
What is a Special Guardianship Order?
A special guardianship order is an order that allows relatives such as grandparents, siblings or family friends to take care of a child when their parents are unable to.
It is a court order that gives a child legal security with carers who they have an existing relationship with and provides for the special guardian to share parental responsibility for the child alongside the parents.
It is envisaged as a permanent plan for a child and whilst parental responsibility will be shared with the parents, the special guardian will be the one making day to day decisions regarding the child’s upbringing and welfare.
Apart from a few limited but important matters which includes change of name and taking the child abroad for more than three months the parents do not need to agree with all those decisions.
Prior to any order being made, a detailed report needs to be prepared and a support plan provided setting out any areas of practical and financial support that will be made available by the local authority.
Amendment to Legal Aid and what this will mean for SGOs
Previously a prospective guardian wanting to make an application to Court for a special guardianship order would not be eligible for legal aid unless they could satisfy they had been a victim of domestic violence from one of the child’s parents- creating a barrier to Legal Aid funding.
There are some circumstances in which the local authority will suggest that you seek legal advice which they will agree to fund.
As of the 1st of May 2023, the scope of family legal aid has now been extended to include special guardianship orders and is a welcomed change for both guardians and parents.
These changes mean that those with parental responsibility responding to an SGO application and prospective guardians making an application for an SGO will be eligible for legal aid if they satisfy the financial eligibility requirements. Some would say that this still doesn’t go far enough since there will continue to be family member looking to safeguard a child by providing a secure and permanent placement who will be outside the scope of financial eligibility. If that is the case we can discuss with you other funding options.
Morecrofts has a large family department that prides itself on providing a wide range of legally aided advice. To find out if you are eligible for Legal Aid as either a prospective Guardian making an SGO application or a responding parent please contact one of our team members on 0151 236 8871.
You can find out more about our family services here.