Special guardianship allowance — what you can claim
REVIEWED BY: Sean McNamara on 2026-09-01
A special guardianship allowance is financial support paid by the local authority to a special guardian under the Special Guardianship Regulations 2005 (as amended 2016). It is the practical answer to a common question: "I am raising my grandchild/relative child under a special guardianship order — can I get help?"
The legal basis
- Regulation 13 — where the local authority assesses a need for financial support, the amount must take account of any other grant, benefit, allowance or resource available to the person as a result of becoming a special guardian (reg 13(2)).
- Regulation 16 — the authority must notify its decision in writing, including the amount, how it was determined, the period, and the review arrangements.
- Statutory guidance — the means test should follow the fostering allowance the authority would have paid had the child been fostered; authorities must help special guardians access benefits they are entitled to.
What this means in practice
1. Request an assessment from the child's local authority in writing, citing reg 13. 2. The typical test is the authority's fostering-rate means test. 3. Child benefit: an authority must not operate a blanket policy of deducting child benefit from means-tested allowances — the Local Government Ombudsman found against exactly that practice (March 2024) and required recalculation. Each case needs an individual assessment and written notification. 4. Annual review: allowances are reviewed; the notification letter must set out how reviews work. 5. If the authority refuses or deducts without proper assessment: use the Children Act 1989 representations procedure (stage 1 complaint), then the Local Government Ombudsman.
Points for a self-representing carer
- Put everything in writing; ask for the decision and its reasons (you are entitled to them under reg 16).
- Keep letters about any benefits you receive — the assessment must consider them, but no blanket deduction is lawful.
- The Ombudsman case above is useful to quote if you face an unexplained reduction.
Independent general information — not legal advice. Benefit rules change; check the current Special Guardianship Regulations 2005 and the statutory guidance before relying on any figure.