Grandparents Plus is a national charity for
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
that supports and campaigns on behalf of the 200,000 grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and other relatives who are raising children because their parents cannot look after them. This is often because of family circumstances, including parental death, disability, serious illness, substance use disorders, imprisonment or domestic violence. Relatives who are raising children from within the wider family are known as kinship carers.
The charity is funded by the
Big Lottery
The National Lottery Community Fund, legally named the Big Lottery Fund, is a non-departmental public body responsible for distributing funds raised by the National Lottery for "good causes". Since 2004 it has awarded over £9 billion to ...
to provide advice, information, and a peer support network for kinship carers.
It publishes research and campaigns for improved support and recognition, both for kinship carers and for grandparents in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
who provide childcare, arguing that both groups are undervalued economically.
History
The organization was co-founded in 2001 by
Michael Young, Baron Young of Dartington
Michael Dunlop Young, Baron Young of Dartington (9 August 1915 – 14 January 2002), was a British sociologist, social activist and politician who coined the term "meritocracy". He was an urbanist of different dimensions such as academic resear ...
and the charity's co-chair,
Jean Stogdon
Jean Stogdon (22 July 1928 – 25 December 2014) was a British social worker and campaigner. Stogdon is best known for co-founding the charity Grandparents Plus with social entrepreneur Michael Young, Baron Young of Dartington.
Early life
Jean ...
OBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
, a social services manager and Guardian Ad Litem. It is based on The
Young Foundation
The Young Foundation is a non-profit, non-governmental think tank based in London that specialises in social innovation to tackle structural inequality.
It is named after Michael Young, the British sociologist and social activist who created o ...
, Bethnal Green, London. The Chief Executive is Lucy Peake. The name was changed from Grandparents Plus to Kinship to enable the charity to fight for the rights of all Kinship carers and those who are in crisis.
Film
Grandparents Plus and the production compan
My Pocketslaunched a film for Kinship Care Week, 'Something to be proud of', tells the story of one child's experience with kinship care.
Reports
"Grandparenting in Europe: Family Policy and Grandparents’ Role in Providing Childcare", March 2013showed that British grandparents are almost twice as likely to be in paid work as their European counterparts and 6 in 10 are providing childcare for grandchildren. The report warns of a 'care gap crisis' unless action is taken.
"Giving Up The Day Job", June 2012showed that 47% of kinship carers who were previously working gave up their jobs when the children moved in
"Doing It All? Grandparents, Childcare and Employment: Analysis of British Social Attitudes Survey Data from 1998 and 2009"December 2011 showed that 63% of grandparents with grandchildren under 16 are providing childcare, with half (50%) of mothers relying on grandparents to look after their babies when they return from maternity leave.
"Too Old To Care"
"What If We Said No?", Oct 2010showed that 47% of kinship carers say the reason for taking on the care of a child is a parent struggling with a substance use disorder.
"Grandparenting in Europe", June 2010showed that one in three working mothers depends on grandparents for childcare.
"Protect, support, provide – examining the role of grandparents in families at risk of poverty", March 2010ref>"Grandparents carers risk financial hardship
BBC News Channel, 3 March 2010, retrieved 25/5/2013/ref>
"Recognition, respect, reward", October 2009
References
{{reflist
External links
Kinship
Charities based in England