Child Benefit, Universal Credit and Guardian's Allowance for Special Guardians

Benefits You Can Claim as a Special Guardian or Kinship Carer

One of the first practical questions relatives ask when a child comes to live with them is how to manage the financial impact. Whether you already hold a Special Guardianship Order or you're caring for a child informally, several statutory benefits are available — but claiming them correctly matters, because mistakes with Child Benefit in particular can create complications with the birth parent.

Child Benefit

You can claim Child Benefit if the child comes to live with you and you are responsible for them, even if you do not hold parental responsibility. Only one person can receive it for a child.

The current weekly rates (2026/27) are £27.05 for the eldest or only child and £17.90 for each additional child. The claim is made through HMRC.

If the birth parent is already claiming Child Benefit for the child, you need to make your own claim. HMRC will then contact the existing claimant to confirm the child's living arrangements. If the child genuinely lives with you, your claim takes priority — HMRC will stop the birth parent's payments and redirect them to you. You don't need the birth parent's agreement for this.

The Child Benefit Office will tell you if it receives another claim and will help decide who should claim if you cannot agree. An existing claimant will usually continue to receive Child Benefit for 8 weeks after the child goes to live with someone else if nobody else claims, and for longer if they contribute to the child's upkeep. This can cause friction with birth parents. But it's important to get right: Child Benefit is not just income — it also triggers National Insurance credits and affects eligibility for other benefits.

What you need to claim:

• Claim online through GOV.UK; if you cannot claim online, use form CH2 or call 0300 200 3100 for help
• Provide the child's birth certificate if you have it; you can still claim without it and send it later if HMRC asks
• Evidence that the child lives with you — a letter from the school, GP or social worker

Universal Credit Child Elements

If you're receiving Universal Credit, you can report a child who normally lives with you. The 2026/27 child element is £303.94 per month for each child, plus an additional £47.94 for your first child if they were born before 6 April 2017.

Report the change of circumstances through your Universal Credit online journal as soon as the child moves in. You'll need:

• The child's full name and date of birth
• Confirmation they live with you
• Their National Insurance number if they're 16 or over

The two-child limit ended on 6 April 2026. Universal Credit now pays the child element for every qualifying child, no matter how many children you have.

Guardian's Allowance (HMRC)

Guardian's Allowance is a separate, tax-free benefit from HMRC worth £22.95 per week (2026/27). It's specifically designed for people raising a child whose parents have died — but the eligibility rules are broader than most people realise.

You may qualify if both parents have died. If one parent is still alive, you may also qualify if you do not know where they are and have made reasonable efforts to contact them, they will be in prison for at least two years from the other parent's death, or they are in hospital by court order. You must also qualify for Child Benefit, and one of the child's parents must have been born in the UK, an EEA country or Switzerland, or have lived in the UK since age 16 for at least 52 weeks in any two-year period.

You must qualify for Child Benefit to claim Guardian's Allowance, but you can receive Guardian's Allowance even if you opt out of Child Benefit payments. The claim is made on form BG1, available from GOV.UK.

Guardian's Allowance is not means-tested — your income and savings don't affect eligibility. It's paid on top of Child Benefit and any other benefits you receive, and it doesn't reduce your Universal Credit.

How Benefits Interact with the SGO Allowance

The local authority's discretionary SGO allowance (the means-tested payment assessed under the Special Guardianship Regulations 2005) is calculated separately from statutory benefits. However, councils typically deduct Child Benefit and the Universal Credit child element when working out how much SGO allowance to pay.

This means claiming your full statutory entitlements is important — not because the SGO allowance will necessarily increase, but because statutory benefits are guaranteed entitlements, while the SGO allowance is discretionary and can be reduced or reviewed annually.

If your council is in one of the seven Kinship Zones pilot areas (Bexley, Bolton, Newcastle, North East Lincolnshire, Medway, Thurrock or Wiltshire), you may receive a non-means-tested Kinship Allowance at the full fostering rate instead, which changes this calculation significantly.

Other Benefits Worth Checking

Beyond the three main benefits above, special guardians and kinship carers may also be eligible for:

• Free school meals — if you receive certain qualifying benefits
• Council Tax reduction — your council may apply a discount for kinship care households
• Healthy Start vouchers — for children under 4 if you're on qualifying benefits
• Tax-Free Childcare — if you're working and paying for registered childcare

Our SGO Process Guide includes a household budget worksheet and benefits checklist designed to help you identify everything you're entitled to before sitting down with the local authority to discuss your support plan.

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