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Contents

1. Process Following the Making of a Residence Order
2. Payment Review Process
3. Variations or Terminations of Approval
4. Actions Following Payment Review
5. Concerns for the Child Following initial Assessment Visit

1. Process Following the Making of a Residence Order

Upon the making of an Order the child's social worker will record the Residence Order as a new Legal Status in the Legal section of ICS. Payment commences as from the date of the Residence Order.

When a child is placed with a carer on a Residence Order and the carer is entitled to financial help, the child will have a Plan in place.

If there is an ongoing plan already in place, the financial need would be added to the current plan on ICS and the service provided to meet this need would be "Residence Order -financial support".

If the case will remain open just to deliver financial support the plan would be a Child in Need plan with the only need identified being the Financial Need and the service provided to meet this need would be "Residence order - financial support". The Plan will be recorded in the ICS by the Lead Social Worker before their involvement is completed.

The Lead Social Worker will also record a Residence Order Review with the due date in a year's time and the person responsible for the referral would be the Team Manager/Practice Supervisor. After this is completed, the Lead Social Worker Involvement is ended. (however the case should remain open to the Key Team as a U6 Financial Assistance only)

The system would send a task to the manager in a year's time to remind them that the Residence Order payment review is due.

2. Payment Review Process

Lincolnshire County Council will review allowances payable and in order for allowances to continue up to 16 years of age and in certain circumstances post 16 and up to 19 years of age, you will need to confirm that the young person:

• Continues to reside full time in your care - up to 16 years
• Post 16 year olds continues to reside full time in your care and continue in full time education
• Is not in receipt of any benefits other that EMA for training/education in their own right.

Carers with Residence Orders must be helped to access any benefits to which they are entitled; this will usually include child benefit and tax credits such as Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit.

The local authority must also take account of any other grant, benefit, allowance or resource available to the person in respect of his needs as a result of being granted a Residence Order for the child.  Financial support cannot duplicate any other payment available to the carer.

If any change in financial support is considered necessary, the carer should be asked to complete the DCSF standardised means test for Adoption and Special Guardianship . This would be forwarded to the Head of Service Regulated Services for approval and amendment and the carer will be informed in writing of the following:

• How the decision was reached
• The amount of the allowance
• The date of the first payment
• The method and frequency of the payment
• The arrangements for review, variation and termination of the allowance
• Your responsibility to notify us of any changes in your circumstances or those of the child

Residence Order Support Plans must be reviewed taking into account the following:

• Any change of circumstances affecting the support
• At whichever stage of implementation of the plan is considered most appropriate
• And be reviewed at least annually or earlier if required

Any change to the Residence Order Support Plan will be subject to the approval of the Head of Service.

3. Variations or Terminations of Approval

If the local authority decides to vary or terminate the provision of support after the review, notice in writing must be given and the person concerned should be given 28 days to make representations.

4. Actions Following Payment Review

Once this review was undertaken, if the Carer is still eligible to receive financial support the Team Manager/ supervising Practice Supervisor will record another Residence Order Review with the due date after a year.

If at the end of the review is decided that financial support is not needed anymore the Team Manager/ Practice Supervisor would end

1. The legal status 
2. The plan
3. The service
4. The Key Team Involvement
5. The referral and by this closing the case to Social Care

5. Concerns for the Child Following initial Assessment Visit

If the social worker has any concerns regarding the care of the child following completion of an Initial Assessment/ review of the plan due to ongoing financial commitments, this must be recorded on ICS and discussed with the Team Manager/Practice Supervisor for consideration of ongoing support. Consideration to be given by Team manager to opening the involvement to a Lead Social Worker.

If the social worker has any concerns of a child protection nature, they must inform their line manager immediately and the LSCB procedures must be followed.

End