Process of another SGO assessment for a 2nd child of the first one was placed with me already

[VCSD3]

Hi,

I was awarded SGO 8 years ago for my niece. Everything in that respect is perfect.

My sister has since had another child and we have been put forward for a full assessment. However, they have said they will be requesting in court for a 13 week extension. This seems a lot to me considering a lot of our assessment will be copy and pasting from the previous. They just need to do a 8 year update.

Is there a way I can ask this extension to be reduced as the new baby is already 6 months old and building an attachment to the biological mother. Who is more than likely not going to be able to keep him.

It was supposed to go to court in a few weeks but they want to leave the baby in a mother and baby foster home for a further 13 plus weeks. I feel this is not in the babies best interest.

Do I have to just suck it up and wait until next year or can I do something to speed up the process.

I’ll break things down

Biological mother and baby did a 12 week mother and baby programs which had to many negatives.

Judge then said to do a 12 week in foster mother and baby care. Again the SW’s report is negative. So we have been asked to be put forward.

Now we have to wait a further 13 weeks plus for paperwork.

The baby is going to be 10 to 11 months plus before being placed with us.

I have been informed if the biological mother walks away they would ask for us to be temporary foster carers until the SGO is final. But the biological mother will not walk away.

Thanks x

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear VCSD3,

Welcome to the kinship carers’ forum and thank you for your post. Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to you.

Despite the fact that you have an SGO for your niece it is indeed necessary for children’s services to do a full assessment on you for the new baby. Children’s will use historical information including the information from the previous SGO assessment however they must ensure that they do a thorough assessment of your current situation (for example what the impact of caring for another child would have on you, your partner and your older niece). The judge will decide whether a 13 week extension is reasonable given other timescales in the court proceedings. Ultimately it is better for children’s services to complete a thorough SGO assessment which is less likely to be challenged in court, rather than them doing a rushed job and risking the assessment being challenged and needing to be looked at again.

Children’s services must also do thorough assessments on your sister as they have a legal duty to consider her ability to meet her child’s needs. They will be guided by the judge regarding whether your sister and the child should remain in the mother and baby placement for an extended duration. The judge should always make decisions in the best interests of the child.

You don’t say if you have a solicitor, but if you don’t then it would be advisable to consider getting one (preferably one who has children law accreditation). You may also wish to consider applying to become a party to proceedings (if you are not already) and you may then be entitled to legal aid. At the very minimum it is advisable to ensure that you seek legal advice regarding the financial support that children’s services offer you (the special guardianship allowance) – children’s services should pay for this advice.

I hope that this has been of some help. Please post again if you have any further queries, or you can call our free helpline on 0808 801 0366 (Monday to Friday, 9:30am – 3pm) to speak with an adviser in more detail.

Best wishes,
Suzie

[Ghunter]

It is the first time I have used this snd unsure if I am asking advice in the right section
I have 2 of my grandchildren living with me under kinship carer
Very positive and both thriving
I have 2 more grandchildren thst are currently in foster care
I have applied to court seeking permission for Sgo
My intention is for me to request kinship carer assessment as i could not afford not to receive the allowance
I wish I could afford to have them under SGO but with the cost of living I just cannot afford it plus I am
Paying off loans for my legal
Fees
Can you advise please
And i am worried it will be negative as they have mentioned they are worried about the impact it could have and the managing of them being varied ages
3, 9,10 and 17 nearly 18
I have the 3 and 17 year olds with me
Social services say they are both thriving and very happy

Thanks

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Ghunter

Welcome to the kinship carers’ discussion forum and thank you for posting.

My name is Suzie, online adviser at Family Rights Group and I will be responding to your post.

From your post I can see how concerned you are about being able to care for 2 of your grandchildren who are in foster care at present. The financial aspect of caring for them is most worrying for you.

You say that you have already applied to the court for permission to apply for a special guardianship order. (SGO) Are the children in foster care under s.20 of the Children Act 1989, this is usually referred to as s.20 accommodation which is a voluntary arrangement made with the parent or parents agreement? Or, is there an interim care order (ICO) made in ongoing care proceedings brought by the local authority. In both cases the children are looked after children and, as such, children’s services should carry out a financial assessment to pay a special guardianship allowance to help the person with SGO.

If there are care proceedings at present, then you can ask to be assessed as a kinship foster carer for the children as you say financially it would be a struggle to care for the other two grandchildren from foster care under a SGO. Please read the information HERE .

There is information HERE about making a private law application for SGO. You could ask a solicitor to assess you for legal aid as there has been changes recently to legal aid to assist persons applying for a SGO.

Any assessment that children’s services do should include consideration of the children’s needs and what support might be needed to ensure that the placement will be a good one, As stated above, a financial assessment should be done and a support package offered. See information about SGO assessment in care proceedings.

In relation to your concern that you may have a negative assessment because of the differing ages of your grandchildren. I suggest you explain how you believe you would be able to manage this as well as ask what support would be offered to address any concerns children’s services have regarding this.

I have also included information HERE about the support available to special guardians.

Hope this is helpful. Should you wish to speak to an adviser, you can telephone our free confidential advice line on 0808 801 0366. The advice line is open from 9.30am to 3.00pm Monday to Friday (except Bank Holidays) . There is also a live webchat on our website for an adviser to assist you.

Please post again should you need to do so..

Best wishes

Suzie