50 grandparents and family carers from across the country are meeting the Children’s Minister Edward Timpson MP today to challenge the government on their treatment of kinship carers.

300,000 children across the country are being raised by a hidden army of family carers. This could be because of death, illness or parental drug or alcohol misuse.

The charity Grandparents Plus says it would cost the government 12 billion pounds a year in care costs alone if those children were in foster care. But kinship carers to not get any financial or practical support unless the child in their care is a ‘looked after’ child.