Glasgow Health and Social Care Partnership have been on a journey with their Family Connections Assessment and Plan. The aim is for all care experienced children who have a brother or sister, to have a family connections assessment and plan as early in their...

  On the 1st of October members of the Community of Practice were hosted by Rossie’s residential and secure service for a day of discussions about the needs of children and young people in their care who are separated from their siblings. Michael Scanlin, Service...

  Scotland’s care system is taking years to find many of the country's most vulnerable children permanent homes – and too many of them have no contact with their siblings, according to new research. The study of more than 1,800 children ‘looked after’ in Scotland...

  A new book, which has been written by experienced social workers, aims to help children understand sibling separation. The book called ‘Growing Shoots With Deep Roots’ uses rhymes and illustrations to help children and families explore their connection to...

  The Minister for Children, Young People and The Promise, Natalie Don MSP has written to members of the Staying Together and Connected (STAC) National Implementation Group, about the Scottish Government's work around siblings. The letter has been shared with...

  The Community of Practice for Siblings has published the latest edition of their newsletter. This issue contains a round up of the online session in May and the in-person event in June, plus lots more! Remember, there’s still time to sign up to the next...

  A massive congratulations to STAR (Siblings Reunited) for winning a prestiguous award at Fife's Volunteering and Voluntary Sector awards last night (5th June). The charity, which helps brothers and sisters spend quality time together, received the Children,...

  If you haven't already signed up, there's still time to register for the Community of Practice for siblings next face to face event. It will take place on Tuesday 25 June at STAR. Find out more and sign up here. In addition, registration is now open for the...

  Have you signed up for the next Community of Practice online event? You can sign up now. It takes place on Thursday 16 May 2024 from 10am-12.30pm.  The programme includes… Supporting sibling relationships in kinship care settings How we support sibling and...

  The spring issue of the Community of Practice for Siblings newsletter has been published. You can view it here. This edition includes a round up of the February event, as well as an update from the Scottish Government. If you haven’t already subscribed to...

  We would like to express our thanks to the organising team for the Community of Practice who have worked so hard setting up this valuable forum. It is great to see such an enthusiastic group from across the sector come together to share learning and good...

  At the recent Community of Practice event on 1 February, Karen Morrison, founder and chair from STAR (Siblings Reunited) read out a poem written by a teenage girl who came to STAR with her older sister. ‘To Have You There By My Side’ is a powerful reminder of...

  The latest session of the Community of Practice for siblings focused on the work ongoing in West Dunbartonshire. More than 65 practitioners from across Scotland came together for the online event on Thursday 1 February. This was the second online session...

  Exciting work is underway in West Dunbartonshire to Keep The Promise. Ailsa Dinwoodie, The Promise Lead Officer tells us more… In West Dunbartonshire in March 2023 we were keeping 38% of our children and young people with all of their brothers and sisters in...

  Following the first webinar of the year on 1 February, here's the dates for the Community of Practice for siblings events for the rest of 2024... 22 April 2024 – in person10am – 3.30pm at Family Journeys 16 May 2024 – ONLINE10am – 12:30pm 25 June 2024 – in...

  The Independent Care Review helped to highlight the importance of brothers and sisters maintaining relationships whether or not they are living together – and the extent to which, for many children in Scotland, this has not been happening. Siblings Reunited...

  ‘Place and Space’ and Siblings within Kinship were the two key themes at the most recent meeting of the Community of Practice for Siblings. Nearly 40 people from local authorities and organisations across Scotland, gathered at Victoria Quay in Edinburgh on...

  An estimated 70% of care-experienced children and young people in Scotland experience separation from their siblings. This can create enormous barriers to maintaining some of the most important relationships in these children’s lives ... and this is made even...

  Join us on Thursday 5th October from 10am to 12 noon for an online Community of Practice for Siblings session. This is a joint initiative aimed at Keeping The Promise to brothers and sisters. It follows on from our first and successful learning event in June....

