Friends and family fostering

What is kinship care?

Friends and family fostering, also known as kinship care, is an arrangement where a child or young person who cannot live with their parents is looked after by family members, relatives, or friends (also known as connected carers). These connected carers take on the responsibility of caring for the child on a temporary or permanent basis, depending on the child’s care plan.

In this scenario, the child remains formally a Child in Care under Barnet's authority, but the connected carer becomes their approved foster carer.

Benefits of kinship care

The child or young person benefits from the additional support from their social worker but is offered the opportunity to remain within a familiar setting with someone that they already know.

Connected carers can be grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, close family friends or even neighbours. Anyone who has a positive and pre-existing relationship with the child or young person can become a connected carer.

How to become a carer

Connected carers are assessed by a committed team of experienced social workers. After a 16 week assessment, you are presented to Barnet’s Fostering Panel as part of the approval process. The assessing social worker helps you to prepare by making sure you understand your role as a connected carer for the named child or young person. 

Visits and inspections from social workers

We need to carry out an in depth assessment of you and your family to make sure the Child in Care is in a suitable and safe place. 

We also need to:

• complete checks on you and the members of your household with the Police, Local Authority, Education and Employers
• meet with 3 personal referees that you put forward
• receive a full medical assessment from you.

Support for connected carers

Once approved for kinship care, you will be allocated your own supervising social worker who will meet with you on a regular basis and will support you as a connected carer. 

Your social worker will offer advice, support, supervision, and training tailored to your needs.