Campaigning for the rights of Grandparent carers and all Kinship carers in the U.K.
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Baroness Massey of Darwen (Labour) part of her speech read it all at
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/lords/?gi … 1-05a.76.0
Poverty begins with parents and carers and may be intergenerational. This is the link that must be broken. Many grandparents who look after grandchildren permanently are impoverished. Some 300,000 children are living with family and friends: that is, with kinship carers. Three out of four such carers experience financial hardship. Four out of 10 live on £200 a week or less. Only one in six of local authority placements are with kinship carers; the rest are placed in non-relative foster care. Yet the outcomes for children in kinship care are much better than for those in other care situations. It makes financial and social sense to support kinship care. The number of care applications has increased by 47 per cent in recent months, and there is a shortage of foster carers for more than 8,000 families. Family and friends' care is part of the solution, but kinship care must be properly supported. I shall table amendments to that effect.
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