  The chair of Stand Up For Siblings Kate Richardson is walking the Edinburgh Kiltwalk on 17th September 2023 to raise funds for Siblings Reunited (STAR). This is the second year Kate has taken part in the Kiltwalk to raise funds for the charity. Kate and her...

  Stand Up For Siblings has welcomed publication of a second key report ensuring the focus remains on brothers and sister.  ‘Siblings: Staying Together and Connected: National Implementation Group Executive Summary Report’ follows on from publication of The...

  Stand Up For Siblings has welcomed publication of The Promise Oversight Board's Report Two.  The report highlights the issue of brothers and sisters being separated. The report provides some examples of positive practice, but also highlights what needs to...

  In case you missed the webinar arranged by Stand Up For Siblings back in March, a recording is now available. The webinar heard about the Born into Care in Scotland research and the Supporting Roots report. You can view the recording here.  

  A Keeping The Promise to brothers and sisters event is being held on Friday 9th June. It will be held at the premises of Siblings Reunited (STAR) at East Flisk Farm in Fife. The event, which will run from 10:30am to 2:30pm will focus on data and implementation....

  Siblings Reunited (STAR) will feature on television on Thursday evening. The charity which reunites brothers and sisters separated in the care system, will be the focus of a 30 minute programme on STV's Scotland Tonight show. Following a film about the...

  STAR, Siblings Reunited recently celebrated its milestone 10th birthday!  The charity has been helping brothers and sisters to meet up together for a decade now.  The award-winning Fife-based charity works tirelessly to ensure brothers and sisters get to spend...

Strathclyde Hidden Voices are holding their third annual conference in May. The online event will take place on Saturday 20 May from 10am-12.30pm.  This year speakers include Dr Kirsty Deacon and Jennifer Ferguson.  Dr Kirsty Deacon is currently a Research Officer...

As part of Kinship Care Week 2023, Kerrie, a kinship carer and family worker for a Kinship Care Team within West Lothian explains how important it is to listen to carers and reflects on her own personal kinship journey. Read her blog on the Kinship Care website.

"Devastating”, “damaging” and “broke my heart”. These are just some of the words care-experienced young people have told the Staying Connected project.  These young people, who are currently serving a prison sentence themselves, have used these words to describe what...

Stand Up For Siblings are excited to invite guests to a free online event hosted in partnership with Adoption UK Scotland into two thought provoking studies. Taking place online on Thursday 9th March 2023 at 10am, the two hour event will centre around the Born into...

  Sibling Reunited (STAR) have released a Christmas song and music video titled 'Calling Out at Christmas'. Written by Bruce Morrison and performed by Charlotte Henry, the song was made by STAR for every brother and sister who are missing each other over the...

The Chair of Stand Up For Siblings, Kate Richardson, completed the Edinburgh Kiltwalk’s Mighty Stride in September. A big thank you for the wonderful donations which were topped up by The Hunter Foundation. Kate raised a total of £525 for STAR. These funds will go...

The chair of Stand Up For Siblings Kate Richardson is walking the Edinburgh Kiltwalk on 18 September 2022 to raise funds for Siblings Reunited (STAR). Siblings Reunited (STAR) reunites brothers and sisters separated in the care system, through adoption or kinship care...

You will have hopefully heard already about the evaluation of Siblings Reunited (STAR) being undertaken by the Association for Fostering, Kinship and Adoption (AFKA) Scotland, funded by The Promise Scotland. Further information about the work we are doing is provided...

Would you like to help develop and spread good practice in supporting relationships between brothers and sisters in care in Scotland? As part of funding from The Promise Scotland, AFKA Scotland is evaluating Siblings Reunited (STAR) in Fife. STAR is a specialist...

The second phase of a new research project ‘Staying Connected’ is now underway. The research by Stand Up For Siblings partner SCRA and Families Outside, aims to address the gap in knowledge around ‘looked after’ children and...

Only one in five infants taken into care in Scotland who had older brothers or sisters were initially placed with them, according to a new study.  The report - Born Into Care - which was funded by the Scottish Government has been published today, Wednesday 13 April...

