Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund 2026-27

Motion Text

That this House welcomes the decision to continue the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund until March 2028, providing longer-term certainty to adoptive and kinship families; notes, however, with concern that the fair access limit remains at £3,000 per child per year, reduced from £5,000 in 2024-25, representing a significant real-terms cut; further notes that this reduction risks limiting access to specialist trauma-informed therapeutic support for children and young people who have experienced abuse, neglect and fragmented care pathways; regrets the decision not to uprate the fair access limit in line with inflation; recognises that where needs exceed the £3,000 threshold, local authorities are expected to meet additional costs, placing further pressure on already stretched children’s services budgets; and calls on the Government to review the fair access limit to ensure that funding reflects both inflation and the level of therapeutic need among adopted and kinship children.