SGO support package

[CY23]

Hi there
We were recently assessed for SGO for my 11 year old Godson who has lived with us since 2018. He has ADHD, ASD, attachment disorder and came to us by his mum asking his social worker to put him in to care as she did not love him, said he was evil and Satan. He has been involved with Children's services all his life with Care proceedings brought in 2014 but they gave her a second chance, which ultimately resulted in him suffering harm and neglect. The social worker invited us to her office and said that she had asked all of the family and none would take him due to his challenging behaviours and his self harming at age 8 ( due to mums neglect)

Throughout this time there has been little help or support. Receipts were put in for court and school uniforms that were ignored and no monies received. The first ten weeks we had no income for him as mum spent it on herself. His learning mentor at school helped to apply for child tax credits. He is on a Child in need plan. Mum has switched between abandoning him and wanting him back which has seen him go downhill again. He has been an angry, traumatised little boy who hurts himself and others. Three weeks after he came to us the social worker told us that mum had divulged that she was on online bondage and torture sites and invited men back for sex so told us no unsupervised contact. This was revoked a few weeks later. At one point mum took him home for five days and changed the benefits back to her. The social worker and learning mentor visited and house was full of cat and dog excrement and it was chaotic. The social worker ended up with concussion from banging her head and had to go to a and e. Learning mentor brought Child to me as deemed not safe. Whilst I had him mum text to say she had gone to a and e as she was having suicidal thoughts and never came back for him. He’s stayed with us, not sure under what circumstances. No one said.

Then in August 2019 mum took him to a different town to a strange house/ people and refused to bring him back for his CAHMS appointment. Social worker was on holiday, and he was incoherent with distress on telephone so I applied for an emergency CAO and prohibited steps order, which we got.

At what we thought was our final hearing Judge said that he had been let down by Social care and asked me why they did not bring proceedings. He said that I must be assessed for SGO as that is the most appropriate order to keep child safe and stable.
We had court hearing last Friday but we had to ask for an adjournment due to not receiving a support plan. At court the report said that we were eligible to apply for means test financial allowance but we have already done that and provided three months bank statements. Another form said that we were not eligible at this time. Court have asked them to set out in writing their proposals.

On the means tested financial spreadsheet it said that we should be entitled to equivalent fostering allowance of £217 and our disposable income is £32.14 per week. They have made deductions of £121 and left us a figure of £96 per week. We are on income based ESA and thought that we would get the full allowance. We are confused here as the SGO guidelines say that if you are on Income support you will be eligible for the full amount. From research some councils do disregard all four of the income based benefits. When I rang Finance they said they only disregard Income support. I asked about how that transfers to Universal credit and they said that they count all as income. This doesn’t seem to be a fair, consistent way as everyone gets the same on those income based benefits £117.40 for a couple but some people will get the full SGO based on that and some will not. Can I challenge this at all?

Also, our social worker is new and it was her first SGO and could not clarify things before court. She said in court that she has to go before panel for the support plan but I have no confidence in her getting the best package for our child. Can I send a statement of his needs in before hand and ask them to use their discretion in disregarding the means test? I do feel very bitter that we had no help all these years when it looks like we could have been eligible for an allowance. At the time we were just so concerned for our Godson and bought him everything he needed. We spent £6000 the first summer. We had to buy a car as we only had a two seater vehicle. We took him on caravan holidays to help heal his trauma and we had to buy all new clothes, bedding and toys as his were covered in filth and excrement. We have spent all our savings in this time, some £15,000 and even the receipts they said we could put in weren’t honoured.

They also haven’t allowed for any special needs allowance which a foster cater would get. Our child has an EHCP and has started Nhs therapy offered in the next town, 24 round trip. Can we claim petrol costs? We have to buy fidget toys, weighted blanket etc all ourselves.

Also, our child needs support with assistance at school with going to dinner hall, playground and moving around the school. He is reluctant to engage with people and hobbies. We have tried many and this can induce meltdowns. However, we recently took him ice skating and he loved it so much that he asked for lessons. As he doesn’t do well in groups we pay for a private lesson every Saturday which costs £33 and we had said that if we received any allowance we would like to pay for two lessons a week. We consider this to be therapy as it has really brought up his confidence and self esteem. He calls himself ugly and stupid as that is what his mother told him for years and now he is starting believe that he is good at something. It also fulfils his ‘movement seeking’ that Occ Health diagnosed him with.

Our situation has changed due to health reasons in terms of finance so we would really appreciate some help in supporting our child to heal in the future. Everything we have, emotionally and financially goes to help this precious boy.

So to clarify my questions:

What kinds of support can I ask for and would be reasonable?

Why isn’t the SGO means test consistent between all towns so that people are assessed equally and can we challenge this?

Can I ask for help in costs for therapy travel? (We also take our child to XXXX to re-establish his relationship with his Dad and sisters and fund this ourselves , petrol and hotel. This is not sustainable now that our circumstances have changed.)

Can I claim for any backdate allowance, especially in the first ten weeks when we had no income for him? After that we received Child tax credits so understand won’t be paid then.

Thank you so much if you are able to help and advise. Sorry it’s long.

Kind regards
Cally

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Cally

Welcome to the board. Thank you for your post, in response to your questions, I shall signpost you to sections of our website and other sources of information.

Support for special guardians, is outlined in Regulation 3 of this Government publication called Special guardianship guidance: statutory guidance for local authorities on the Special Guardianship Regulations 2005 (as amended by the Special Guardianship (Amendment) Regulations 2016),here you will see the scope of what might be provided to special guardians.

Additionally, you may find some information in your local authority’s Family and Friends Care Policy, here in this section on our website.

In our Top Tips and Templates section Letters numbered 4 to 9 may help you with some wording for your requests about assessment, allowances, and retrospective support. Our advice sheet number 2h gives information about welfare benefits, your local Citizens Advice may help with financial advice too.

Here is the section on our website where you will find ‘all you may need to know’ about Kinship Care.

Family Action offers special guardians support too, as does the charity called Kinship.

I hope this information is helpful.

Best wishes

Suzie

[CY23]

Thank you for your help. I will take a look at those. Many thanks again

[CY23]

I have been reading for days and writing emails but cannot find the specific information I need. I booked a slot with Coram but they cancelled it as they said they couldn’t help with specific financial advice.

Does anyone know if the ‘income based Income Support’ that is quoted in the Special Guardians Order Guidelines for disregard in the means test financial assessment would also apply to Employment and Support Allowance. They are both income based benefits for unemployed people with the same couple rate of £117.40 per week.

From reading I can see that some councils disregard all four of the income based benefits but some councils just disregard Income Support as specified in the guidelines.

I can’t find out anything about this specifically so don’t know if I can challenge my council who have not disregarded it.

It seems quite unfair and not equal if a couple on IS on £117.40 are disregarded for means testing and revive the full SGO allowance and a couple on the same rate of £117.40 but a different income based benefit are not disregarded and have deductions and are not entitled to the full SGO allowance.

Can anyone help?

Thank you.

[Suzie, FRG Adviser]

Dear Cally

Thanks for your further question but barring the signposts I gave you last time our advice sheet 2h, Citizens Advice, Family Action and Kinship. The only other suggestion I have is that you ask the local authority for their policy and exactly where is says in the regulations or procedures that the benefit you mention is counted as income in the financial assessments of special guardians. Thereafter if you are not satisfied with their response, you can ask them for their complaints procedures.

Best wishes

Suzie

[CY23]

Hi Suzie
Thanks for your reply. Just to let people know that I spoke to someone at Kinship and it is a challenge that they have successfully made in the past.

Thank you for all your help