UK GOVERNMENT URGED TO RECONSIDER POSITION ON PARENTAL LEAVE RIGHTS
The Scottish Government’s Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise, Natalie Don, has written to the UK Government calling for statutory parental leave rights to be extended to kinship carers.
Kinship carers are people caring for a child on behalf of a friend or relative, full time. The latest statistics show there are currently 4,249 formally looked after children in kinship care across Scotland. It is estimated there are around a further 3,000 non-looked after children in kinship care who are supported by local authorities.
As it stands, UK Government guidance means these carers are reliant on the “good will” of their employers to secure paid time off to look after the children in their care.
Natalie Don MSP calls for change to support Kinship Carers
The Scottish Government wants to ensure kinship carers are not penalised for taking in their kin.
Commenting, Minister for Keeping the Promise and MSP for Renfrewshire North and West, Natalie Don, said:
“It is very disappointing that family leave for kinship carers remains entirely dependent on the good will of the employer to ensure kinship carers, whose circumstances often change without notice, are given paid time off work to help the children they care for adjust to their new environment.
“I have been advised by kinship carers in Scotland that because there is no statutory leave, which is offered to other carers such as adoptive parents, some kinship carers have been forced to leave employment. Some, who were fortunate enough to own their homes, have also been forced to sell their house to make ends meet, forcing them into poverty. This is unacceptable.
“This issue was highlighted in the Independent Review of Children’s Social Care, published in May 2022, which recommended that kinship carers receive paid employment leave on a par with statutory adoption leave
“Kinship carers should not have to wait any longer as a result of delays from the UK Government, so I have requested an urgent update from the UK Government on the implementation of the recommendation regarding statutory leave in relation to kinship carers and have called on them to make these changes immediately.
“The Scottish Government wants to ensure kinship carers are not penalised for taking in their kin. Given the vital role they play in providing a loving, safe and stable home, I believe it is imperative that kinship carers are treated on an equal par with all parents eligible for parental leave.”