3.10.1 Special Guardianship

POLICY

Introduction
Who may Apply
Parental Responsibility
The Circumstances in Which a Special Guardianship Order may be Made
Planning Meeting
Approval of Special Guardianship for Looked After Children
Report to the Court
Discharge of Special Guardianship Order
Special Guardianship Support
Entitlement to Assessment for Special Guardianship Support
Assessment for Support
The Special Guardianship Support Plan
Financial Support
Urgent Cases

PROCEDURAL GUIDANCE

Generally
The Referral
Support
Process for the Initial Assessment of Special Guardianship Support Services
Review of Special Guardianship Support Plans
Flowcharts

Appendix 1: Financial Support to Permanence Arrangements

1. Introduction

Special Guardianship is a new Order that came into effect on 30 December 2005.

Whereas in adoption, there is legal severance between the child and the birth family, Special Guardianship is an order that preserves those ties

It will address the needs of a significant group of children, mainly older, who need a sense of stability and security but who do not wish to make the absolute legal break with their birth family that is associated with adoption. Special Guardianship Orders are likely to replace the use of Residence Orders in many cases in that they offer greater stability and legal security to a placement.

Special Guardianship will also provide an alternative for achieving permanence in families where adoption, for cultural or religious reasons, is not an option.

Special Guardians will have Parental Responsibility for the child. A Special Guardianship Order made in relation to a Looked After Child will replace the Care Order and the local authority will no longer have Parental Responsibility.

A Care Order will not automatically revoke a Special Guardianship Order although the Special Guardian's exercise of parental responsibility will be restricted as the local authority will have primary responsibility for decision-making under the Care Order.

2. Who may Apply?

Applications for Special Guardianship may be individual or joint. Joint applicants do not need to be married. Special Guardians must be 18 or over.

The following persons may apply:

Any guardian of the child
Where the child is subject of a Care Order, any person who has the consent of the Local Authority
A local authority foster carer who is a relative of the child or with whom the child has lived for one year immediately preceding the application (even if the Local Authority does not consent)
Anyone who holds a Residence Order with respect to the child or who has the consent of all those in whose favour a Residence Order is in force
Anyone with whom the child has lived for three out of the last five years
Anyone who has the consent of all those with Parental Responsibility for the child
Anyone, including the child, who has the leave of the court to apply

The parents of a child may not apply to become their own child's Special Guardians.

3. Parental Responsibility

The Special Guardian will have Parental Responsibility for the child and will have clear responsibility for the day-to-day decisions about caring for the child.

The child's parents will continue to hold Parental Responsibility but their exercise of it will be limited. The parents will, however, retain the right to Consent or not to the child's adoption or placement for adoption.

In addition there are certain steps in a child's life which require the consent of every-one with Parental Responsibility, for example:

The change of name of the child
The removal of the child from the United Kingdom for longer than three months
The sterilisation of a child

4. The Circumstances in Which a Special Guardianship Order may be Made

The Court may make a Special Guardianship Order in any family proceedings concerning the welfare of the child. This applies even where no application has been made and includes adoption proceedings.

Any person making an application for a Special Guardianship Order must give 3 months' written notice to their local authority of their intention to apply. In relation to a Looked After Child, the notice will go to the local authority looking after the child. In all other cases, the notice will be sent to the local authority for the area where the applicant resides. The local authority will then have a duty to provide a report to the Court. In Walsall, all notifications will be forwarded to the Operations Manager Family placements. They will then be collated and the appropriate action will be taken.

The only exception to the requirement for 3 months' notice is where the Court has granted leave to make an application and waived the notice period.

Where the local authority has received notice from an applicant or a request for a report from the Court, it should send written information about the steps it proposes to take in preparing the report to the prospective Special Guardian and the parents of the child in question. This should include information about Special Guardianship support services and how to request an assessment of needs for support.

5. Planning Meeting

Once notice has been received that an application for Special Guardianship is to be made, the notice should be passed to the allocated social worker for the child. If the child is not previously known, the senior practitioner responsible for the commissioning and quality assurance of SGO assessments, will arrange a planning meeting with the applicants and the assessor.

The allocated social worker should arrange a planning meeting as soon as practicable after the notice is received. The planning meeting should clarify the steps to be taken, who will carry out the necessary assessments and who will contribute to the report for the Court. Court timescales will need to be clarified.

The assessing social worker or social workers preparing the Court report should be suitably qualified and experienced. There are no specific requirements as to the level of qualification or experience required

In all cases, there will need to be an assessment of the needs of the child, the suitability of the applicant(s), the proposed contact arrangements and the support needs (see Section 11, Assessment for Support) of the child, parents and the prospective special guardian.

