“Any situation in which a child is being raised in the care of a friend or family member who is not their parent.” 

Kinship Carers usually have a prior connection to the child or their parents they could be Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents or other relatives, they may also be family friends. These carers are often to referred to as ‘kinship carers’ or ‘connected persons’. 

Where safe and suitable, Northumberland County Council will always look to consider friends and family as the first option for children who are not able to continue living with their parents. Parents of the child will be asked to put forward those adults that they feel would be best placed to care for the child. Social Workers within Northumberland County Council encourage Kinship Care in recognition of the benefits to the child of being cared for by those they have some existing familiarity with. Kinship Care can also make it easier for the child/ren to stay in touch with their parents and wider family members.  

This means that when a friend or family member has been identified as willing or able to care for another person's child, a Social Worker from the Kinship Team will visit them and complete an assessment of the prospective carer.

Contact numbers - Northumberland

• North- Alnwick, Berwick, Hadston, Wooler - 01670620430 

• Central- Ashington, Bedlington, Newbiggin areas - 01670 819988 

• South East - Blyth, Cramlington & Seaton Valley areas - 01670 798800 

• West - Bellingham, Halthwhistle, Hexham, Prudhoe - 01434 601698 

Contact Keith on 07305 590056 to find out more

This group is for adults only

• Training 

• One to One Support 

• Support Groups / Kinship Coffee Mornings 

• Family Fun Day Events 

• Monthly Kinship Newsletter Subscription 

• Local Service Knowledge – Signposting 

• Referrals to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) 

• Duty Line – 01670 626262 (Available between 8:30am-5pm Monday to Thursday and 8:30-4:30pm Friday. For emergencies during out of hours, including evenings, weekends and bank holidays, please contact Onecall on 01670 536400) 

The Kinship Team can advise about financial support that Kinship Carers may be eligible for and any necessary assessments. Kinship Carers must report any change to their circumstances which could affect the support on offer. 
 

Payments for children under a Child Arrangement Order (CAO) or Special Guardianship Order (SGO) can be different to those under the Kinship Care arrangement. You may receive an allowance - however, this is usually means-tested after a financial assessment of your income and outgoings and is reviewed annually to consider any changes in circumstances.  
 

If a private fostering arrangement has taken place without the involvement from the Local Authority - whereby a child under the age of 16 (or 18 if the child has a disability) lives for 28 days or more in the care of someone who is not the child's parent(s), a person with parental responsibility for the child or a relative of the child, the child is not ‘cared for’ by the local authority and an allowance may not be paid. 
 

Financial Review Form - https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/NorthumberlandCountyCouncil/media/Child-Families/Looked%20after%20children/Fostering%20and%20Adoption/FPS-Adoption-SGO-CAO-Allowances-Financial-Asses-Review.pdf  
 

Please contact your Kinship social worker if you require any support with this.

If you have questions or require support that cannot be answered with the information on this site, please feel free to contact us:

Contact Us 

Post:

Kinship Team 
Northumberland County Council
County Hall

Morpeth
Northumberland
NE61 2EF

Telephone:

01670 626262 

Email:

kinshipsupport@northumberland.gov.uk

Referral form for Kinship Family Support Worker:

If you are working with a kinship carer and think they would benefit from some support from our Kinship team, please contact us using the form below.

Please discuss this with the kinship carer before making a referral.

If you do not work for Northumberland County Council, please email the email address above to request a referral form.

https://forms.office.com/e/3p1duBHjp5

Additional training is available to cover a variety of areas, for more details please contact your Kinship Social Worker or the contact the duty line or email.

Contact Rachel on 01670 812019 to find out more

This group is for adults only

If you are interested in attending this course, please contact your Kinship social worker or email kinshipsupport@northumberland.gov.uk

Minimum Standards aim to safeguard children and young people living in

foster and kinship care as well as promoting their well-being.

This pocket guide makes it easy for you to meet them the 12 child-focused standards – with clear, practical examples you can use day-to-day.

It also shows how fostering service standards support each one, helping you give children the best care possible. A great tool to refer to anytime!

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We raise women's voices to contribute to research and increasing understanding about complex motherhood and surrounding issues.

Representatives from the Virtual School will endeavour to visit each kinship support group at least once per year.

The Virtual School Team also provide consultation and training to schools on a variety of topics relevant to kinship care including Attachment & Trauma, Bereavement & Loss and Emotion Coaching. They advocate for children living in kinship care throughout their work in schools.

So whether you are parenting as a couple, are separated or bringing up children with other family members, we’re here to support you all to build strong, healthy relationships with each other.

Telephone: 01670 626262

Email: kinshipsupport@northumberland.gov.uk