Kinship Care

How Virtual School Heads should promote the education outcomes of kinship children

We know that children who grow up in kinship care have better outcomes than children who grow up in other types of non-parental care. However, their outcomes fall behind those children with no social worker involvement. This information is taken from outcomes for children looked after by local authorities: 31 March 2016.

The remit of Virtual School Heads already includes kinship children:

• who are looked-after

• who meet the definition of previously looked-after

• with a social worker

The kinship strategy adapted the role of virtual school heads to specifically include championing the attendance, attainment and progress of children in kinship care. Virtual school heads should bring greater focus and visibility to the distinct needs of children in kinship care within their existing non-statutory responsibilities.