The assessment of the applicants should include their medical history, the references received and the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) and other statutory checks undertaken for the assessment.

A full list of the matters to be included in the report is set out in Court Reports in Adoption/Special Guardianship Procedure.

6. Approval of Special Guardianship for Looked After Children

If the child is Looked After and the application has been agreed as part of the child's Permanence Plan, the assessments will usually have been undertaken and the outcomes agreed as part of the permanence planning for the child, in which case there will be no need to hold a planning meeting. The plan for consideration of Special Guardianship for a looked after child, needs to be agreed at the child's statutory review.

At this point, aspects of funding for certain costs i.e. legal fees must be agreed (see Section 14, Urgent Cases)

7. Report for the Court

The social worker or social workers preparing the Court report should be suitably qualified and experienced.

A full list of the matters to be included in the report is set out in Court Reports in Adoption/Special Guardianship.

Once completed, the Court Report should be submitted by the author(s) to the Senior Practitioner responsible for Special Guardianship to be quality assured.

The report cannot be more than 6 months old at the time of being lodged at court and therefore the Senior practitioner responsible for Special Guardianship, will request an updated report from the assessing social worker

8. Discharge of Special Guardianship Order

A Special Guardianship Order can be varied or discharged on the application of:

The Special Guardian
The local authority in whose name a Care Order was in force before the Special Guardianship Order was made
Anyone with a Residence Order in respect of the child before the Special Guardianship Order was made

With the leave of the court:
The child's parents or guardians
Any step parent who has Parental Responsibility
Anyone who had Parental Responsibility immediately before the Special Guardianship Order was made
The child (if the court is satisfied that the child has sufficient understanding)

Where the applicant is not the child and the leave of the court is required, the court may only grant leave if there has been a significant change in circumstances since the Special Guardianship Order was made.

The court may during any family proceedings in which a question arises about the welfare of a child who is subject to a Special Guardianship Order, vary or discharge the Order in the absence of an application.

9. Special Guardianship Support

The local authority must make provision for a range of Special Guardianship support services.

Special Guardianship support services are defined as:

Financial support (see Section 14, Urgent Cases)
Services to enable children, Special Guardians and parents to discuss matters relating to the arrangements for the child
Assistance including mediation in relation to contact between the child and their parents, relatives or significant others
Therapeutic services for the child
Assistance to ensure continuance of the relationship between the child and the Special Guardian, including training to meet any special needs of the child, respite care, and mediation
Counselling, advice and information
In Walsall these services are accessed via the relevant the family placement team manager

Special Guardianship Support will be subject to the approval of the Designated Manager (Special Guardianship Support). Local arrangements will determine whether any additional approval is required for the payment of financial support.

Support services should not be seen in isolation from mainstream services and it is important to ensure that families are assisted in accessing mainstream services and are aware of their entitlements to tax credits and social security benefits.

Where the child was previously Looked After, the local authority that looked after the child has responsibility for providing support for the first three years after the making of a Special Guardianship Order. Thereafter the local authority where the Special Guardian lives will be responsible for the provision of any support required.

If a child is not Looked After, the local authority where the Special Guardian lives has the responsibility for Special Guardianship support.

Ongoing financial support, which has been agreed before the Special Guardianship Order is made, remains the responsibility of the local authority that agreed it so long as the family meet the criteria for payments.

10. Entitlement to Assessment for Special Guardianship Support

Where the child is Looked After or was Looked After immediately prior to the making of the Special Guardianship Order, the following people MUST receive an assessment at their request:

The child
The Special Guardian or prospective Special Guardian
A parent (but only in relation to their need for support with contact and/or discussion groups)

Where the child is not Looked After or was not Looked After immediately prior to the making of the Special Guardianship Order, the following people MAY be offered an assessment of their need for Special Guardianship support services:

The child
The Special Guardian or prospective Special Guardian
A parent

In all cases, whether the Special Guardianship child is looked after or not, the following people also MAY be offered an assessment of their need for Special Guardianship support services:

A child of the Special Guardian
Any person with a significant ongoing relationship with the child

If the local authority decides not to assess in cases where they have discretion as above, they must notify the decision in writing, including reasons for the decision, to the person making the request.

If the local authority is not supporting the making of a Special Guardianship Order, there is no duty on the local authority to assess support needs.

11. Assessment for Support

The assessment should be based on the Assessment Framework and include the following:

the developmental needs of the child
the parenting capacity of the Special Guardian or prospective Special Guardian
family and environmental factors for the child
comment on how life with the Special Guardian might be for the child
any previous assessment of the child or Special Guardian that is relevant
the needs of the Special Guardian or prospective Special Guardian and their family
the impact of the Special Guardianship Order on the relationship between the child, parent and Special Guardian.

