If you have become a special guardian recently, or are considering doing so, you might have some questions about how special guardianship differs from fostering, whether you should pursue adoption and what separates you from other kinship carers.

A special guardian is a carer, who is normally a relative or a family friend, that has been appointed by the court to take care of a child until they turn 18. The court order that enables this is called a Special Guardianship Order (SGO).

What does a Special Guardianship Order do?

Special Guardianship Orders were introduced to provide a new legal status for children who want the greater sense of security that long-term fostering provides without having to cut all contact with their birth family, which is required in cases of adoption.

In most situations where there is a likelihood of a Special Guardianship Order being made, the local authority will already be involved and able to support you, but you can also apply for a Special Guardianship Order independently.

Special Guardianship Orders give the carer, very often grandparents, or an aunt or uncle for example, parental responsibility for the child. It is important to know that once an SGO is in place:

As a special guardian, you have responsibility for all aspects of caring for the child and making decisions to do with their upbringing. You have a firm and legally secure basis on which to build a life-long permanent relationship with your child.
You will have access to a range of support services, including financial support where appropriate. The child is no longer considered to be ‘looked after’ by a local authority. (It is worth checking your child’s status before the SGO came into effect because, depending on their living arrangements at that time, not all children will have been ‘looked after’ in legal terms. This may affect your eligibility for some support services, such as Pupil Premium Plus).

You can find out more about the orders, who can apply, financial support and more by reading the government’s Special Guardianship Guidance document.

You can also find out more information on these advice sheets from Family Rights Group: DIY Special Guardianship Orders – information for family and friends carers and Special Guardianship: what does it mean for birth parents?

How is special guardianship different from other kinds of kinship care?

Special guardians are those who are looking after a child under a Special Guardianship Order. Since there is very often a family connection between the carer and the child, special guardianship can be understood as one form of kinship care.

However, this is not always the case and family friends or others known to the child may also be made special guardians if agreed by the court.

Other forms of kinship care include:

• When a child is living with relatives in an informal arrangement made by their birth parents. The local authority will not have had any involvement in these situations. While the carer may have taken on the parental role, legal parental responsibility remains with the birth parents.
• When a child is ‘looked after’ by the local authority, which has parental responsibility and has arranged for the child to live with kinship foster carers.
• When a court-issued Child Arrangements Order is in place to set out where a child will live and this is with a family member.

Can special guardians adopt the child they are looking after?

Yes, you can adopt the child you are looking after but there are a number of legal requirements that you need to meet before you can make an application to the court.

1. The child must have lived with the applicant for three years (although you may seek permission from the court to apply earlier).
2. You must let the local authority know that you intend to adopt. The local authority will prepare a report for the court.

The key thing to consider is why the Special Guardianship Order was the preferred option for your child. Perhaps it was, at least partly, down to your child wanting to maintain contact with their parents, or not wanting to change their name or identity which they felt would happen with an adoption.

Special guardians are advised to talk over their wish to adopt with the local authority before making any application to the court.