How you become a special guardian

Who can become a special guardian?

A special guardian is someone who has the legal responsibility for a child or young person who isn’t able to live with their birth parents, and where adoption or fostering isn’t quite right. They will be a family member, friend or someone with a connection to the child.

You can become a special guardian at any time. However, we usually recommend you wait until the child or young person has already settled with you, if possible.

What is a special guardian?

Who can apply to be a special guardian? ↗ [gov.uk]

Assessment

How assessment works

The family court will always decide whether a person should become a special guardian or not.

You must complete an assessment where you share information about yourself and how you would care for the child to help the court make its decision. Our team will support you through the five-step assessment process.

It's important that the court understand the child's story, including details about their family life and personal development. If the child is old enough, they will also want to know how they feel about the future and where they want to live.

Of course, the court will need information about you too. Before granting a special guardianship order (SGO), the court needs to make sure you can meet the child’s specific needs and support them into adulthood.

How long assessment takes

Assessment usually takes around 12 weeks though every child and family has their own specific circumstances. Someone in our Connected Persons Team will be there to support you from start to finish. You can ask them questions and share how you are feeling throughout.

What assessment is like

Becoming a special guardian is a life-changing event and it's vital that the court makes the right decision for the child. That means the assessment process has to be very thorough. We know guardians who have described it as intense and, at times, intrusive.

However, you do not need to go through the experience alone. You can expect and ask for support from our team, who have helped many people in the same position. It's our job to give you all the help you need.

The five-step assessment process

How we support you

In Buckinghamshire, we can support you even if the child is not already in the care of the council.

Our team will:

• listen to and guide you throughout

• visit you regularly to catch up

• break the assessment into manageable chunks

• help you complete the process if you have any special needs or challenges with the information

The assessment process is a great time to work out if you and the child are likely to benefit from any support that we can help with in the future if an order is granted. This can include things like specialist therapies, support with schooling, and training on new skills amongst others.

We can create an early support plan to help you prepare for being a special guardian which our specialist support team can help you put into action if an order is granted.