Looking after a child under a child arrangement order
A child arrangement order is an order from the family court setting out arrangements for where a child is to live.
If the order specifies that the child will live with someone other than their parent, that person is granted parental responsibility, which is at an equal level to that of the parent.
Should a carer with a child arrangement order feel they require support and advice they can contact the kinship fostering service at postsgosupport@bolton.gov.uk asking for an assessment of support needs.
Financial support
If a local authority was involved when the order was made, a childarrangement order financial allowance may have been considered to help with the child’s care. Carers should have received a clear written agreement at the time. This financial support does not replace benefits like child tax credit and will not affect benefits entitlement. Any financial support offered will be discretionary.
Therapeutic support
For children who were in care before a child arrangements order was granted, we can apply to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) for support for additional therapeutic services for children and their carers. This will be something which is discussed via the assessment of support needs that will be completed with the carer by a social worker from the kinship fostering service.