As Kinship Care Week approaches (2-6 October 2023), the Office for National Statistics (ONS) offers a glimpse into the lives of children residing in "kinship care" households in England and Wales, based on data derived from the 2021 Census. Kinship care pertains to children aged 17 and under on Census Day (21 March 2021) who were living without a parent in their usual residence but resided with another adult, such as grandparents, older siblings, and/or other relatives. The analysis was conducted on households of up to five individuals.
The analysis delves into various characteristics of children in kinship care and their households, encompassing factors like age, ethnic background, religion, country of birth, health and disability, employment status of kinship carers, and household deprivation.
Steve Smallwood from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) highlights the significance of the findings, stating, "Today’s analysis using Census 2021 data provides valuable insight into care arrangements for thousands of young people in England and Wales who live with a relation other than their parent(s). As we mark Kinship Care Week, it’s striking how important grandparents are in providing care. In part, this is why many such households are characterised by people living there who are less likely to be employed and who are in poorer health than households where children live with their parent(s)."
There were 121,000 children residing in kinship care within households of five or fewer individuals in England and Wales at the time of the 2021 Census, constituting 1.14% of all children aged 0-17 in the census. Children in kinship care households tended to be older than those in parental households. Approximately 41.8% of children in kinship care households were aged 13-17, compared to 27.1% of children in parental households. A noteworthy finding was that 11.9% of children in kinship care had disabilities under the Equality Act, compared to 6.6% of children living with their parents.
Approximately 59.2% of children in kinship care lived with at least one grandparent. A third (34.4%) of kinship care households resided in social rented homes, as opposed to 19.4% of parental households. Among those employed, potential kinship carers were more likely to work part-time (38.1%) compared to parents (33.1%). A quarter (25.3%) of kinship care households had one or more individuals whose long-term physical or mental health conditions limited them significantly, in contrast to 10.0% of parental households.
The North East of England reported the highest proportion of kinship care households, while the South East and East of England had the lowest. In England, local authorities such as Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, and Redcar and Cleveland exhibited the highest proportion of kinship care homes. In Wales, local authorities including Merthyr Tydfil, Blaenau Gwent, and Caerphilly had the highest proportion of kinship care households. T