Special Guardianship Support will be subject to the approval of the relevant family placement Team Manager.

12. The Special Guardianship Support Plan

Where an assessment identifies the need for ongoing support services, a Special Guardianship Support Plan must be completed.

Other agencies, such as education and health, may need to be consulted about the contents of the Plan.

The Plan should set out:

The services to be provided
The objectives and criteria for success
Timescales
Procedures for review
A named person to monitor the provision of services in accordance with the Plan

Special Guardianship Support will be subject to the approval the relevant family placement team manager unless the cost exceeds £5000, in which case it will be referred to the Designated Manager (Special Guardianship Support) for their consideration.

Once the necessary approval has been obtained, the social worker must send the proposed plan to the person requesting support, and allow 28 days for that person to make representations about the proposed plan. The social worker should also give information to the person concerned about whom to contact to obtain independent advice and advocacy.

Where representations are received, they should be referred to the relevant family placement Team Manager in the first instance to decide whether to amend or confirm the Plan. The allocated social worker must then write to the person concerned setting out the final Plan.

13. Financial Support

See Appendix 1: Financial Support to Permanence Arrangements.

Special Guardians must be helped to access any benefits to which they are entitled; this will usually include child benefit and tax credits such as Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit.

The local authority must also take account of any other grant, benefit, allowance or resource available to the person in respect of his needs as a result of becoming a Special Guardian of a child. Financial support cannot duplicate any other payment available to the Special Guardian.

The Special Guardian's means will usually be considered when ongoing financial support is being considered. Means may be disregarded in relation to:

The initial costs of accommodating a child who has been Looked After
Recurring travel costs in contact arrangements
Any special case requiring greater expenditure due to illness, disability, emotional or behavioural difficulties or the consequences of the past abuse or neglect of a child previously looked after

Where the Special Guardians were previously the child's foster-carers - the local authority can maintain the fostering allowance for a transitional period of two years but with discretion to extend if necessary.

The only circumstance when the local authority MUST disregard means is when providing financial support in respect of legal costs, including fees payable to a court in respect of a child who is Looked After where the local the authority support the making of the Special Guardianship Order (see Section 4, The Circumstances in Which a Special Guardianship Order may be Made.

14. Urgent Cases

Where a person has an urgent need of a service, the assessment process should not delay provision and arrangements can be made for support to be provided as a matter of urgency in appropriate cases. The approval of the Designated Manager (Special Guardianship Support) will still be required. The local authority will need to review the provision as soon as possible after the support has been provided in accordance with the procedures set out above.

Procedural Guidance

1. Generally

All notifications of intent to apply for Special Guardianship Orders are to be passed to the Designated Manager (Special Guardianship Support), for recording, collation and authorising of the commissioning of the assessment report.

The administrator responsible will commission the assessment ,notify all relevant partner agencies and pass the referral to the senior practitioner responsible for SGO assessments
This will include existing cases i.e. where the child is already looked after or known to Walsall Children's Services in some way and those that are new referrals i.e. non-agency applications. A copy will be sent to legal services. This needs to include the names of the applicants and the children and their legal status.
On receipt of the notification, legal services will undertake preliminary checks regarding previous care proceedings to identify any complex legal issues.
Legal Services will set up a Special Guardianship notification folder
If Legal Services receive a notice of intent to apply for a special guardianship order they will send a copy to the Designated Manager (Special Guardianship Support) and keep a copy for their records.
Supervising social workers for foster carers will continue to notify Legal Services of notifications from carers and not rely solely on the exchange of hard copy notices.
All applicants will be advised to seek their own independent legal representation. Where applicants have their own legal representation, their solicitors will check and file their applications. In rare cases where the applicants do not have their own legal representative, our legal services will give consideration to filing the application with the court -if the child is looked after.
Where the child is looked after and the local authority is supporting the making of the order, the local authority will meet the legal costs including the costs of the application. This will be funded from the Looked after Children's budget and must be agreed before an assessment commences. Legal Services will negotiate these costs with the applicants' legal representatives.
It is the responsibility of the child's social worker to raise the cheque for the cost(s) of the application(s) via a WSS80

