PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
GRANDPARENTS RAISING GRANDCHILDREN NETWORK (25 October 2010)

That this House congratulates Grandparents Plus, the Grandparents' Association and members of the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Network on their successful lobby of Parliament on 28 October 2010 to raise awareness of family and friends care; recalls that there are over 200,000 grandparents and other family carers who are raising children who cannot live with their parents because of parental alcohol or substance misuse, abuse or neglect, domestic violence, bereavement, imprisonment, illness or disability or a combination of factors; notes that the cost of placing these children into the care system would be 12 billion each year; expresses concern that over half family and friends carers either give up work or reduce their paid hours and three out of four experience financial hardship; notes with alarm that any reduction in local authority support for family and friends carers could result in more children going into care, which would be neither good for children nor cost-effective; and calls on the Government to ensure that family and friends carers are not disadvantaged by welfare reform and cuts to local authority children's services.

Sponsored by:
Kate Green (Labour)