Special Guardianship Orders (SGOs)

What is a special guardian

Special guardians are usually a child’s relative but you do not have to be related to the child to apply for a special guardianship order (SGO). It will depend on your own situation.

Find out more about who can apply for a special guardianship order.

Special Guardianship Orders (SGO)

A SGO is a private law order made by the family court. The people named on the SGO will become the child’s special guardian. As a special guardian, you have parental responsibility for the child until they are 18 years old. The child will live with you permanently. You will make day-to-day decisions and more important decisions about their life.

Find out more about parental rights and responsibilities with SGOs.

How to apply for a Special Guardianship Order

There are two routes to becoming a special guardian:

• Private law. This is an arrangement between individuals, e.g. family members.
• Public law. This is when children’s services apply to the court for an order to safeguard the welfare of a child in care.

Before you apply for an SGO, it’s important that you get legal advice. You need to tell children’s services in writing three months before the date you want to apply to the court for an SGO.

A social worker will complete an assessment to show that you are able to care for the child. The assessment goes into a lot of detail. It includes information about you and your background, the child and any support you think you will need. The social worker will write a report. The family court will use the report to look at your suitability and the child’s needs before making a final decision.

If you are on a low income or receive government benefits, you may be able to apply to the family court to get help with paying court fees.

Find out more about the Special Guardianship assessment process in our document below.

Help with applying for an SGO

There’s more guidance and advice available from the Government about how to apply for an SGO and to find your local family court. 

Support for Special Guardians

Special Guardians often step in to provide a safe and loving home for a child who needs immediate support and protection, but may face challenges in doing this. This can include breakdown in relationships, financial difficulties, health issues, managing family time, changes to employment or lifestyle and caring for children who have experienced trauma, who may have complex additional needs.

Following an SGO being granted, you can access our Special Guardian Support Hub. The hub provides SGO families with support and advice on issues you may face whilst on your SGO journey. When you contact the hub, we will discuss your current situation and any needs you have. Together, we can explore what support might be available, whether through our service or another agency.

How the SGO Support Hub can help

• Access to training
• Signposting to other agencies
• Leaving care support

You can also ask for an assessment of need at any time for support with:

• behaviour or emotional concerns
• family time/ contact issues
• school concerns etc.

Find out more about the support we can offer in our leaflets below.

The files below may not be suitable for users of assistive technology. If you use assistive technology and need a version of a document in a more accessible format, please contact us. We can provide you with an accessible version or arrange to talk to you to explain the contents.

Organisations who offer support and advice

You can get independent advice and guidance about special guardianship orders from the charities below.

• Family Action
• Family Rights Group
• Foster Line
• Kinship
• The Fostering Network