Kinship

The Leading Kinship Care Charity in England and Wales

Who It’s For: Grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, family friends and other relatives who are raising a child full-time when their parents are unable to — whether due to illness, substance use, imprisonment, domestic abuse, bereavement or other family circumstances. Also relevant to children and young people being raised in kinship care arrangements.

What They Offer: Kinship (formerly Grandparents Plus) is the leading kinship care charity in England and Wales, supporting all kinship carers through a free specialist advice service, peer support, workshops, training and campaigning. Their Kinship Compass tool helps carers find local and national support, and their Someone Like Me service connects carers directly with another kinship carer who truly understands what they are going through. Kinship also undertakes research and policy work to campaign for better recognition and support for kinship families at a national level.

Support Includes:

• Free specialist advice line — covering welfare benefits, housing, debt, social care, education and financial support
• Kinship Compass — online tool to discover local and national support available to kinship carers
• Someone Like Me — one-to-one telephone peer support, matched with another kinship carer
• Free online and in-person workshops covering a wide range of kinship care topics
• Peer support groups — local face-to-face groups across England and Wales
• Help applying for grants and financial support
• Information and guides on becoming a kinship carer and navigating the system
• Project worker support in commissioned areas
• Research, policy and campaigning for improved legal recognition and financial allowances for kinship carers
• Welsh language support available

Referral / Access: Self-referral. No referral needed. Call the free Advice Line Monday–Friday 9:30am–2pm, submit an online enquiry via the website, or use Kinship Compass to explore available support. Note the main office number cannot provide advice — use the dedicated Advice Line.

Why This Matters: Kinship carers step up to protect children they love — often overnight, often without warning, and often without the financial support or legal recognition they deserve. Raising someone else’s child is one of the most generous and demanding things a person can do, and it can feel incredibly lonely and confusing. Kinship is here to make sure no kinship carer has to navigate this alone — with practical advice, peer support from people who genuinely understand, and a growing movement campaigning for the recognition every kinship family deserves.