Welcome Special Guardians of Milton Keynes. This information is for Special Guardians and their families who live in or who have been assessed by Milton Keynes City Council.
Special Guardians and their families can access post-order support via Milton Keynes City Council if:
- The Special Guardianship Order was granted via Milton Keynes City Council and the court, or
- The order was made by another Local Authority, but you live in Milton Keynes and it has been three years since the order was granted.
- Your child was ‘looked after’ by Milton Keynes City Council prior to the Special Guardianship order being made.
What is a Special Guardianship Order?
A Special Guardianship Order, often known as an SGO, is a legal order made by a Family Court where a carer – usually a relative- is appointed as the ‘Special Guardian’ of the child until they turn 18 years old.
Special Guardianship falls under the category of Kinship Care, also known as Connected Persons Care, which is the idea of keeping children within their family when they cannot be cared for by birth parents.
The SGO was created with the intention of meeting the needs of children who have been separated from their birth parents, it can be a great option for children who are unable to live with their parents as it secures permanence for them whilst maintaining their links with their birth family.
Special Guardian’s share parental responsibility with the child's parents, however, special guardians are able to make all the decisions relating to the child’s day to day life without consulting the birth parents.
The below information sheet may be useful.
Our offer of support
At Milton Keynes City Council, we recognise that being a Special Guardian can often be a challenging yet rewarding role which requires support and understanding.
We appreciate your role as a Special Guardian and want to support you in the most effective way. We will work alongside you to create a plan that works for your family, and allocate resources based on what you and the child needs.
Our Special Guardians have access to a variety of services, our generic support offer includes:
- General advice, guidance, and information around your role as a Special Guardian, including managing issues such as contact, education and behaviour.
- Coordinating services to work as a team around your family, including education.
- Signposting you to organisations who specifically offer support and guidance to Special Guardians.
- Advocating on your behalf to ensure that your family’s voice is heard and decisions are made in your best interests.
- Management of financial queries, including completing your annual financial assessment and access to additional financial support.
- Signposting you to services who can support your family and support with accessing resources.
- Details of our local Kinship Support Group, run by a Special Guardian for Special Guardians.
- Access to specialist online/face-to-face training and webinars on a variety of subjects.
- A newsletter produced for Special Guardians circulated every 4 months.
- Access to Clinical Supervision with an attachment-expert.
- Networking events where you can connect with other Special Guardians
- Assessment of need for families with children subject to Special Guardianship Orders.
Special Guardianship Policy (plain text version)
How to Access Support
You are able to self-refer into the Post SGO service. To do this please contact our service via email: PostSGOSupport@milton-keynes.gov.uk or our dedicated phone line: 01908 253652, we will take some brief information from you and schedule in a time to have an initial phone call to discuss your situation/needs and to answer any questions that you may have. Alternatively a professional may refer into our service on your behalf with your consent.
During the initial phone call, we may be able to offer you immediate advice and information or signpost you to universal services that you can access. If we feel that your needs require further exploration, we may offer you a home visit to discuss your situation in more detail.
Once we have gathered the information we need, we will decide what support our service can offer you based on your family’s need. This may include an application to the Adoption Support Fund.
Please note our helpline is open from 9am – 5pm Monday – Thursday and 9am – 4.30pm on Fridays (excluding bank holidays). If your call cannot be answered please leave a message and we will endeavour to contact, you the next working day. If your query is urgent, please contact our Fostering Duty Team on 01908 253206 alternatively if it is out-of-hours then please contact the Emergency Social Work Team on 01908 265545.
Support Groups
Being a Special Guardian can sometimes feel lonely and isolating, it can feel like you are living in a different world that nobody else understands. It can be helpful to meet people who are in a similar situation to you and who truly understand what life is like as a Special Guardian.
A group of Kinship Carers run a local support group in Milton Keynes called Family and Friends Kinship Carers. The group meet every Thursday (during term-time only) from 9:30am to 11:30am, currently in the Community Room @ Westcroft District Centre.
This group welcomes all those caring for children who are not their own, regardless of the legal status of their arrangement. It also welcomes carers who have no legal arrangement, but who want to explore what possibilities there are for them to support their caring. There are many Special Guardians in this group with differing lengths of experience.
The group offers friendship, emotional support and has a wide range of experience and information available. The group also operates a WhatsApp group which is permanently open and is available to find information or support.
There’s no need to book, just pop in and chat. The group also operates a WhatsApp group which is permanently open and is available for information and support.
Please email kinshipmk@outlook.com for information about the support group, or feel to drop in on a Thursday morning. You can also call or text Patsy McCarthy on 07891833925 for information about the group.
Information pack
Special Guardianship Support Local Offer - A guide for Special Guardians and their families
Training brochure
Click below to explore our training offer, where you will find all of the details for how you can access training at a style and pace that suits you.
Training Brochure for Special Guardians
Newsletters
Here are our last four copies of our newsletter – SG News – for you to keep up-to-date with what’s going on in Milton Keynes and the world of Special Guardianship.