A joint research project between Stand Up for Siblings partner SCRA and Families Outside has been announced. The project ‘Staying Connected: Care-experienced children and young people with a sibling in custody’ has been funded by The Promise Scotland. Background...

As part of Kinship Care Week 2022 Lorna Stabler, a Researcher and PhD student at Cardiff University, writes about being a sibling carer and the important research she is undertaking into kinship carers who care for their brothers and sisters. Most people know that...

Stand Up For Siblings is proud to support Kinship Care Week 2022. The annual week-long event will take place from 14-18 March 2022. The theme for this year is positive relationships.  A virtual event is being held on Wednesday 16 March from 9.45am-1pm. The Kinship...

Clan Childlaw's new Legal Policy Manager Katy Nisbet reflects on why the recent BBC documentary ‘Split Up In Care - Life Without Siblings’ resonated so deeply with her as she settles into her new role. You can read her blog on the Clan Childlaw website.

Stand Up For Siblings partner SCRA has embarked on a new piece of research which will explore the impact of virtual Hearings during the COVID-19 pandemic on participation, rights and decision making. The research includes an online survey aimed at foster carers and...

Stand Up For Siblings is proud to support The Promise Scotland mark the second anniversary of the publication of the Independent Care Review (ICR) on Saturday 5 February 2022. We have worked with the ICR and The Promise to continue to promote the voices of children...

STAR, Siblings Reunited features in a new documentary being aired by the BBC. The Scottish charity which helps separated siblings, was asked to star in the programme ‘Split up in care’. The documentary features BBC reporter Ashley John-Baptiste who grew up in care....

Following our three webinars at the start of October, recordings are now available. Click on the links below to access. Brothers and sisters – our rights to be together, be heard and participate  Research into Practice  Implementing Policy and Practice Change Read the...

We know there’s lots of people caring for their siblings. Stand Up For Siblings has created a new section on our website for sibling carers. The new section provides information about supports, including financial, practical and emotional supports. It also contains...

A number of Stand Up For Siblings partners were recently successful in their bids to the Corra Foundation to help Keep The Promise. Adoption UK Scotland said they were delighted to have been awarded 12 months funding to develop workshops and support for adoptive...

Stand Up For Siblings continues to support full implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) following the recent judgment by the Supreme Court. Everyone in the Stand Up For Siblings partnership is committed to protecting and...

Want to know the latest on siblings rights? What’s happening in practice and policy? Then check out our series of free webinars running next month! There’s three virtual sessions running and delegates can register now. The first ‘Brothers and sisters – our rights to...

Stand Up For Siblings is delighted to share Scotland's Adoption Register new recruitment video! It is fabulous.

Researcher Kirsty Deacon writes for the Stand Up For Siblings website about her work on young people’s experiences of having a sibling in prison… From the 26th of July 2021 brothers and sisters’ rights to a family life have a greater protection in law in Scotland....

On the latest blog post on Celcis website, consultant Saffron Rohan discusses the development of the National Practice Guidance to support care experienced children and their brothers and sisters, and the importance of embedding lived experience in policy and...

Renfrewshire Council has produced a ground breaking new policy aimed at keeping brothers and sisters together. The local authority worked with Renfrewshire Champion’s Board to consult with young people and co-produce the policy ‘Keeping Brothers and Sisters Together’....

Stand Up For Siblings is arranging a series of webinars later this year. Plans are being finalised, but they will take place during the week of Monday 4 October. Topics will include: rights and participation, research, practice and policy. One of the webinars will be...

It’s a sad time for Stand Up For Siblings (SUFS) as we say farewell to our founder and inspiration – Dr Christine Jones. It is fitting that Chris’s last week with SUFS is the one in which the new laws to respect brothers and sisters’ rights to family life come into...

Today, Monday 26 July, marks publication of the new National Practice Guidance - Staying Together and Connected: Getting it Right for Sisters and Brothers. To celebrate the occasion, STAR, Siblings Reunited have produced this short video on behalf of children and...

