Social Services and Well-Being Wales Act 2014: What Kinship Carers Need to Know

Why This Act Matters for Kinship Carers

The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 (often shortened to the SSWBA 2014) is the main law governing how Welsh local authorities assess needs, plan services and deliver support to people in Wales — including kinship carers and the children they look after.

If you are raising a relative's child in Wales, this Act is the legal framework behind most of the support you can request from your council. It works alongside the Children Act 1989, which covers court orders like Special Guardianship Orders and Child Arrangements Orders.

What the Act Requires Councils to Do

The SSWBA 2014 introduced several principles that directly affect kinship carers:

Duty to assess — Under Part 3 of the Act, when it appears that an adult or child may have care and support needs, the local authority must assess those needs. A kinship carer can ask the council to consider an assessment; the absence of a formal court order is not itself a bar.

Well-being duty — Section 5 places a general duty on Welsh local authorities to promote the well-being of people who need care and support. For kinship carers, this means the council should consider your well-being — not just the child's — when deciding what services to offer.

Voice and control — The Act requires councils to involve individuals in decisions about their care. In practice, this means the social worker should explain what assessments are available, discuss options with you, and give you the chance to make representations about the support plan.

How It Connects to Special Guardianship

The SSWBA 2014 underpins the Special Guardianship Code of Practice for Wales, which was issued under Section 145 of the Act. This Code of Practice sets out how Welsh local authorities should handle SGO assessments, draft support plans, and deliver financial and practical support.

When a local authority assesses your suitability for an SGO and prepares a support plan, they are operating under both the Children Act 1989 (specifically Sections 14A–14G) and the SSWBA 2014 framework. The Code of Practice bridges the two, providing detailed guidance on what the assessment should cover and how the support plan should be structured.

What It Means for Informal Carers

You do not need a court order to benefit from the SSWBA 2014. Even informal kinship carers — those looking after a child with no formal legal arrangement — can request a care and support needs assessment under Part 3 of the Act. The council may provide advice, information and assistance, and can offer support services under Part 4, subject to the Act's criteria.

This is important because many grandparents and relatives care informally for months or years before seeking a court order. During that period, the SSWBA 2014 is the main legal route to council support.

The Complaints Mechanism

If a Welsh local authority fails to assess you properly, refuses to provide support without adequate explanation, or terminates an existing support arrangement unfairly, the statutory social services complaints procedure gives you a route to challenge how the case was handled:

1. Stage 1 — Local resolution — Complaint to the council's designated Social Services Complaints Officer, with a response expected within 15 working days
2. Stage 2 — Independent investigation — If Stage 1 does not resolve the issue, an independent investigator reviews the complaint
3. Public Services Ombudsman for Wales — If both stages fail, you can ask the PSOW to investigate alleged maladministration

Further Reading

The Kinship Care in Wales guide explains how the SSWBA 2014 works alongside the Children Act 1989 and the Welsh SGO regulations in practical terms — what to request, when, and how to escalate if things go wrong.

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