DfE launches review of special guardianship orders

Use of SGOs, an order made by a court which gives legal status for non-parents, meaning a child or a young person can live with them permanently, has rocketed in recent years – with 3,330 SGOs issued between April 2013 and March 2014, compared with 1,290 in 2010.

They are predominantly used to give relatives of a child legal responsibility for their upbringing, but are sometimes granted to foster carers already looking after the child.

A consultation document published by the Department for Education in order to gather views for the review states that while SGOs have generally been well-received by local authorities, there are some emerging concerns.

It said that children living with special guardians, such as adoptive children, can have ongoing issues due to previous abuse or neglect, and many families were struggling with unmet needs with little or no ongoing support.

The DfE said there are also indications of a gradual shift in the use of SGOs, with more being awarded to much younger children, and concerns that the assessment process for special guardianship is “not sufficiently robust” in some cases.

“Local authorities are concerned that the threshold is lower for placing children with relatives – and others who may become a special guardian but who have no existing link with the child – than for other forms of permanence,” the consultation document states.

“There are different options that might be considered to address these concerns – for example, putting the assessment of special guardians on a par with the assessment of foster carers and adopters.

“This is one of the areas on which we are seeking views.”

The review will be overseen by an expert advisory group representing practitioners, local authorities, academics, representative organisations and a judicial observer.

The government's decision to hold a review follows pressure from within the sector.

In December last year, the British Association for Adoption and Fostering called for a review, stating that while the design of SGOs is "largely right", there are elements that are "not fit for purpose".

The consultation is open until 18 September.