Kinship Care Week 2026 (5 to 11 October)

Kinship Care Week (5 to 11 October 2026) shines a light on the vital role of kinship carers: relatives and friends who step up to raise a child when their parents are unable to.

According to Kinship, the leading kinship care charity in England and Wales, more than 141,000 children across England and Wales are being raised in kinship care, growing up in loving, stable homes that keep them connected to their family, roots and community.

Kinship carers are grandparents, aunts, uncles, older siblings and family friends who often take in children at a moment's notice, with little or no preparation. Some care under a legal arrangement, such as a Special Guardianship Order, or as kinship foster carers. Others raise children informally, without a legal order. Whatever their situation, Kinship says they play a crucial role in giving children, most of whom would otherwise be in the care system, safety, stability and belonging.

This year, we're celebrating the unbreakable bonds at the heart of kinship families, and the communities they build to support one another, while highlighting the realities of caring for a child who has had a difficult start in life. We want the experiences of kinship families to be seen, heard and better understood.

Join us for coffee, cake and a catch-up

This week, members of our team will be at three events across the area, and all kinship carers are welcome:

• Wednesday 7 October, 10am to 12pm: Whitton Community Centre with Clare Luby and Pravashani Naicker
• Wednesday 7 October, 11am: The Pheasantry Café, Bushy Park, with Alex McKee.
• Friday 9 October, 11am: Stubbings Café, Maidenhead, SL6 6QL, with Natasha Van der Hulst and Claire Hunt.

New Kinship Local Offer site: have your say

Achieving for Children is launching a new Kinship Local Offer site so that carers, families and practitioners have clear, accessible guidance in one place. We're currently consulting on the draft web pages and would love your feedback. Please take a moment to review them and answer the consultation questions.

The draft currently uses a Windsor and Maidenhead template. Once community feedback has been reviewed, the final pages for Kingston and Richmond will have their own look and local details, while sharing the same core content and layout.

Add your voice: #ValueOurLove

Kinship is also running the #ValueOurLove campaign, which calls for more support for kinship families across the country. Whether you're a carer, a practitioner or simply someone who wants to back the families raising children in kinship care, you can join the campaign and help make the case for better recognition and support. Find out how to get involved with #ValueOurLove, and explore Kinship's other ideas for taking part in the week on the Kinship Care Week page.

For professionals: join the Kinship Care Professionals' Network

If you work directly with kinship carers and their families, the charity Kinship runs a free Professionals' Network for social workers, academics and others with an interest in kinship care. It meets quarterly, mostly online, alongside in-person knowledge-exchange events. Members can meet fellow practitioners and researchers, share and develop best practice in supporting kinship carers, and get the latest policy updates from Kinship, plus an occasional e-newsletter on news, research, campaigns and events. Sign up via the Kinship website.

Follow along all week

Throughout the week we'll be sharing stories from kinship carers, along with key facts about kinship care and updates from our events.

Here's how you can join in:

• Follow us on Instagram at @afc_fostering and on Facebook at Achieving for Children Fostering.
• Share the stories to help more people understand kinship care.
• Use #KinshipCareWeek and #ValueOurLove and tag us in your posts.
• Explore the wider week on Kinship's Kinship Care Week page.

If you're a kinship carer and would like to connect with others, you can also join Kinship's community for support, advice and news.