Kinship carers are sleeping on sofas and floors to keep children out of care, study finds

Kinship carers are sleeping on floors, sofas and chairs to keep children out of the care system, new research has revealed.

Nearly one in five of the 2,000 kinship carers surveyed by charity Kinship said that either they or the children in their home is sleeping in unsuitable conditions due to lack of space or support.

Beyond sleeping on chairs, sofas and floors, some are sharing a bed or giving up their own bedroom.

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Rebekah, a 63-year-old grandmother from Kent, stepped up to raise her two grandchildren after the death of their mother. She sleeps on the sofa in the lounge next to her seven-year-old granddaughter who sleeps in a large chair. Her adult son and teenage grandson have their own rooms.

She said: “We’ve had to sleep like this for six years as we only have two bedrooms. We desperately need more room. I’ve had my name down on the list for a bigger housing association property, but nothing has come up.

“Life is difficult. I have difficulty paying bills, so we keep the heating off as much as possible in the winter. I have to use food banks and when something breaks down, I can’t afford to replace it. As kinship carers, we need to receive support to help us raise the children we love who would otherwise be in the care system.”

Four in 10 (44%) kinship carers are using their savings to cope with the high cost of living, compared with fewer than a third (30%) of the general population.

One in five kinship carers (18%) had a direct debit, standing order or bill they couldn’t afford to pay in the last month – three times the national average (6%).

Lucy Peake, chief executive of Kinship, said: “It’s outrageous that kinship carers including grandparents are having to sleep on floors and sofas so the children they love have somewhere to sleep.

“Many are spending savings and pensions, going into debt, and making daily sacrifices to raise children who have experienced trauma, separation and loss.”

More than one in four kinship carers (28%) are using credit more than usual, such as credit cards, loans or overdrafts, to provide for their children, nearly twice the national average (15%).

Meanwhile, 13% remain concerned they won’t be able to continue caring for their kinship children in the next year, citing poor health, lack of support and financial worries.

Peake said the reforms the government measures have been “insufficient” to address the problems and could be “exacerbating some of the most dysfunctional aspects of our kinship care system, encouraging more families into a system that isn’t set up to support them”.

“Many kinship families are still only receiving a few crumbs of support, leaving many worrying whether they can continue to look after their kinship children,” Peake said.

She claimed the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care set out a “bold plan” which would see kinship carers receive financial support, legal aid and paid leave from work.

Kinship has welcomed the government’s commitment to pilot financial allowances and to review employment leave entitlements entitlements for kinship carers.

However, Peake said families “shouldn’t have to wait years for the findings of these when the evidence couldn’t be clearer that this is desperately needed to keep families out of poverty”.

She added: “We look forward to working again with the new children’s minister, Josh MacAlister, who has championed kinship care and understands what needs to change for kinship families.”

Josh MacAlister, children and families minister, said: “I know how tough things can be for kinship carers – they do incredible work looking after family members and their needs have been overlooked for too long.

“We are determined to change that and have already announced that we will trial a financial allowance for kinship carers, and we are trialling Family Network Support Plans. We are also introducing a new law to make sure councils set out clear support for carers – breaking down barriers to opportunity for children by ensuring that they and their carers get the support they need.

“Our ambitious reforms to the children’s social care system will help keep more families together safely, reducing the number of children needing care across the country as part of our plan to renew Britain.”

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