New research project to shed light on a ‘forgotten 10%’

Researchers from the Centre for Child and Family Justice Research at Lancaster University and the Children and Families Research Centre at the University of Bristol are working in partnership with leading kinship care charities Kinship and Families in Harmony on a new ground-breaking social research project, funded by the Nuffield Foundation.

Important decisions are made every day in the family courts about where children live and who they spend time with. Around 90% of private family law cases are between two parents unable to agree arrangements for children after separation. The other 10% involve adults who are not the child’s parents, such as grandparents, aunts/uncles, siblings, special guardians and stepparents. A significant proportion of these cases represent kinship care situations – applications made by extended family members for a child to live with them, usually where parents are experiencing significant difficulties.

Kinship care has received significant government attention in recent years and there is increasing recognition of the importance of kinship care and the need for better support. However, most of the focus to date has been on those caring for children after care proceedings (public law), meaning that private law kinship families risk being overlooked.

The new study is funded by the Nuffield Foundation and will explore the circumstances, experiences, and perspectives of children, families and professionals in private family law cases involving non-parents.

Led by Dr Linda Cusworth, Senior Research Fellow at Lancaster University Law School, the research team includes Dr Jon Symonds and Dr Jessica Roy, both Senior Lecturers in the School of Policy Studies at the University of Bristol, Anam Raja, Kinship’s Research Manager and Sharon McPherson, Director of Co-production, Development and Policy at Families in Harmony. The team will also involve three kinship carers as peer researchers, who will be involved in all aspects of the projects.

For further information or to join the project mailing list please email Dr Linda Cusworth (at l.cusworth@lancaster.ac.uk).