What your council must consider when setting your allowance
Written and reviewed by Patricia Hughes · Last updated · last reviewed · rates for 2026/27
The single most useful thing to understand is this: there is no amount you can require your council to pay, but there is a figure it is supposed to start from.
The starting point is the fostering allowance
The statutory guidance says the amount of a special guardianship allowance should not exceed the amount the council would pay a foster carer for that child, and that the core fostering allowance is the basis for the calculation.
DfE Special Guardianship Guidance (Jan 2017), para 65 (checked 2026-08-29)That is why the fostering national minimum allowance matters to you, even though you are not a foster carer:
| Age of child | London | South East | Rest of England |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2 | £205 | £195 | £176 |
| 3–4 | £208 | £203 | £182 |
| 5–10 | £233 | £223 | £201 |
| 11–15 | £266 | £255 | £227 |
| 16–17 | £309 | £298 | £267 |
What has been ruled out
Three patterns have been challenged successfully in the courts:
Using the adoption allowance model instead. Adoption allowances are generally lower. A council that used them as the basis for special guardianship support was found to have acted unlawfully.
R (B) v Lewisham LBC [2008] EWHC 738 (Admin) (checked 2026-09-03)Paying a flat two-thirds. A council that set every special guardianship allowance at two-thirds of the core fostering allowance was found to have departed from the guidance without justifying it.
Barrett v Kirklees MBC [2010] EWHC 467 (Admin) (checked 2026-09-03)Any blanket percentage. A blanket percentage deduction was held unlawful. Importantly, the same case confirmed there is no duty to pay every special guardian an allowance, and that a means-test methodology can itself be perfectly lawful.
R (TT) v Merton LBC [2012] EWHC 2055 (Admin) (checked 2026-09-03)What I cannot tell you is whether your own council does any of these. I hold a sourced copy of the published policy for six councils. For almost everybody reading this the honest answer is that you have to ask, which is what the rest of this page is for.
Important
The problem in each case was the blanket nature of the rule, not the arithmetic. A council can reach a lower figure. It has to get there by considering your case.
What the council should consider
Regulation 6 sets out what financial support is for and when it may be paid. In deciding the amount, a council should be looking at:
- the child's needs, including any disability or the consequences of abuse or neglect
- your financial resources, including any income the child has
- what it costs you to look after the child
- the nature of the child's relationship with you, and the arrangement's stability
What to ask for
Ask for the calculation in writing: the starting figure and where it came from, what income was counted, what outgoings were allowed, and every deduction with its reason. A figure without a breakdown cannot be checked, and a figure that cannot be checked cannot be challenged.
There is a template letter for this. Work out your figure and it appears at the end of your result, already filled in with your council, your area and your own numbers. Template: request-calculation-breakdown
What you can check, and what you have to ask for
You can pin down where your council should have begun. Statutory guidance makes the core fostering allowance the basis for the calculation, and the national minimum for your child's age is published every April.
Everything after that starting point is out of sight. How much of your income was counted, which outgoings were allowed, what each deduction was for: that is your council's arithmetic, and you have to ask for it.
Work out what your council should be paying you It takes under a minute, and nothing you type leaves your browser.
Common questions
Am I entitled to an allowance?
No, financial support for special guardians is discretionary. What you can expect is a proper decision: one that starts from the right figure, considers your actual circumstances, and is explained to you.
Can my council pay me less than the fostering rate?
Yes, after properly assessing your circumstances. What it should not do is start from a lower figure, or apply a fixed reduction to everybody.
This is an estimate, not legal advice. Financial support for special guardians is discretionary, and there is no fixed amount you can require your council to pay. It shows you the figure your council should be starting from, and what the rules and the published decisions say about how it has to decide.
Your council can lawfully pay less than the maximum after properly assessing your circumstances. If something here matters to your case, talk to one of the advice lines below before you rely on it.
Where these figures and rules come from
- DfE Special Guardianship Guidance (Jan 2017), para 65 (checked 2026-08-29)
- Special Guardianship Regulations 2005, reg 6 (checked 2026-08-29)
- R (B) v Lewisham LBC [2008] EWHC 738 (Admin) (checked 2026-09-03)Using the lower adoption allowance model was unlawful. Fostering allowances are the starting point.
- Barrett v Kirklees MBC [2010] EWHC 467 (Admin) (checked 2026-09-03)A flat two-thirds of the core fostering allowance was an unjustified departure from guidance.
- R (TT) v Merton LBC [2012] EWHC 2055 (Admin) (checked 2026-09-03)Blanket percentage deduction unlawful. BUT: no duty to pay every special guardian an allowance, and the means-test methodology itself was upheld as lawful.
Related guides
Who can help
These organisations give free, independent advice on kinship care and special guardianship. They are not part of your council.
- Kinship: advice and peer support for kinship carers. kinship.org.uk
- Family Rights Group: free advice line for families dealing with children's services. frg.org.uk
- Citizens Advice: benefits, debt and general advice. citizensadvice.org.uk
- Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (England), if you have complained to your council and are not satisfied. lgo.org.uk