The Ministry of Justice published a draft Family Justice Reform Bill in October 2026 for pre-legislative scrutiny by the Justice Select Committee. The draft bill responds to recommendations from the Family Justice Board and a series of reported cases in which children subject to Special Guardianship Orders (SGOs) suffered harm due to inadequate assessment of the prospective guardians at the point the order was made.
What is a Special Guardianship Order? An SGO is a private law order made under the Children Act 1989, ss.14A–14G that gives a carer (usually a family member or foster carer) parental responsibility for a child without ending the legal relationship with the birth parents. SGOs are frequently used as an alternative to adoption in kinship care arrangements. Unlike adoption, an SGO can be varied or discharged, and the birth parent retains some legal status.
The proposed changes. The draft bill would: (1) require the court to explicitly find on the evidence that the SGO applicant has the necessary skills and capacity to meet the child's long-term needs, including any therapeutic or educational needs arising from trauma; (2) impose a duty on local authorities to provide a post-SGO support package assessed at the time the order is made rather than on request; and (3) set a default five-year review mechanism, bringing SGOs in line with some international regimes. The changes are intended to make SGOs more robust and to reduce breakdowns that result in children re-entering the care system.
Relevance for families. If you are a kinship carer applying for or subject to an SGO, these proposals (if enacted) would require a more thorough assessment before the order is granted and would give you a right to a structured support package. The proposals do not affect SGOs already in force. The Kinship charity provides advice and advocacy for kinship carers. For the current court process for child arrangements disputes, see the child arrangements order guide. Pre-legislative scrutiny is expected to conclude in early 2027; enactment is expected no earlier than 2028.