in 8 had seen their local authority’s kinship local offer
"The financial aspect has always been my main worry about moving to an SGO. I am 61, when I retire my pension will not cover living costs of bringing up two young boys. I am guaranteed payment for first two years and then I will have the stress of annual means testing, but my grandchildren will be able to have a more ‘normal’ life without so many intrusive restrictions. It will give me more time to dedicate to them and more energy to spend on them rather than wasting my energy battling with social services."
Grandparent and kinship foster carer
Policy and influencing
Learn how Kinship shapes policy and advocates for change. Through collaboration with families and policymakers, we work to ensure kinship carers’ voices are heard and supported across England and Wales.
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