Welsh Government Kinship Care Policy and Statutory Guidance

Wales has its own devolved framework for kinship care, separate from England, and understanding which laws actually apply to you matters. If you are a grandparent or relative raising a child in Wales, here are the key pieces of legislation and guidance that determine what your local authority must do — and what you are entitled to ask for.

The Children Act 1989 (UK-Wide, With Welsh Amendments)

The Children Act 1989 is the primary legislation governing Special Guardianship Orders across England and Wales. Sections 14A–14G create the SGO framework: who can apply, the three-month notice requirement, the court's welfare-checklist assessment, and the local authority's duty to assess support needs under Section 14F.

While the Act applies in both countries, Wales implements it through its own regulations and codes of practice. This means the assessment process, support duties, and financial framework operate differently in Wales than in England.

The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014

This is the foundational Welsh statute for social care. It replaced large parts of the earlier legislative framework and established duties for local authorities to assess and meet care and support needs under the Act; informal kinship carers access support through its general provisions.

For kinship carers, the Act matters because:

• It governs when local authorities assess care and support needs under the Act
• It establishes rights to advocacy and to have your voice heard in the assessment process
• It provides the framework for family support services under Part 4, including discretionary support for informal kinship carers
• It requires local authorities to publish information about the support they offer

Informal kinship carers who do not have a court order access support through the Act's general provisions. Special guardians access additional, more specific support through Section 14F of the Children Act 1989, but the SSWBA 2014 provides the overarching framework within which Welsh councils operate.

The Special Guardianship (Wales) Regulations 2005

These regulations (SI 2005/1513) set out the detailed rules for how Welsh local authorities handle SGO applications, assessments, and support plans. They cover:

• What the local authority's welfare report to the court must include
• The prescribed categories of support that can be assessed and provided (financial support, respite, therapeutic intervention, training, and mediation)
• The rules for means-testing financial allowances
• The duty to prepare a written support plan before the order when the assessment identifies a need for ongoing services
• The requirement for annual reviews of support plans

The 2018 Amendment Regulations

The Special Guardianship (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 (SI 2018/573) strengthened the assessment framework. The amendments expanded the scope of what local authorities must cover in their welfare reports, introduced clearer requirements for out-of-area support (when you live in one council area but the child was in care in another), and aligned with the 2018 Code of Practice.

The Code of Practice on Special Guardianship

Issued under Section 145 of the SSWBA 2014, this Code of Practice is the Welsh Government's statutory guidance to local authorities on how to exercise their SGO functions. Welsh councils are legally required to act in accordance with the Code.

The Code covers the full lifecycle: assessment, court reporting, support planning, financial support, reviews, and complaints. If your council is not following the Code — for example, by refusing an assessment request from someone entitled to make one or by failing to produce a required written support plan — you can reference the Code in a formal complaint. It carries more weight than general guidance because of its statutory basis.

What This Means for You

These are not abstract legal documents. They create concrete rights:

• If you fall within a Section 14F category, you can request a support-needs assessment and the council must carry it out. Categories include the child subject to or proposed for an SGO, the special guardian or prospective special guardian, the child's birth parents, and a child of the special guardian living in the household.
• Where the assessment identifies a need for ongoing services, the council must prepare a written support plan before the order is made
• Regular financial allowances follow a published local policy and are primarily means-tested
• The council must review your support plan at least annually
• You can complain if the council fails to meet these duties

The critical distinction for Welsh carers is jurisdictional. England's Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) does not apply in Wales. Therapeutic support, respite, and practical help are assessed and provided under the Welsh framework above, not through English funding streams. If you find information online about the ASGSF, it does not apply to you.

For a step-by-step guide that translates this legal framework into practical actions — which forms to file, how to prepare for your assessment, and how to hold your council accountable — the Kinship Care in Wales guide covers the full process with Welsh-specific references.

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