June 2025: A busy month for kinship care
We were lucky enough to be invited to deliver some training for EM Lawshare on the issue of vicarious liability as it relates to kinship care.
Inevitably, in the lead up to the delivery date on 25 June 2025 there were a number of significant developments, all of which impact this new initiative.
Perhaps most excitingly, there is funding available for local authorities who want to pilot paid kinship placements.
On 17 June 2025, the government launched a £40 million pilot, funding up to ten local authority areas to deliver an allowance for kinship carers with a special guardianship order (SGO) or a “lives with” child arrangement order (CAO). The allowance will match the national minimum allowance delivered to kinship foster carers by selected local authorities and the pilot will run between November 2025 and March 2029. Importantly, the deadline for applications is 15 July 2025.
At the same time, the Law Commission announced kinship care and that it will be simplifying and streamlining the law to improve the current complex landscape, making options for kinship care simpler and easier to navigate. The project will reform the law to facilitate kinship care and will consider:
- Producing a legal definition of kinship care.
- The adequacy and consistency of legal orders underpinning kinship care placements.
- The potential for reform of such orders.
- The legal process and thresholds for assessment and approval of kinship carers.
The consultation paper is expected in spring 2026.
In the meantime, other changes are likely to affect kinship care placements. There is a possibility that many if not all kinship care placements, where there is some sort of local authority assessment involvement or funding, might carry with them the risk of vicarious liability for the actions of family members in kinship care placements.
These are risks that will need to be considered with local authority risk and insurance managers and discussed with insurance providers.
Furthermore, with the law on limitation likely due to change, both kinship foster carers and local authorities could face civil historical child sexual abuse claims at any point in the future, as the Limitation Act 1980 is going to be changed for the purposes of those particular types of claims.
Contact
Sarah Erwin-Jones
Partner
Sarah.Erwin-Jones@brownejacobson.com
+44 (0)115 976 6136
Discover more
Related expertise
You might be interested in
Legal Update
June 2025: A busy month for kinship care
Legal Update
Analysis: National audit on group-based child sexual exploitation and abuse (June 2025)
Legal Update
What might the public inquiry on child sexual exploitation look like
Online Event
Mental health and capacity forum: Navigating the transition from children to adults
Video
Investigations and inquiries into child sexual exploitation and grooming
Opinion
The Court of Appeal explains why a local authority cannot consent to the confinement of a looked after child
Legal Update
Safeguarding children: Effective strategies for prevention and response
Legal Update
Navigating the complexities of deprivation of liberty for children under 16
Legal Update
Limitation in claims for Child Sexual abuse (CSA)
Press Release
New reforms affecting child sexual abuse claims: Legal comment
Legal Update
Limitation reform in sexual abuse claims: How this affects sports clubs
Opinion
Supporting social work decisions: R (on behalf of TW) v Essex County Council
On-Demand
Pupillage open evening
Legal Update
Calls for public inquiry into child sexual exploitation intensify amidst political pressure
Legal Update
The latest take on vicarious liability for kinship / connected person foster care
Opinion
Opportunities for private children’s services to engage with Regional Care Cooperatives
On-Demand
Kinship care: DJ v Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council and SG
Legal Update
Vicarious liability for kinship foster carer abuse: Implications for local authority insurers
Legal Update
Relying on parental consent for treatment and restraint against a child's wishes
Legal Update
A long period of voluntary child care does not always mean an entitlement to damages
Legal Update
Extended s20 voluntary care isn’t always a breach of human rights
Legal Update
Mitigating the £6.2bn black hole: Are councils maximising these resources well enough?
Legal Update
Court of Appeal extends local authority liability for kinship foster carers
Legal Update
Redress and reparation schemes: Where the complexity is not about quantum
Legal Update
What does the new gender questioning guidance mean for schools?
On-Demand - Shared Insights
Shared Insights: Giving evidence before the Family Court - a practical session
Legal Update
HXA and YXA : Guidance from the Supreme Court on negligence in failure to remove cases
On-Demand - Shared Insights
The challenges caused by disordered eating in education, health and social care settings
Opinion
Parental alienation a tool for domestic abuse?
Legal Update
Public Consultation on a Mandatory Reporting Regime for Child Sexual Abuse
Legal Update
Vicarious liability – don’t overlook the importance of close connection
Legal Update
HXA and YXA failure to remove cases: Key considerations in anticipation of the Supreme Court judgment
Legal Update
Protecting children and their data in the online environment
Opinion
Challenges from potential Foster Carers and Adopters
Our immediate future shows a renewed focus on foster care. We’re going to see a new nationwide-drive to recruit foster carers and the implementation of a more robust, and potentially financially-generous system for encouraging friends and family to care for their relatives (both when extended families cannot cope or provide care for any reason).
Legal Update
Independent review of children’s social care – focus on foster care
This summer saw the publication of a report describing itself as a ‘once in a generation’ opportunity to reset children social care. Based on the current trajectory, the report concluded that 100,000 children would be held in care in the next decade.
Published Article
Complex safeguarding allegations
Whilst Schools and Academies exist to educate and inspire young people, their primary obligation is their protection. Keeping Children Safe in Education (“KCSIE”) is at the heart of everything that educational institutions do and impacts on every decision, however big or small.
On-Demand
'Barry Bennell case' webinar
This webinar looks at the three key themes in the decision, and is aimed at sports & social clubs (including safeguarding officers).
On-Demand - Shared Insights
Shared Insights: Safeguarding Forum. Child Safeguarding in childcare proceedings
Published Article
Do local authorities owe a duty of care to children living at home with their family?
On-Demand
Child Abuse & Social Care Forum
Watch now on-demand our Child Abuse & Social Care Forum.