If you are raising a child who is not your own, whether as a kinship carer looking after a relative's child or as a foster carer, there is financial support available, but the rules can be confusing. What you can claim depends on your role and the legal arrangement. This guide explains the benefits and allowances for kinship and foster carers, and how they affect your other benefits.
Kinship carers and foster carers
A kinship carer is usually a relative or family friend raising a child whose parents cannot look after them, sometimes under a legal order such as a special guardianship order, and sometimes through an informal arrangement. A foster carer looks after a child placed with them by a fostering service or council, and the child remains looked after by the local authority. The support available is different for each, so it helps to be clear which describes your situation.
Benefits for kinship carers
If you are a kinship carer and the child lives with you and you are responsible for them, you can usually claim Child Benefit and a child element in your Universal Credit for them, just as a parent would. Because the two-child limit has been removed, you can get a child element for the child regardless of how many children you already have. You may also be entitled to other help, depending on your income and circumstances.
Special guardianship and kinship allowances
Many kinship carers, particularly those with a special guardianship order or who are caring through the council, can get a kinship care or special guardianship allowance from the local authority. This is often means-tested and can vary between councils, and the rules on how it interacts with your benefits differ, though such allowances are frequently disregarded as income for Universal Credit. Because this area is complex, it is well worth getting advice to make sure you receive what you should.
Guardian's Allowance
If you are bringing up a child whose parents have died, you may be able to claim Guardian's Allowance, an extra payment on top of Child Benefit. In some cases it can be paid where only one parent has died, if certain conditions are met. Guardian's Allowance is tax-free and does not count as income for your means-tested benefits, so it is genuinely extra support for those raising a bereaved child. Check whether you qualify, as it is often overlooked.
How fostering allowances work
Foster carers receive a fostering allowance from their fostering service to cover the cost of caring for a fostered child. A fostered child is looked after by the local authority, so they are not treated as part of your household for benefit purposes, and you do not get a child element or Child Benefit for them. The fostering allowance is generally disregarded for your benefits, and foster carers also benefit from special tax rules.
Foster carers and Universal Credit
Foster carers can usually claim Universal Credit for themselves, and the fostering allowance is not counted as income. While you have a foster child placed with you, your work-related requirements are usually relaxed, recognising the demands of fostering, and there is often no expectation to look for work while caring for a fostered child under 16, or older with additional needs. Make sure your work coach knows you are fostering, so your commitments reflect this.
Get specialist advice
Because the benefits and allowances for kinship and foster carers are complex and depend heavily on the legal arrangement and your council's policies, this is an area where specialist advice really pays off. Organisations that support kinship and foster carers, along with Citizens Advice, can help you understand exactly what you can claim and make sure an allowance from the council is not wrongly reducing your benefits. Getting this checked can be worth a great deal.
Informal kinship arrangements
Many kinship carers look after a child without any formal legal order, simply because the family has stepped in. Even in an informal arrangement, if the child lives with you and you are responsible for them, you can usually claim Child Benefit and a Universal Credit child element for them. You may not get a council allowance without a formal arrangement, but you should not miss out on the benefits you are entitled to as the person bringing the child up.
How a council allowance affects benefits
Where you do receive a kinship care or special guardianship allowance from the council, how it interacts with your benefits matters. Many such allowances are disregarded as income for Universal Credit, so they should not reduce it, but practice can vary, and mistakes happen. If you think an allowance is being wrongly counted against your benefits, get advice, as this is a known area of confusion and you may be losing money you should keep.
Support for the child's needs
Children raised by kinship or foster carers have often been through difficult experiences, and may have additional needs. As well as the financial support, it is worth exploring the help available for the child, such as support at school, help from the council, and services for children who have experienced trauma or loss. Looking after a vulnerable child is a big responsibility, and there is support designed to help you and the child through it.
Foster carers and the benefit cap
Foster carers are generally protected from the benefit cap while they have a child placed with them, recognising the important role they play. The detail depends on your circumstances, but this protection means foster carers should not lose out to the cap in the way some other households might. If you foster and are worried about the benefit cap, get advice, as you may well be exempt while a child is placed with you.
Planning for the future
Whether you are a kinship or foster carer, it is worth thinking ahead about how the child's support may change as they grow, for example as they approach 16 and 18, when benefits and arrangements can alter. Children leaving care, including some in kinship arrangements, may be entitled to support as care leavers. Planning ahead and getting advice helps make sure the young person continues to be supported as they move towards adulthood.
In short
Kinship carers can usually claim Child Benefit and a Universal Credit child element for a child they are responsible for, and may get a kinship or special guardianship allowance from the council and, where a child's parents have died, Guardian's Allowance. Foster carers receive a fostering allowance that is disregarded for benefits, and can claim Universal Credit with relaxed work requirements. Get specialist advice, as the rules are complex.
The value of getting it right
Because the support for kinship and foster carers is complex and easily misunderstood, getting proper advice can be worth a great deal, both in money and in peace of mind. Making sure you claim the right benefits and allowances, and that nothing is wrongly reducing your support, can leave your household significantly better off. Given everything involved in raising someone else's child, it is well worth taking the time to get the financial side right.
Where to get help
Kinship, the Fostering Network and Citizens Advice can advise kinship and foster carers. See our guides to Child Benefit and the two-child limit removal.