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A Special Guardianship Order is an order made by the court appointing one or more individuals to be a child’s ‘special guardian’.
It is effectively an enhanced Child Arrangements Order as the child will be deemed to live with you and you will be given parental responsibility.
A Special Guardianship Order is intended to be permanent.
A special guardian is usually an individual with a close connection to the child, such as another family member, carer or foster parent who wants to take over the long-term care of the child.
To qualify for special guardianship, you will need to meet specific criteria, which include:
The court’s main consideration is the child’s welfare and any decision that is made will be in accordance with what is in the child’s best interests.
The court will consider the same factors as when deciding whether to make a Child Arrangements Order, which are:
The court will also consider the applicant’s connection with the child and whether there is any risk that the application could disrupt the child’s life to such an extent that they may be harmed by it.
If a Special Guardianship Order is granted the newly appointed special guardian will have parental responsibility for the child until he or she reaches the age of 18.The special guardian is entitled to exercise parental responsibility for the child to the exclusion of any other person who also has parental responsibility (apart from another special guardian).
It is important to note that a Special Guardianship Order does not extinguish the legal relationship between the child and their birth parents as an Adoption Order would do.
The application process for a Special Guardianship Order can be complex, which is why we always recommend having legal support. The order will be put in place by the court during family proceedings and is fundamentally their decision.
You will need to alert your local authority at least three months before you apply for special guardianship. You will also need to complete a C1 form, a C13A form and an FM1 form, which are downloadable from the government website, and write a statement supporting your application. Your statement can include details of your relationship with the child and your plans for the child’s future care.
The multiple application stages, forms, checks and assessments can be confusing and intimidating without professional help. Whether you simply need advice on the process or you want to instruct a lawyer to execute the application on your behalf, come and talk to us.
Our team of specialist family lawyers will explain complicated processes in straightforward language.