Aileen Nicol, Head of Improving Protection and Permanence at Celcis, a member of Stand Up For Siblings, has written a blog about the new National Practice Guidance ‘Staying Together and Connected: Getting it right for sisters and brothers’. Click here to view.

From Monday 26 July 2021, the law is changing on what local authorities and Children’s Hearings have to do to support brothers and sisters. Clan Childlaw - a Stand Up For Siblings partner - has created a helpful guide to the changes on their website, covering: What...

A pilot initiative is underway to map the relationships of siblings. The map is a visual aid to help social workers prepare reports for Children’s Hearings or to help panel members make more informed decisions in Hearings about siblings. The pilot has been launched in...

Karen Morrison from STAR, Siblings Reunited, has won a Pride of Scotland award. Karen received the Special Recognition award for all her work with the Fife-based charity which reunites brothers and sisters and allows them to spend time together. The awards have been...

Next week will see really important changes to the law come into force which are designed to respect brothers and sisters’ right to family life. The changes are the result of a long campaign to protect the brother and sister relationships of children with experience...

Stand Up for Siblings has submitted a response to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child Day of General Discussion on "Children’s Rights and Alternative Care" which takes place from 16 - 17 September 2021. Read our submission here.

Thanks to everyone for your interest in Stand Up For Siblings. We have received a number of enquiries for presentations or slides, so we have created a short powerpoint which gives you some background information on our work. If you have any questions or comments,...

Angela and Margaret are students studying for a Bachelor of Arts in Education and Social Services at the University of Strathclyde. They recently embarked on placement with the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA) as part of their course, with the aim to...

The Scottish Government has asked CELCIS to develop Practice Guidance to accompany some legislative changes to uphold the rights and meet the needs of brothers and sisters with care experience. Most of these legislative changes are due to come into force on 26 July...

The Promise team has launched The Plan 2021-2024. This important document provides a road map for change over the next three years focusing attention on the issues of greatest importance to children, young people and their families such as being listened to,...

The Minister for Children and Young People Maree Todd has congratulated Stand Up For Siblings on its third anniversary. In a short video clip, the Minister thanks the partnership for all its work and achievements. She said there had been great progress in practice,...

“I don’t feel so alone in the world” (Sandy, 8 February 2021 on BBC News) This was not a conversation about isolation caused by Covid-19 which has dominated most people’s narrative over the last year, or someone who was beginning to see some light at the end of the...

Karen Morrison, found of Siblings Reunited (STAR) celebrates Stand Up For Siblings third anniversary… A massive happy third birthday to our team at SUFS! I could not be prouder of being a founding partner of a cause so close to our hearts here at Siblings Reunited...

The Care Inspectorate are proud to be part of the Stand Up For Siblings partnership.  We first reached out to colleagues in SUFS at the start of 2019.  Our Young Inspection Volunteers who have lived experience of care, were making a video about the importance of...

Changes to the Rules of Procedure in Children’s Hearings on giving siblings the opportunity to participate in Hearings will apply from 26 July 2021. The changes will make sure that brothers and sisters can take part in decisions at Hearings that might affect them...

New Regulations creating a duty to place siblings together will take effect on 26 July 2021: The Looked After Children (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2021 make changes to the The Looked After Children (Scotland) Regulations 2009. The new duty was committed to in...

“I can’t believe it’s been three years since Stand Up for Siblings officially launched, and even longer since we started to shape our collaborative work.  Working together across sectors and disciplines has been really effective for raising awareness of hurdles faced...

As part of Kinship Care Week next month, tickets are now available for a free webinar on siblings in Kinship care. Taking place on Wednesday 17 March, the session is aimed at practitioners who undertake assessments and support Kinship carers and the children they care...

STAR, Siblings Reunited has featured in a new podcast. Karen Morrison from the Fife-based charity appears on the podcast ‘Down the Lane’. In the 12 minute broadcast she talks about the work of the project and the importance of keeping siblings together. You can tune...