2. The Referral

1.	An adult referral will be opened on PARIS in respect of the applicants and a child's referral opened on PARIS for a child not looked after by Walsall Children's Services. A Special Guardianship file will be opened and held by the senior practitioner responsible for SGO's. The information will be entered on the PARIS system. A central database will be set up so that activity in this area can be monitored.
2.	The original foster carers file remains open unless or until the carers are deregistered.
3.	The senior practitioner responsible for SGO's ,will co-ordinate the assessment and provide quality assurance for the report and the process.
4.	The assessment report will be completed in accordance with the Special Guardianship Regulations (regulation 21).
5.	The completion of the Special Guardianship assessment and report is a commissioned service and all assessments must be completed within THREE MONTHS of the notification being received.
6.	The report will be completed by the assessing social worker in consultation with the child's social worker; the carer's supervising social worker and any other relevant people with knowledge of the situation.
7.	The following statutory checks must be completed: Consent for statutory checks -WSS302 Medical assessment -AH1 Enhanced Criminal Records Bureau check on all adults within the household Local Authority check within the area that the family live.
8.	Where the child is placed with a carer approved by Walsall, it is the responsibility of the foster carers' supervising social worker to complete the statutory clearance forms with the applicants.
9.	Where the child is placed with agency foster carers, it is the responsibility of the child's social worker to complete the statutory clearance forms with the applicants.
10.	Where the child is not looked after and has no social worker the senior practitioner responsible for SGO's will complete the clearance forms with the applicants.
11.	All completed clearances will be passed to the senior practitioner responsible for SGO's who will ensure that they are processed.
12.	The completed report will be sent to the senior practitioner within the Family Placement Service with responsibility for Special Guardianship, for quality assurance .It will then be sent to legal services and the child's social worker where any potential problems or areas of disagreement can be identified, discussed and resolved.
13.	The recommendations of the report will be shared with the applicants and the child if they are of an age and level of understanding to do so. The assessing social worker will consult with service managers and /or legal services to confirm whether any sections of the report should not be disclosed to any parties in the proceedings.

3. Support

Refer to Section 10, Entitlement to Assessment for Special Guardianship Support.

Financial Support can be provided under Section 69, of Special Guardianship Regulations. The criteria for entitlement to financial support is included in the (See Appendix 1: Financial Support to Permanence Arrangements.)
Approval and authorisation of support plans where the child is known to the local authority must be forwarded to the relevant Family Placement Team Manager. If the cost of the plan exceeds £5000, it must be sent to the Designated Manager (Special Guardianship Support) for authorisation.
Where a child has not been previously known to the local authority, the plan must be forwarded to the manager family placement services for authorisation.

