Kinship Care Support for Local Authority Partners
At BookTrust, we provide support for kinship care families, which can be used by our local authority partners, including virtual schools, as part of their local kinship care offer.
The benefits of reading are widely recognised. But in the context of kinship care families, where children may have experienced disruption or trauma, these benefits are even more profound. For these families, sharing stories becomes a tool for nurture and connection.
The story talked about heroes without a cape… and she just looked at me and said, ‘But I’ve already got a hero without a cape—because you’re my hero and Uncle Colin is.
Kinship carer
The Relational Value of Reading: insights from Kinship Care Families
In 2024, as part of the National Kinship Care Strategy, BookTrust provided a suite of support to kinship care families through a wider programme led by Kinship – the leading kinship care charity in England and Wales. Kinship delivers the only free national training and support service for kinship carers in England.
Supporting over 1,000 kinship care families over the last year, we learned that, for them, the relational value of books and stories is what’s most important. They provide a platform through which carers and children can open up conversations, nurture connections, regulate emotions and reinforce self-worth.
You can read more about the wide-ranging, lifelong benefits of reading for kinship care families in our research briefing.
Programmes to support the relational benefits of reading
Local authorities use our established programmes to support kinship care families.
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A book subscription service that embeds sharing stories at home to strengthen bonding and attachment.
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This programme is designed to bring the magic of reading and numeracy to kinship care families.
Kinship Training and Support Service
BookTrust are partners in the Kinship Training and Support Service, delivered by Kinship and funded by the Department for Education. The service includes free workshops and learning events (Roadshows) supporting kinship carers to navigate their kinship journey.
BookTrust are running a series of workshops on using stories to discuss emotions and identity. Dates for online and in person workshops can be found here.
BookTrust have developed an accompanying online guide, including tips, book recommendations and story videos, with kinship carers.
Carers can choose free books and resources for the children in their care at Kinship’s upcoming roadshows.
Email us at [email protected] to reach more kinship care families in your area.
Read Bennet’s story
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BookTrust and Kinship are working together to support kinship families to share books and stories. Here’s why this matters to Bennet, who works for Kinship, and whose love of books brought stability and comfort when it was most needed.