Stand Up for Siblings is really pleased to see there is now a date for the new laws on brothers and sisters in care that were recently agreed by the Scottish Parliament. The new measures will apply from 26th July 2021. These are: a duty on local authorities to promote...

Brothers and sisters who are separated get the chance to celebrate Christmas together thanks to STAR, Siblings Reunited. Throughout December the Fife-based charity, throws open its doors for an almost daily festive celebration for brothers and sisters. Christmas Eve...

A Siblings Webinar Event on Tuesday 17 November was one of the highlights of Adoption Week Scotland 2020 as it promoted one of the three main themes – Siblings. You can find out more here.  The focus of the event was to talk about the importance of keeping siblings...

Janine Fraser, Independent Reviewing Officer at Glasgow HSCP writes for the Stand Up For Siblings website about the new team and their role… A new Independent Care and Review Team in Glasgow HSCP was launched this September and I am privileged to be one of the 4 new...

  Sue Austin writes for the Stand Up For Siblings website about her PhD research at the University of Bristol. Her research will explore the experiences of siblings who become separated through adoption from local authority care in the UK. This study explores the...

Janet Cormack, from Clan Childlaw writes about meeting siblings’ rights to participate in Children’s Hearings following the Supreme Court judgment in two Scottish cases… In November 2019, the UK Supreme Court heard two Scottish cases, ABC v Principal Reporter and In...

To mark Adoption Week which will take place from 16 to 20 November, a webinar will be held at 7pm on Tuesday 17 November. This webinar will focus on maintaining relationships between brothers and sisters either through adopting sibling groups and/or promoting and...

The COVID-19 pandemic has meant that one critical project which brings siblings together, has had to close. STAR, Siblings Reunited, has had to temporarily close its doors during lockdown. Although restrictions are easing, the Fife-based charity is still waiting to...

Stand Up for Siblings are delighted that the law in Scotland was recently changed to specifically protect and support the siblings relationships of children in care, and also siblings experiencing court proceedings following family breakdown. These changes follow a...

Stand Up for Siblings is proud to support Adoption Week which will take place from 16 to 20 November.  Adoption Week celebrates adoption in Scotland and one of the themes of this year’s campaign is sibling relationships. Adoption Week is funded by the Scottish...

Today (Tuesday 25 August) is a hugely important day for all children in care who have brothers or sisters. It is the final opportunity for MSPs to consider and vote on amendments to the Children (Scotland) Bill, which will be debated in the Scottish Parliament this...

SUFS is delighted that the work to implement the findings of the Independent Care Review has begun.  The Review's recommendations, known as 'The Promise', include a strong focus on supporting the relationships of brothers and sisters in care, with the clear message...

On Tuesday 21 July at 1-2pm the Child Law Network are hosting a live panel discussion on the recent Supreme Court judgment on sibling rights in children’s hearing with Lucy Frazer and Alison Reid from Clan Childlaw and Lynda Brabender QC, who represented ABC in the...

On Tuesday 23rd June, the Justice Committee considered a variety of amendments to the Children (Scotland) Bill as the new law progressed through Stage 2 of legislative scrutiny. MSPs voted through important changes to the wording of the Bill, which will now further...

The Supreme Court today handed down its judgment in two cases involving the rights of brothers and sisters in Children’s Hearings. The Court ruled that following adaptations to Children’s Hearings, such as direction to Reporters and guidance for Panel Members, the...

Stand Up For Siblings is encouraging as many people as possible to complete a survey on experiences of Children’s Hearings during lockdown. A research team based at the University of Strathclyde is gathering the views and experiences of people participating in...

The Stand Up for Siblings coalition is delighted that yesterday’s debate in the Scottish Parliament signalled such strong support among MSPs for changing the law to support brothers and sisters in care. MSPs were debating the Children (Scotland) Bill at Stage 1 of the...

Yesterday, in a response to a question in the Scottish Parliament on the progress made implementing the conclusions of the Independent Care Review, Deputy First Minister John Swinney announced that Fiona Duncan has been appointed to Chair the independent oversight...

