Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL

Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 1

Special Guardianship Assessment Report

This report has to be completed where an assessment is undertaken of a child in relation to special guardianship. The assessment is a joint assessment, which is completed as follows:

 The social worker allocated to the child has to complete sections 1 – 3  The social worker assessing the prospective guardian/s has to complete sections 4 – 6  The social workers must work together in order to complete sections 7 – 10.

If during the assessment needs are identified for special guardianship support services (including financial support) this must be assessed and the outcome recorded as a Proposed Special Guardianship Plan with proposed financial agreements recorded in the plan. The Adoption Support Services Advisor must sign this plan and therefore social workers must ensure that s/he is consulted early on where these needs are identified.

The Special Guardianship Procedures provide practice guidance on this assessment and the general processes involving Special Guardianship.

The contents of the assessment are similar to the information that will subsequently be required for a Court Report and therefore social workers should find it fairly easy to complete the court report once all the information in this report has been gathered and recommendations have been made. Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 2

1. The Child

Name Sex M  F  Date of Birth

Place of birth and address including local authority area Provide a physical description of the child, attach a photograph and a genogram to show the child’s family network Nationality (and immigration status where appropriate) Racial origin and cultural and linguistic background Religious persuasion (including details of baptism, confirmation or equivalent ceremonies) Details of any siblings aged OVER 18 including their dates of birth The extent of the child's contact with his relatives and any other person the local authority consider relevant If the child is or has been looked after by a local authority or is or has been provided with accommodation by a voluntary organisation and details (including dates) of placements by the authority or organisation Is prospective special guardian a local authority foster parent of the Yes  No  child

Describe the child's personality, his social development and his emotional and behavioural development and any related needs

Details of the child's interests, likes and dislikes

A health history and a description of the state of the child's health, including any treatment the child is receiving

Names, addresses and types of nurseries or schools attended with dates Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 3

Details of child's educational attainments

Is the child subject to a Statement of Special Educational Needs under the Education Act 1996(a) Yes  No  What are the child’s wishes and Include the date on which this information was obtained feelings in relation to special guardianship / What are the child’s wishes and Include the date on which this information was obtained feelings in relation to his or her cultural and religious upbringing? What are the child’s wishes and Include the date on which this information was obtained feelings in relation to contact with any relatives of any other person considered appropriate? Details of any order/s made by a court with respect to the child including: a) Name of Court b) Type of Order c) Date of Order

2. The Child’s Family

Mother Name

Date of Birth

Where the mother was not consulted as part of this assessment, please give reason(s) why. Place of birth and current address (and the date on which her last address was confirmed) including local authority area of that address Please attach a photograph, if available, and physical description of mother Nationality (and immigration status where appropriate) of mother Racial origin and cultural and linguistic background of parent Religious Persuasion (please state nominal or practising) Health History, including details of any serious physical or mental illness, any hereditary disease, disorder or disability Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 4 Educational history (primary, secondary and any further education) Employment History Personality and Interests

Brief chronology of relationship with the child’s father and the current status of their relationship. Include dates of any marriage / civil partnership and/or divorce. Please describe the mother’s wishes and feelings in relation to: Special Guardianship Include the date on which this information was obtained

The child’s religious and cultural Include the date on which this information was obtained upbringing Contact with the child Include the date on which this information was obtained

Father

Date of Birth

Does the father have PR? If yes, Yes  No  how was this obtained?

Where the father was not If the identity or whereabouts of the father are not known, the information that has been consulted during the assessment obtained about him and who provided it needs to be clarified in this section as well as please give reason(s) why. what steps have been taken to trace the father and/or establish paternity

Place of birth and current address Where a current address is not know, please state last known address where possible (and the date on which his last address was confirmed) including local authority area of that address Please attach a photograph, if available, and physical description of father Nationality (and immigration status where appropriate) of parent Racial origin and cultural and linguistic background of father Health History, including details of any serious physical or mental illness, any hereditary disease, disorder or disability Educational history (primary, secondary and any further education) Employment History Personality and Interests Please describe the father’s wishes and feelings in relation to: Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 5 Special Guardianship Include the date on which this information was obtained

The child’s religious and cultural Include the date on which this information was obtained upbringing Contact with the child Include the date on which this information was obtained

Sibling (complete for each sibling under the age of 18)

Date of Birth

Place of birth and current address Where a current address is not know, please state last known address where possible (and the date on which their last address was confirmed) including local authority area of the child’s siblings Who does this child live with and what is their relationship to this child? Is this child looked after by a local authority or provided with accommodation by a voluntary organisation? List any court orders made in respect of this sibling, including the name of the court, the order made and the date.