4. Process for the Initial Assessment of Special Guardianship Support Services

1.	The assessment of support needs for children and special guardians must be assessed once notice of intention to apply for an SGO is received
2.	A multi-agency planning meeting should be convened to combine the child's and the prospective special guardians support needs into the special guardianship support plan (WSS700)
3.	Good practice would always indicate that this should be undertaken through a meeting rather than a consultation (Regulation 12 of the Special Guardianship Regulations recommends the use of the Common Assessment Framework)
4.	Where the applicants are Walsall foster carers the assessing social worker will be responsible for co-ordinating and chairing the multi agency planning meeting. The supervising social worker and the child's social worker have responsibility for drawing up the support plan and seeking appropriate approval
5.	For non-agency cases the senior practitioner from the Family Placement Service with responsibility for SGO assessments will co-ordinate and chair the multi-agency meeting and will draw up the support plan with the child's social worker if there is one ,and if not, with all relevant the agencies involved with the family.
6.	The letters 2a (WSS389) and 2b (WSS390) are sent by the foster carers supervising social worker to all the relevant parties inviting them to attend the multi-agency planning meeting
7.	Where the applicants are not Walsall foster carers, letters 2(a) and 2(b) will be sent by the senior practitioner responsible for SGO's
8.	The supervising social worker sends the special guardianship assessment forms (WSS137(a)), with 2 copies of the conditions of financial support agreement (WSS395), to the prospective special guardians, who need to sign both copies of the WSS395
9.	The prospective special guardians return one copy of the signed WSS395 together with the completed WSS137 (a) along with evidence of income and excepted outgoings to the supervising social worker or the senior practitioner responsible for SGO's. Original documents are required for evidence of income and excepted financial commitments. Documents needed are : most recent wage slips covering a minimum of a six week period; child benefit payments; child tax credit or working tax credit payments; mortgage or rent payments; buildings insurance; contents insurance
10.	Once these documents have been received, the supervising social worker or the senior practitioner responsible for SGO's, completes the permanence order allowance request form (WSS394) and submits this to the Designated Manager (Special Guardianship Support) for in principle approval of the proposed financial support. The report must cover the following areas; Whether financial support is be paid in regular installments and if so, the frequency of payment The amount of financial support The period for which the financial support is to be paid When payment will commence Conditions for continuing payment and date by which conditions are to be met, i.e. returning Review Forms Arrangements and procedure for review and termination
11.	(Use guidance in the attached flowcharts 1 and 2 - see Section 6, Flowcharts)
12.	Once a special guardianship order allowance has been approved in principle, the supervising social worker sends the WSS394 with the completed WSS 137 (a) and evidence of income /outgoings, to the Children's specialist creditors team for calculation of the amount of SGO allowance that may be paid under the proposed levels and the nature of the payments
13.	The specialist creditors' team will inform the supervising social worker of the proposed level of financial support (if any) by email
14.	Before the multi agency support planning meeting is held ,the agreements for contact must be completed and signed, if possible by the relevant parties
15.	The child's social worker is responsible for completing the agreement form for contact with a special guardianship order (WSS 324) with any birth family members. and need to obtain signatures wherever possible .A copy of this form will be sent to the senior practitioner with responsibility for Special Guardianship support, a copy will be given to the birth relative and the prospective special guardian(s) and a further copy placed on the child's file
16.	The supervising social worker, in consultation with the child's social worker is responsible for completing the relevant contact form with the prospective special guardian (WSS323).A copy of the form will be sent to the senior practitioner with responsibility for Special Guardianship support, a copy given to the prospective special guardian(s) and a further copy placed on the child's file
17.	Where the child has siblings in other foster placements the social workers responsible for these children will be asked to complete the contact agreements for these children
18.	The multi-agency support planning meeting is held and will be chaired by the senior practitioner responsible for SGO or the supervising social worker as is felt appropriate to the case .The special guardianship support plan will be drawn up (WSS700), including the level of financial support
19.	The senior practitioner responsible for SGO must see and quality assure all support plans
20.	The supervising social worker, or the senior practitioner responsible for SGO if the applicant is not a Walsall foster carer, will send the support plan (WSS 700), with letter 3 notice of multi agency meeting minutes and draft plan, (WSS396) and a copy of the minutes of the planning meeting to all relevant attendees of the meeting
21.	The supervising social worker/senior practitioner SGO, in receiving responses in relation to the above will send letter 4, proposal for SGO support, (WSS391) and the proposed special guardianship support plan (WSS700) to the prospective special guardians
22.	If the decisions from the consultation process or the multi agency support meeting are that no support services are to be provided, then the supervising social worker/senior practitioner SGO sends letter 6, proposal to decline services, (WSS 397) together with a copy of the minutes of the meeting or the core assessment paperwork to the prospective special guardians
23.	If representations are received, negotiations take place and resolution sought
24.	Once agreements are reached, the supervising social worker/senior practitioner SGO sends letter 5, notice of decision for special guardianship support services, (WSS 392) with a copy of the final support plan (WSS 700) to the prospective special guardians. This letter should include all of the services highlighted in the support plan, not only the financial aspects of the service. However the timing of the sending of the final decision letter needs to be confirmed by the court process
25.	Once the special guardian ship order is made, the supervising social worker /senior practitioner SGO, needs to check with the specialist creditors' team whether the draft financial assessment is still valid. If it is not then they need to send a WSS137 (b) to the specialist creditors' team
26.	The supervising social worker/senior practitioner SGO will send letter12, confirmation that SGO has been made (WSS401) to the special guardians
27.	The senior practitioner responsible for SGO or the supervising social worker will ensure once the SGO allowances agreed are in place before transferring the case to the senior practitioner responsible for post SGO support
28.	Where there are immediate contact requirements the senior practitioner support will be alerted to by the senior practitioner or supervising social worker before the point of transfer
29.	Once notification has been received that a special guardianship order has been made ,the special guardianship file ,which will include the support plan and contact agreement will be transferred to the senior practitioner responsible for post special guardianship support

5. Review of Special Guardianship Support Plans

The senior practitioner responsible for post order support in relation special guardianship, will be responsible for co-ordinating annual reviews and monitoring that support services are being delivered in accordance with support plans

Special Guardianship Support Plans must be reviewed taking into account the following:

any change of circumstances affecting the support
at whichever stage of implementation of the plan is considered most appropriate
in any event, at least annually

The reviews may be a paper exercise where there is no change or a minor change in circumstances. However, if there were a substantial change of circumstances, e.g. a serious change in the behaviour of the child, it would normally be necessary to conduct a new assessment of needs.

Where Special Guardians are in receipt of financial support, the specialist creditors' team will write annually to them with a Financial Assessment Review Form to be completed, together with a request for information about any change in circumstances for the Special Guardian or the child.

