Kinship carers

Early day motion 1485, tabled 18 July 2023 by Grahame Morris (Labour). Signed by 24 members.

That this House recognises the important role played by kinship carers in keeping children out of the care system, providing the love and stability children need by bringing up a relative or friend's child; acknowledges the work of leading national charity Kinship, which offers free support and advice to kinship families; notes the key findings in Kinship's Forced Out report, which highlights the difficulties Kinship carers have in the workplace and their lack of support; further notes The Cost of Loving: Annual Survey of Kinship Carers 2022, which sets out the extraordinary lengths that kinship carers go to in order to provide a loving and stable home in a worsening cost-of-living crisis; supports Kinship’s #ValueOurLove campaign, which calls for greater support for kinship carers, including a right to paid kinship care leave, a mandatory financial allowance, better employment advice and support and employers introducing kinship friendly employment policies for all kinship carers; and calls on the Government to recognise the vital role that kinship carers play by increasing financial support to kinship carers to allow children to stay with loving families they know.

Signatures by party: Labour 14, Plaid Cymru 3, Alba 1, DUP 1, Green 1, Independent 1, Labour/Co-operative 1, Liberal Democrat 1, Scottish National Party 1.