3. The Wishes and Feelings of Others

Complete for each other relative (including any siblings referred to in this report) or any other person considered relevant by the Local Authority (e.g. grandparents, teachers). Name and Relationship to the child

Date consulted:

Wishes and feelings in relation to Special Guardianship

Wishes and feelings about the child’s religious and cultural upbringing

Wishes and feelings about contact with the child in future Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 6

4. The Prospective Special Guardian

(Where two or More Persons are Jointly Prospective Special Guardians, Complete for Each in Turn)

Prospective Special Guardian

Name Sex M  F 

Date of Birth

Place of birth and address including local authority area

Please attach a photograph and provide a physical description of the Prospective Special Guardian Nationality (and immigration status where appropriate) Racial origin and cultural and linguistic background If married, the date and place of marriage If in a civil partnership, the date and place of registration of the civil partnership If in a relationship , details of that relationship Details of any previous marriage, civil partnership, or relationship Where the prospective special guardian/s wishes to apply jointly with another person, please describe the nature of their relationship and provide an assessment of the stability of that relationship (You will not have to repeat this when providing information about the other applicant) If the prospective special guardian is a member of a couple and is applying alone for a special guardianship order, the reason(s) for this Is the prospective special guardian a relative of the child? If, yes please outline the relationship to the child. A health history of the prospective special guardian including details of any serious physical or mental illness, any hereditary disease or disorder or disability A description of how the Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 7 prospective special guardian relates to adults and children Previous experience of caring for children Parenting capacity, to include an assessment of the prospective special guardian's ability and suitability to bring up the child Where there have been any past assessments as a prospective adopter, foster parent or special guardian, relevant details as appropriate Summary details of income and You only need to give a summary at this stage and refer to the outcome of any financial expenditure assessment undertaken and agreed by the Service Manager for Looked after Children

Information about the prospective special guardian's home and the neighbourhood in which s/he lives Details of other members of the household and details of any children of the prospective special guardian even if not resident in the household Details of the parents and any siblings of the prospective special guardian, with their ages or ages at death Religious persuasion and whether practicing or nominal

Educational history

Employment history

Personality and interests

Details of any previous family court proceedings in which the prospective special guardian has been involved, (which have not been referred to elsewhere in this report) A report of each of the interviews with the three persons nominated by the prospective special guardian to provide personal references for him Is the prospective special guardian willing to follow any wishes of the child or his parents in respect of the child's religious and cultural upbringing The views of other members of the prospective special guardian's household and wider family in relation to the proposed special guardianship order An assessment of the child's current and future relationship Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 8 with the family of the prospective special guardian Reasons for applying for a special guardianship order and extent of understanding of the nature and effect of special guardianship and whether the prospective special guardian has discussed special guardianship with the child Any hopes and expectations the prospective special guardian has for the child's future The prospective special guardian's wishes and feelings in relation to contact between the child and his relatives or any other person the local authority considers relevant

(Copy and paste the table above here if you need to add another prospective guardian)

5. Local Authority Information

Details of any past involvement of . the local authority with the prospective special guardian, including any past preparation for that person to be a local authority foster parent or adoptive parent or a special guardian Where the prospective special N/A guardian lives in the area of another local authority, details of the local authority's enquiries of that other local authority about the prospective special guardian A summary of any special NB: You do not need to detail this on this form, but if special guardianship support guardianship support services services are to be provided, you must attach a copy of the Proposed Special provided by the authority for the Guardianship Support Plan which must be signed by the Adoption Support Services prospective special guardian, the Advisor and ensure you reference any proposed financial support as part of that plan. child or the child's parent and the period for which those services are to be provided

If the local authority has decided N/A not to provide special guardianship support services, the reasons why

6. A Summary Prepared by the Medical Professional Providing Information about the child and the prospective guardian/s Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 9 7. The Implications of the Making of a Special Guardianship Order For

The child

 The child's mother

The child’s father 

 The prospective special guardian and his family

 Any other person the local authority considers relevant

8. The Relative Merits of Special Guardianship

(Please outline the relative merits of special guardianship and other orders which may be made under the Children Act 1989 or the Adoption and Children Act 2002, with an assessment of whether the child's long-term interests would be best met by a special guardianship order)

9. Recommendation about Special Guardianship

Please make a recommendation as to whether or not a special guardianship order should be made in respect of the child (and, if not, any alternative proposal in respect of the child)

10. Recommendation in relation to Contact for the child Special Guardianship Assessment Report CONFIDENTIAL Page 10 Please make a recommendation as to what arrangements there should be for contact between a child, his or her relatives and any other person the Local Authority considers relevant

Please ensure that you have attached the following to this report. a) Photograph of the Child, his or her parents and the prospective guardian/s b) A genogram showing the child’s family network c) A Proposed Special Guardianship Support Plan (including any reference to agreed financial support)

Name of Social Worker who assessed the child and his or her family Signature and Date

Name of Social Worker who assessed the prospective guardian/s: Signature and Date

Comments from the Agency Decision-Maker or Assistant Director of Children and Families