The Assessment Form will be returned to the Children's Specialist Creditors Finance Section for consideration. If any change in financial support is considered appropriate, the recommended change should be forwarded to the Team Manager Permanence Support for a decision. Where a change is approved, the Special Guardian should be notified in writing of the change, together with the reasons for the change.

Where Special Guardians do not return the Assessment Review Forms within the required time scale, the Children's Specialist Creditors Finance Section will send a reminder letter, giving 28 days notice of the suspension of payments if the information requested is not received.

If the local authority decides to vary or terminate the provision of support after the review, notice in writing must be given and the person concerned should be given 28 days to make representations.

Any change to the Special Guardianship Support Plan will be subject to the approval of the Team Manager Permanence Support.

6. Flowcharts

Click here to view: Permanence Orders Allowances (for Existing Foster Carers) - Eligibility Criteria Decision Making Flowchart (BOTH CHILD AND FAMILY MUST BE ELIGIBLE)

Click here to view: Permanence Orders Allowances – Eligibility Criteria Decision Making Flowchart (Non LAC and Placed for Adoption) (BOTH CHILD AND FAMILY MUST BE ELIGIBLE)

Appendix 1: Financial Support to Permanence Arrangements

1.	Financial Support - Requirements
	1.1	The principles outlined will apply to all children and young people in permanence arrangements away from their birth families, where an order is in place and the local authority does not share parental responsibility for the child and to children in pre-adoptive placements. This includes residence orders, special guardianship orders and adoption orders.
	1.2	The assessment of financial assistance given in each specific circumstance needs to be targeted and follow fair access criteria. The main principles of financial support are: A clear definition of the children for whom financial support could be considered, therefore targeting children most in need of such support. A facility to offer time limited payments or lump sum payments which ensure the child's identified needs can be met when they are greatest. A means test which ensures that carers' needs and resources are taken fully into account, currently based on that agreed across the 4 Black Country authorities. An assessment of the financial needs and resources of the child, based on the nationally recommended payment rate set by the Fostering Network, which is age dependent and generally acknowledged to meet the costs of looking after a child. This rate has been agreed across the Black Country authorities for adoption. A facility to pay a higher rate of 100% of the fostering allowance to foster carers wishing to apply for a residence order, a special guardianship order or an adoption order in respect of a child in their care. This includes relative and friend foster carers and ensures that financial disincentives to these carers applying to secure the arrangement for a child in their family are minimised. It is also in acknowledgement that some children may not benefit from being moved from their foster carers. In addition, finding an alternative permanent family for these children may be very difficult because of their ages and circumstances. In these cases there will also be a facility to honour the fee payments foster carers receive for a period normally not exceeding 2 years, particularly where if such payments were not made, this would provide a barrier to residency or adoption. As relative and friend carers do not receive fee payments, this provision will generally only applies to resource foster carers.
	1.3	Current arrangements subject to review may be considered against the criteria of the new scheme.
2.	Assessment for Financial Support
	2.1	In order for any child to receive financial support a needs assessment must have identified that such support is required, either to facilitate the placement or to avoid undue strain on the placement, which may put it at risk of disruption.
	2.2	As assessment of the carers' income and resources must have been completed and indicate that it would be unreasonable to expect the carers to meet this expenditure themselves.
	2.3	The child must be considered to meet the eligibility criteria of the scheme.
	2.4	If these conditions are satisfied the child's need will be assumed to be able to be met by a maximum payment of the rates described in 1.2 above, appropriate to the age band for the child. However, in the first instance, lump sum payments to meet specific needs will be made. Only if these are not considered suitable to meet the child's ongoing needs, e.g. those arising from a specific permanent disability, will regular and ongoing payments be considered.
	2.5	No enhancements or additional birthday/Christmas/holiday allowances will be payable.
	2.6	The current system of assessing income and capital is applied in line with the agreement reached between the Black Country authorities.
	2.7	The current means test assumes a couple's needs to be 1.5 x income support rates, and provides an additional disregard of housing costs of up to £100 per week. Savings/capital are taken into account in line and presently amounts up to £3000 would be completely disregarded and those with more than £16,000, excluding the value of their home will not qualify for any financial support. Child Support maintenance liabilities of adopters will be investigated to see how maintenance liabilities are affected by adoption placements and allowances.
	2.8	Carers in receipt of income support automatically qualify under the means test and child benefit will not be deducted in these circumstances.
	2.9	In relation to a child with a disability, eligibility to DLA, mobility and carers' allowance is not taken into account when assessing the amount of allowance to be paid.
