Information and advice for kinship carers choosing a school for a child who has special educational needs or a disability.
How schools should support children in kinship care
Find out about the responsibilities of schools towards children and young people in kinship care.
Written in collaboration with Leeds Virtual School.
This page has two sections:
What kinship carers should expect from schools
Designated teachers (applies to England only)
Each school should have a designated teacher for looked after and previously looked after children. This teacher will have responsibility for young people in kinship care. They should be your main point of contact about issues relating to your kinship child’s education.
Read more about the role of the designated teacher (GOV.UK).
Pupil Premium Plus (applies to England only)
Pupil Premium Plus is funding (£2,530 per year) which is paid to schools to promote the education of pupils who are or have been previously looked after. It is not a personal budget for individual pupils, but the school must be able to show how they are spending the funding effectively.
Note: Pupil Premium Plus is not the same as Pupil Premium (which is funding to improve outcomes for disadvantaged young people and is based on eligibility for free school meals).
You will need to self-declare your child’s eligibility for Pupil Premium Plus by providing the school with proof of your child’s status. For example, this could be a photocopy of the child arrangements order or special guardianship order. If you do not have the order, you can apply to the court for a copy. Alternatively, you can get a letter from the local authority, adoption agency or social worker to confirm previously looked after status.
The school must record this information in the Autumn census, which takes place in October. Therefore, it is important that you inform the school well before the census. If your child changes school, you will need to declare their status again.
When providing proof of your child’s status, you may choose to conceal sensitive information on the documentation. The school does not have to keep a copy of the order – they only need to check the order to clarify eligibility. The school must keep this information confidential and only share it with relevant members of staff.
Early years pupil premium
You may be entitled to early years pupil premium if your child has left care in England or Wales through a Special Guardianship Order or a Child Arrangements Order. This could be up to £353 per year and is paid directly to your provider. To enquire please speak to your local council or childcare provider.
Find out more about early years pupil premium (GOV.UK)
Special educational needs
Your school will inform you if the child you are caring for has special educational needs (SEN). The designated teacher or the special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO) at school will explain to you what extra support will be put into place and why it is necessary.
Most pupils with special educational needs are helped within school by a process known as SEN support. A proportion of pupils with special educational needs may have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) if their needs are more complex, as assessed by the Local Authority.
You can also join our free online workshop on EHCP and the SEND process for kinship carers across England.
Virtual school (applies to England only)
Each local authority has a virtual school. It is not an educational establishment, but a service to promote the educational achievement of looked after and previously looked after children.
The role of the virtual school is to give information and advice to parents and schools about the needs and educational progress of previously looked after children. The designated teacher may seek advice of the virtual school about meeting the needs of the child you care for, with your agreement.
Find out more about the virtual school from your local authority (GOV.UK)
What kinship carers could expect from schools
The following describes good practice but is not necessarily found in every school.
Supporting a child to improve their behaviour
A child or young person in kinship care may have past experiences that continue to impact on their behaviour. This should be recognised by the school and some degree of flexibility should be exercised (for example within their behaviour policy).
The school should look to support the child to improve their behaviour by incorporating trauma informed, attachment aware practices, with relevant training if necessary.
All approaches should be exhausted to avoid exclusion becoming necessary. Where a previously looked-after child is at risk of exclusion, the designated teacher should talk to the child’s carers and possibly ask the advice of the virtual school.
Communication between school and carers
Carers of previously looked after children should expect clear lines of communication with their school. This is obviously much easier in primary schools, where a child usually has a single class teacher, than in a large secondary school where a child has many teachers.
To avoid confusion or duplication of information, the school should ensure (or the carer could insist) there is a single person to communicate with, if possible. For example, this may be the designated teacher, the form tutor, or a member of the pastoral team.
It is also good practice for a child to have a ‘trusted adult’ in school – a member of staff they could go to if they experience any sort of difficulty.
Academic progress, aspirations and teaching methods
Schools should regularly inform kinship carers about the academic progress of the child you care for. You should be made aware of your child’s strengths and the areas that need more support.
Schools should have high aspirations for young people in kinship care and realise that all pupils can achieve their academic potential, despite suffering past traumas for example.
Schools should also ensure kinship carers are aware of how key skills are taught, particularly in mathematics, as these may have changed since the carer was at school themselves.
Transitions
A transition is a move between schools (for example primary to secondary school) or a move between classes (for example reception to year 1). This can be a difficult experience for previously looked after children who may have already experienced significant disruption in their lives.
Transitions should be managed carefully by schools, and it should be understood that children in kinship care may need a longer and a more gradual transition than other pupils. For example, they may need to visit a secondary school earlier and more frequently than others before they start. Transport to school should be organised well before the pupil’s start date, with a ‘trial run’ of the journey if possible.
The spending of Pupil Premium Plus (applies to England only)
When spending this funding, the school should seek out the opinion of the carers. Though the funding is not ring-fenced for a particular pupil, schools must publish details of how they are using the money and the impact that it is having.
Support from Kinship
Here at Kinship, we offer a range of free support for all kinship carers, including workshops, online advice and information, and peer support groups.
Contact our advice service to speak to an adviser or book an appointment.