The Law Commission will discuss its consultation paper which contains proposals for reform of the law governing kinship care.

This event is a part of the Law Commission’s project which considers reform of the law governing kinship care. The event is aimed at members of the public with experience of or an interest in kinship care.

On 8 July 2026 the Law Commission published its consultation paper, which contains provisional proposals for reform. A copy of the kinship care consultation paper, and summaries of the paper in both English and Welsh, are available on the project webpage.

During this event, we will be discussing the law on kinship care. Kinship care takes place when a relative or close family friend steps in to raise a child when the parents are unable to do so. Most commonly, kinship care will be an alternative to the child entering the care system, or a way of caring for a child who is the subject of a care order.

The current system includes multiple court orders — including child arrangements orders and special guardianship orders — which can produce inconsistent outcomes for families, and be complicated for kinship carers and families to navigate.

The Law Commission’s consultation paper provisionally proposes the introduction of a single new kinship care order (KCO), designed specifically for kinship. A KCO could be made bespoke to the particular circumstances of the child at the centre of kinship care.

As an alternative to a single KCO, the Law Commission also proposes amendments to child arrangements orders and special guardianship orders, so that they work better for children in kinship care and their families.

The Law Commission propose the introduction of kinship parental responsibility agreements, which would allow parents formally to grant parental responsibility to a closely related kinship carer without going to court. This would make it easier for kinship carers to engage with schools, doctors and other services on a child's behalf.

In addition, the Law Commission propose some changes to the way in which local authorities in England assess kinship foster carers, to improve consistency of assessment and to ensure the assessment process is suitable for kinship families. These proposals would not apply to Wales, as Welsh Government has recently reformed the law governing the assessment process for kinship foster carers in Wales.

Structure of the event

The event runs from 3:30pm to 5pm on 24 September 2026. It will consist of a presentation by the Law Commission’s kinship care team. This will be followed by a discussion in which we hope attendees will share their views with us about our provisional proposals for law reform. We will also be answering questions about the project.

Tickets will be available until 24 hours before the event. The event will be held in person. However, if you would like to join virtually, please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate online participation. We encourage participants to tell us ahead of the event if there are any particular topics they would like to discuss by emailing the kinship care team at kinshipcare@lawcommission.gov.uk.

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Trosolwg

Mae’r digwyddiad wedi’i anelu at aelodau o’r cyhoedd sydd â diddordeb mewn gofal gan berthynas neu brofiad ohono.

Ar 8 Gorffennaf 2026, cyhoeddodd Comisiwn y Gyfraith ei bapur ymgynghori, sy’n cynnwys cynigion dros dro ar gyfer diwygio. Mae copi o'r papur ymgynghori ar ofal gan berthynas, a chrynodebau o’r papur yn Gymraeg ac yn Saesneg, ar gael ar we-dudalen y prosiect.

Yn ystod y digwyddiad hwn, byddwn yn trafod y gyfraith ar ofal gan berthynas.

Mae’r system bresennol yn cynnwys nifer o orchmynion llys – gan gynnwys gorchmynion trefniadau plant a gorchmynion gwarcheidiaeth arbennig – a all arwain at ganlyniadau anghyson i deuluoedd, a bod yn gymhleth i ofalwyr sy’n rhoi gofal gan berthynas ac i deuluoedd eu llywio.

Mae papur ymgynghori Comisiwn y Gyfraith yn argymell, dros dro, y dylid cyflwyno un gorchymyn newydd ar ofal gan berthynas, wedi’i gynllunio’n benodol ar gyfer gofal gan berthynas. Gall gorchymyn gofal gan berthynas gael ei deilwra ar gyfer amgylchiadau penodol y plentyn sy’n cael gofal gan berthynas.

Fel dewis amgen i un gorchymyn ar ofal gan berthynas, mae Comisiwn y Gyfraith hefyd yn argymell diwygiadau i orchmynion trefniadau plant a gorchmynion gwarcheidiaeth arbennig, fel eu bod yn gweithio’n well i blant sy’n cael gofal gan berthynas a’u teuluoedd.

Mae Comisiwn y Gyfraith hefyd yn argymell cyflwyno cytundebau cyfrifoldeb rhiant i berthnasau, a fyddai’n caniatáu i rieni roi cyfrifoldeb rhiant yn ffurfiol i ofalwr sy’n berthynas agos heb fynd i’r llys. Byddai hyn yn ei gwneud hi’n haws i ofalwyr sy’n rhoi gofal gan berthynas ymgysylltu ag ysgolion, meddygon a gwasanaethau eraill ar ran y plentyn.

Yn ogystal, mae Comisiwn y Gyfraith yn argymell rhai newidiadau i'r ffordd y mae awdurdodau lleol yn Lloegr yn ase

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