4.1.6 Residence Orders Policy |
Contents
1. Background
A local authority may make a contribution to a person in whose favour a Residence Order has been made, except where a Residence Order is made in favour of a parent.
The allowance, if made, is for the maintenance of the relevant child or children and, if agreed, is payable from the date the Residence Order is made.
2.Criteria
Residence Order Allowances may be considered in the following circumstances:
- In exceptional circumstances , where an assessment has identified that a child would become Looked After if a Residence Order is not made and a Residence Order Allowance agreed AND a Residence Order is considered to be in the best interests of the child who needs a long-term placements apart from his or her parents; or
- Where the child is Looked After and the child's Care Plan identifies that it is in the child's best interests for his or her carers to obtain a Residence Order.
In both of the above cases, a Residence Order Allowance can only be paid if:
- The carers satisfy the financial assessment for an allowance
- The carers hold a Residence Order
- The carers have given written notification to the local authority before applying for a Residence Order that they intended to do so and would be applying for a Residence Order Allowance
Carers should apply for a decision on the payment of an Allowance in advance of an application to the Court for a Residence Order.
3. The Assessment Process
3.1 In relation to Looked after Children
A Residence Order may be recommended following a permanency assessment or where the Care Plan identifies that it is in the child's best interests for his or her carers to obtain a Residence Order but the potential carers have not been assessed as substitute carers.
The Kinship Team is responsible for completing permanency assessments of family members and friends where children are looked after. Procedures on completing permanency assessments and guidance can be found in the Kinship Policy .The template for recording this assessment is available from the Kinship Team. This is the format that would be used when a residence order was being recommended and can be adapted to those circumstances where the child's care plan has identified that a residence order is in that child's best interests but no assessment has been completed. The format should cover the following issues:
- A profile of the child and their needs to include specific reference to why a Residence Order and allowance is needed to safeguard and promote the child's welfare - section 22, Children Act 1989.
- The Applicant
- Family composition to include household members, other significant family members, age, ethnicity, religion, occupation, relationship to child.
- Brief Background History - consider following issues as appropriate:-
- Personality, background, attitude to education
- Employment, hours of work
- Relationships, strengths, vulnerabilities
- Valuing diversity
- Support networks, extended family dynamics
- Experience, knowledge of parenting, refer to own childhood if necessary.
- Parenting capacity in relation to the specific child
- Understanding of adolescence issues
- Others in household, attitude to RO application, interests, employment
- Health issues
- Particulars of any previous applications or approvals for adoption or fostering
- any child protections issues.
Accommodation: any safety issues. Disability issues
Contact Issues: Links with birth family, any difficulties, child protection issues
Contingency Plan: alternative family care if illness etc led to breakdown.
CRB and Social Service Dept checks, Referees x 3
Social Work Assessment and recommendation
Disability Issues
Where carers applying for a Residence Order have previously been approved as foster carers the original BAAF Form F assessment, can be used together with an up to date assessment to include the understanding of and commitment to the long term care of the child/children, (Residence Orders).
In both cases the assessment report should include a Contingency Plan for the child in the event that the carer is no longer able to continue caring for the child. This would be particularly important if the carer is elderly or health is uncertain.
In addition the procedures for approving Permanence Plans for Looked After Children must be followed.
Where the Adoption and Permanency Panel has already considered a Permanency Decision for Permanency for the child, a further report should be presented to the Adoption and Permanency Panel. This should include the Child's Permanence Report or BAAF Form E suitably modified to fit the circumstances of a residence order for the child requesting a recommendation that a Residence Order is in the child's best interests. The Adoption and Permanency Panel's recommendation will then be referred to the Agency Decision Maker for approval.
Where the Adoption and Permanency Panel's endorsement of the Permanence Plan as in the best interests of the child is not required, the conclusion that a Residence Order is the appropriate Permanence Plan for the child is made through the usual planning and review process based on the current and up to date needs assessment of the child and an assessment of the proposed carer and presented to the Designated Manager (Residence Orders) - to follow for authorisation.
3.2 In relation to Children who are not Looked After
Social workers will use the assessment framework dimensions when assessing the suitability of the application for a residence order. The assessment must cover the issues detailed above. The assessment will be recorded on the section 7 report template.
It will only be in exceptional circumstances that a Residence Order Allowance will be considered appropriate where children are not looked after. It will only be paid if the applicants meet the criteria and there is clear evidence that without payment of an allowance the child would become looked after.
The assessing social worker should make clear to the applicants that this allowance will only be given in exceptional circumstances.
Procedure for assessing whether or not an allowance may be payable
In all cases, the child's social worker should ensure that the prospective carer is aware of all the benefits available to them, i.e. child benefit, family tax credit etc.
In order to determine whether or not an allowance might be payable the applicants should be asked to complete the Financial Assessment form. This is a means tested allowance and further information on how it is calculated is available from the Adoption Support Team Manager. This form should be returned to the Business Support Officer in Placement Services. Once the assessment has been carried out the Adoption Support Team Manager will decide whether or not to recommend to the Operation Manager of Placement Services that an allowance should be paid.
The assessing social worker must provide a through assessment to the Adoption Support Team Manager as to why the allowance should be paid and clear evidence that if a residence order allowance was not paid the child would become looked after or remain looked after.
Once the Operation Manager of Placement Services has made a decision the Business Support Officer should then write to the applicant informing them of the decision. If an allowance is to be paid the letter should set out the amount of financial support and information in relation to the following:
- Whether financial support is be paid in regular instalments and if so, the frequency of payment
- The amount of financial support
- The period for which the financial support is to be paid
- When payment will commence
- Conditions for continuing payment and date by which conditions are to be met, i.e. returning Review Forms
- Arrangements and procedure for review and termination
A copy of this letter should be given to the Business Support Officer.
Where a residence order allowance is payable, the Business Officer in Placement Services will write annually to them with a Financial Assessment Review Form to be completed, together with a request for information about any change in circumstances for the applicants or the child. The completed financial assessment will be forwarded to the Adoption Support Team Manager who will make a recommendation to the Operation Manager of Placement Services as to whether an allowance should continue to be paid.
Once the Operation Manager has made the decision the Business Support Officer will write to the applicants informing them of the decision. Where a change is approved, the applicants should be notified in writing of the change, together with the reasons for the change.
Where Special Guardians do not return the Assessment Review Forms within the required time scale, the Business Support Officer will send a reminder letter, giving 28 days notice of the suspension of payments if the information requested is not received.
4. Withdrawal of Allowance
The Department reserves the right to withdraw the allowance if
- There is sufficient concern about the care of the child and the placement can no longer be supported
- Notification is received that the child is no longer living with the holder of the Residence Order
- The carers no longer meet the financial criteria for a Residence Order Allowance
- An Interim Residence Order does not become a full Residence Order.
End