	2.10	Carers who fall into the category of previously being a child's foster carers will be assessed for a payment of 100% of the fostering allowance. Consideration can be given by the budget holder to continuing any fee payments received by foster carers for a period normally not exceeding 2 years from the date of the permanence arrangement, independent of their financial assessment, where the child's specific needs would indicate that this is justified and where without such payments, this would create a barrier to the placement. This is to ensure the scheme does not provide a disincentive to foster carers wishing to take out, with the authority's agreement, residence, special guardianship or adoption orders in respect to children with complex. Payments beyond 2 years can be considered by the budget holder in exceptional circumstances, in line with the regulations.
	2.11	Child benefit and child tax credit will be subtracted from the above amounts. However, due to possible delays in decisions on tax credit applications, no child tax credit payments will be assumed for the first 3 months of placement. Where payments are subsequently made, appropriate deductions from any amounts payable by the local authority will be made to reflect these, as is current practice in respect to adoption support payments.
3.	Eligibility Criteria - Child
	3.1	In reflection of the legislation, Walsall Council will require the following to have been established for the child to qualify for financial support.
	3.2	The arrangement must have been made as an alternative to the child becoming or remaining looked after.
	3.3	The child or family must fulfil at least one of the following: The family would either not be able to provide the placement or the placement would be unable to continue without specific financial support. The child has an established strong and important relationship with the proposed carer. The child is to be placed with one or more siblings. The child has a disability which significantly impairs his or her functioning or is identified as having special therapeutic or medical needs. The child has been approved by the budget holder in principle as complying with circumstances, which may make a placement difficult to achieve.
4.	Eligibility Criteria - Family
	4.1	Walsall Council will also require each proposed carer family to fulfil all the following criteria: the family agree to a full financial assessment, to be reviewed annually where appropriate; the family must apply for all relevant benefits; it is considered unreasonable for them to meet the costs of the required support services themselves, based on this assessment
	4.2	In the case of ongoing payments, this means that the family fall below the income and capital threshold set by the authority, as described in Paragraph 2.7. In the case of one off payments, other circumstances will be taken into account as part of the permanence or adoption support plan.
5.	Periods of Payments
	5.1	The maximum length of time for which financial support will normally be available will be up to a child's 16th birthday, as long as the child remains with the permanent carers or adoptive parents. Payments may be extended up to the 18th birthday, if the young person continues in full time education and his/her carers or adoptive parents make a declaration to this effect. The declaration should be made directly to the Finance Section of the local authority. However, payments cannot be made, once the order has expired. This is particularly relevant to residence orders, most of which expire, when the young person reaches the age of 16.
	5.2	In practice, the length of time for which financial support will normally be granted for individual children will depend on which criteria the child fulfils. If a child fulfils more than one eligibility criterion, the longer payment period or higher payment amount may be applicable.
	5.3	Payments to facilitate or support placements: Where the placement of the child involves the need for introductions, it is expected that the need for financial support to facilitate this would be established in the child's assessment or in the adoption support needs plan. Payments will normally be made only of lump sums or one off payments. Where payments are made to facilitate agency adoption placements, the contributions outlined in Paragraph 5.4 - 5.9 to meet carers' expenses will normally be made:
	5.4	Equipment grant (actual amounts will be reviewed and updated by the budget holder from time to time): £300.00 for a single child irrespective of age £600.00 for a sibling group of 2 children £1000.00 for a sibling group of 3 children £1500.00 for a sibling group of 4 or more children All payments will be subject to the submission of receipts from carers before a payment is made.
	5.5	Travelling cost during introductions to the child/children: The lowest essential users rate, currently 28.6p per mile for the first 200 miles of a journey (a journey being returning to the place from which the original journey was made), and 10.6p per mile thereafter.
	5.6	Accommodation during introductions (actual amounts will be reviewed and updated by the budget holder from time to time): The authority will make all practical and reasonable attempts to find accommodation for carers during introductions. If carers prefer to make their own arrangements, an agency contribution not exceeding £75.00 per room per night will be considered. However, if a family room is required or other children of the household require accommodation during the introductions, this amount can be increased to cover the actual costs for an additional room at the same hotel at the team manager's discretion. The actual amounts will be reviewed and updated by the budget holder from time to time.
	5.7	Subsistence payments during introductions: N.J.C. rates may be paid per person (inc children subject to the placement & other children of the household) to cover costs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Costs in relation to taking children to entertainment /theme parks etc. should only be agreed if it is decided that they are essential to promoting the introduction process will be subject to agreement at the planning meeting by the chair.
	5.8	Court Fees: The local authority will cover the court fee incurred by carers making an application for a residence, special guardianship or adoption order, where the local authority is in agreement with the application and, where the child would otherwise become or remain looked after, and where legal aide in not available. Payments will only be made on submission of receipt.
