Agenda item

To receive the report of the Assistant Director for Legal and Governance on any Notices of Motion received by him.

Councillors are asked to note that any Notices of Motion must be received by the Assistant Director for Legal and Governance no later than noon on Tuesday, 5 January 2021.

The Council had before it a Notice of Motion set out in the agenda papers standing in the names of Mr R C Lunn, Ms C M Stalker, Ms P Agar, Ms P A Hill, Mr P Denham, Mr P M McDonald, and Mr L C R Mallett.

The motion was moved by Mr R M Udall and seconded by Mrs C M Stalker who both spoke in favour of it, and Council agreed to deal with it on the day.

The following amendment was moved by Mr A R Roberts and accepted as an alteration by the mover and seconder of the motion which therefore became the substantive motion:

“Council recognises the important contribution from kinship carers in the county within the scope of ‘Friends Family and Connected Persons’. However, some kinship carers especially grandparents and older siblings can face unexpected hardship, stress and anxiety. Council asks the Cabinet Member responsible to see that the findings of the review of provision that has been undertaken, which considers what further support and assistance could be provided to help and support kinship carers in Worcestershire, is brought before the Cabinet.”

In the ensuing debate, the following points were raised:

·         Complaints had been received from kinship carers about a lack of assistance and difficulties in their views being heard. Kinship carers often had to support family members at short notice which was stressful and impacted on their mental and financial well-being. Emotional and financial hardship was the reality for many kinship carers. It was important to express the council’s thanks for their efforts but also investigate how they could be better supported by the system. A review of the kinship care system should be undertaken which also sought the views of kinship carers and their representative bodies

·         Kinship care provided the vitally needed element of stability which improved the well-being and educational development of children who otherwise would enter social care. In the long term, kinship care helped to reduce homelessness, crime, anti-social behaviour and improved health, as well as providing substantial cost savings to the state. Many kinship carers had been asked to provide support by the Council but did not feel supported in their role

·         The Cabinet Member for Children and Families responded on behalf of the Conservative Group. He explained that the role kinship carers related to family members who took on the care of children who were not looked after and had been assessed by the Foster Carers Panel, acting on behalf of the Council. The kinship carer role did not relate to any informal arrangements between family members. A draft review of kinship care had been drafted and circulated for pre-Cabinet consultation. The intention was to present the review to the meeting of Cabinet in June as part of the Placement Proficiency report. The initial findings of the review indicated that kinship carers did have the appropriate level of training to undertake their role. Following approval by the Foster Carers Panel, kinship carers were provided with the same level of support including financial support as an unrelated foster carer. The Council was currently seeking to better promote the kinship offer, providing guidance on the relevant pathway to kinship carers whether as special guardians or through child arrangements order or by private family arrangement. This would enable the Council to identify the most appropriate type of support for the kinship carer. 20% of foster carers were kinship carers

·         It was important to keep children with their family wherever possible however there were families where family relatives were considered inappropriate carers. All applications to become kinship carers should therefore be assessed by the Foster Carers Panel. The system should prevent kinship carers from falling into poverty

·         There was a danger that family members would be disadvantaged by their unwillingness to receive financial support from the Council because of their sense of moral duty. The Council therefore needed to promote kinship carer support as widely as possible emphasising the basis for and availability of financial support and the ease access to it

·         This motion opened up the opportunity for scrutiny to examine the kinship carer processes and procedures and establish best practice.

On being put to the vote, the substantive motion was agreed.

RESOLVED: “Council recognises the important contribution from kinship carers in the county within the scope of ‘Friends Family and Connected Persons’. However, some kinship carers especially grandparents and older siblings can face unexpected hardship, stress and anxiety. Council asks the Cabinet Member responsible to see that the findings of the review of provision that has been undertaken, which considers what further support and assistance could be provided to help and support kinship carers in Worcestershire, is brought before the Cabinet.”