Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will create a register of all orphaned children in the UK that includes (a) the living situation of the child and (b) any support offered to (i) the child and (ii) any person with caring responsibilities.

The government is determined to ensure that children who have lost their parents live in a loving and stable home, with the opportunities they deserve.

Many orphaned children will be raised by a friend or family member through kinship care. Where this is in the child’s best interest, the local authority can secure a long term home for the child through a number of arrangements, or this can be done privately. Kinship carers often take on this role when they were least expecting to raise a family. This is why the government has announced £40 million to trial a new kinship allowance. Furthermore, the virtual school head role was expanded in September 2024 to include championing the education, attendance and attainment of children in kinship care.

Where orphaned children are unable to live with wider family networks, they may enter the care system. Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide a stable, loving home for all children in care. For most children, foster care is likely to be the most suitable option, as they can be supported in a family-centred environment. Our national minimum standards clarify that children in foster care deserve to be treated as any good parent would treat their own children.