	5.9	Cost of legal representation: Legal costs will only be paid where the authority supports the application, where legal aide in not available and where the budget holder has given express agreement to such payments being made. Prospective adopters or carers who wish to seek legal advice without such agreement will be expected to meet the cost themselves. Further guidance on legal representation will be issued following further legal advice on the implications of the introduction of placement orders in adoption proceedings.
	5.10	Children who have an established fostering relationship: A continuation of fee payments can be considered for children falling within this eligibility criterion for a period, normally not exceeding 2 years. Other ongoing payments can also be made for up to 2 years unless the child also qualifies under one of the other criteria. The budget holder may agree to an exemption from the means test for fee payments, and where fee payments are not to continue, for maintenance payments. For children aged 7 and over, payments will normally continue up to the maximum period.
	5.11	Children placed with one or more siblings: Any ongoing payments agreed will be time limited in recognition that the initial settling-in period can be particularly costly and stressful.
	5.12	If 2 children are to be placed together, payments will be made for each child until that child reaches the age of 6 years or for the first 12 months of placement, which ever is the longer.
	5.13	These payments are intended to make it easier for adopters to cope with the likely loss of earnings during the initial stage of placement.
	5.14	If 3 or more children are to be placed together, then ongoing payments or as a maximum lump sum equivalent will be considered for the 2 oldest children until they have reached the age of 6 or have been in placement for 12 months, which ever is the longer. Any younger children will remain eligible for ongoing support the maximum length of time.
	5.15	Because of the particularly stressful nature and equipment needs of larger sibling groups, the budget holder may agree to payments for the first 12 months of placement even if the carers or adoptive parents do not qualify on the basis of a means test or to an equivalent lump sum payment.
	5.16	Children with a disability which significantly impairs their functioning: Ongoing payments will be considered for the maximum period of time.
	5.17	Children with special therapeutic or medical needs: Ongoing payments for children will only be considered where therapeutic or medical support cannot be directly provided or commissioned by the agency. In addition, actual costs have to be identified. Where it can be shown that the carers are incurring additional everyday expenses, ego as a result of special diet, frequent hospital appointments etc., ongoing payments may be considered to cover those costs.
	5.18	In exceptional cases, the budget holder may agree to make payments under this criterion, even if adopters do not qualify on the basis of a means test. The child must qualify in all cases.
	5.19	Children whose circumstances may make placement difficult: Children for whom it has been agreed that their specific circumstances may make it more difficult to place them, will have to be considered on their individual merit. It is expected that the adoption support needs plan will indicate how financial support would enable a placement, which would otherwise not be available, to be identified. The budget holder may agree to make ongoing payments for a period not normally exceeding 12 months or a lump sum equivalent to this.
6.	Levels of Payments
	6.1	For all permanent placements other than those which were previously fostering placements, the level of ongoing financial support will equate to the recommended rate for looking after a child within the appropriate age band (see Paragraph 1.2). For carers or adopters who were previously the child's foster carers the level of payment will be 100%, subject to means test. However, any fee payment agreed will not be subject to means testing.
	6.2	For all children younger than age 11 at the time of an adoption match or of the authority agreeing its support to the order being taken, the maximum financial support will be that applicable to a 5-10 year old (100% for previous foster children). Children matched at the age of 11 + will receive a maximum allowance equivalent to the rate appropriate to their age at the point of matching (100% for previous foster children). Once either ceiling has been reached, only general increases for the age band will be paid.
7.	Process
	7.1	Any potential financial support needed has to be identified through an assessment of needs. Financial support is expected to be shown to form one aspect of a whole range of support systems.
	7.2	Any application for financial support submitted to the budget holder will have to have the needs assessment attached. The budget holder will then approve any ongoing payments or lump sum payments exceeding £5000, except for those payments made to facilitate placements, which fall within the limits described under Paragraph 5.3 - 5.9. The relevant family placement team managers will be authorised to approve these payments and other one off payments up to £5000.
	7.3	The carers will be informed in writing of their position in respect to ongoing or adoption support and will be given a start date for any ongoing payments (and for time limited payments an end date of their eligibility). Prospective adopters or permanent carers who fulfil the criteria will normally be eligible from the date of the child's placement or - for carers adopting a previous foster child - from the date of their notification of the placement as a pre-adoptive placement.
8.	Implementation
	It is expected that the new arrangements become fully operational in respect to special guardianship allowances from 30th December 2005 and in respect to all other arrangements with effect from 1st April 2006.

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