Stand Up For Siblings welcomes the Children (Scotland) Bill stage 1 report published today by the Scottish Parliament. The report makes four important recommendations in relation to contact with siblings. These are: "Recommendation: The Scottish Government should...

Recently we were reminded on social media that from time to time everyone, no matter what their status or role, needs the support of their brothers and sisters.  This came as the First Minister’s sister came to her defence in response to online criticisms. At times of...

It’s hard to believe it is two years since Stand Up For Siblings was launched in March 2018. We had just recovered from ‘Beast from the East’ when partners from across public, private and the third sector came together for our launch at the University of Strathclyde....

While in Scotland written court judgments relating to siblings remain rare (the exceptions being the current cases ABC and XY which the Supreme Court will decide appeals on imminently), there are a number of written English judgments which we have been interested to...

Visitors to the Stand Up For Siblings website might be interested to watch a parliamentary debate in the House of Commons on sibling contact. The debate on Wednesday 4th March 2020, was led by Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck MP, who is calling for a change to the law in England...

The series of reports released today (Wednesday 5 February) clearly sets out the direction of travel required to transform the care system into one which places lived-experience, family and relationships at its heart. Anyone reading the reports will be under no...

Stand Up For Siblings has re-worked our ‘Seven Steps to Sibling Relationships’. These more detailed Seven Steps aim to provide a road map to all those of you who share our ambition and determination to stop sibling estrangement when children become involved with the...

On Tuesday 21 January, SUFS partners Who Cares? Scotland (WC?S) and CELCIS gave evidence the Justice Committee on the Children (Scotland) Bill, speaking to the provisions in the Bill and the Family Justice Modernisation Strategy in relation to sibling relationships....

If you tuned into the Radio 4 File on 4 programme on sibling separation, you would have heard Theighan's story. You can still tune into the programme here. In addition, Theighan has written a blog for the Who Cares? Scotland website about being separated from her...

BBC Radio 4’s ‘File on 4’ has recorded a programme on Separated Siblings to be broadcast this evening, Tuesday 14 January, at 8pm. The programme will highlight the magnitude of the issue of sibling separation across the UK and share first-hand experiences of care...

  Stand Up For Siblings presented to an audience in Wales yesterday on adoption and siblings in care. Representing the partnership, Dr Gillian Henderson from SCRA presented on 'The permanence of adoption in Scotland and siblings in care' at the annual ExChange...

The Stand Up For Siblings partners would like to offer best wishes in this festive season to all of our allies in the fight to protect the rights of brothers and sisters involved with the care system. We would also like to express our gratitude for your support...

The Stand Up For Siblings coalition has responded to the Children (Scotland) Bill and Family Justice Modernisation Strategy. The response includes several case studies. You can view our response here.

Stand Up For Siblings has won the prestigious Herald Society Partnership Award. Fourteen representatives from the multi-agency partnership attended the award ceremony in Glasgow on Wednesday evening. Stand Up For Siblings joined 250 guests to celebrate the 12th annual...

Stand Up for Siblings is delighted to be shortlisted for the Herald Society Awards 2019. The movement is a finalist in the Partnership category. The award ceremony takes place on Wednesday, November 6 2019 in Glasgow. Dr Chris Jones who co-ordinates SUFS said: “It is...

A new report has been published by the Family Rights Group on Kinship Care. In it, they report that around 70% of the kinship children included in their study have a sibling or half sibling who is not living with them. Around a third of these are placed elsewhere in...

The Justice Committee has launched a call for views on the Children (Scotland) Bill. Stand Up For Siblings will be making a submission. You can find out more here. The deadline for submissions is Friday 15 November 2019. In the meantime, Stand Up For Siblings has...

Kate Richardson and Anne Begbie’s roles within the council are a good match with the philosophy and drivers of the Stand Up For Siblings network. Kate is the lead practitioner for overseeing all transitions for children from interim foster care into permanent...

Following the commitment made by Minister for Children and Young People Maree Todd MSP earlier this year to improve the law for brothers and sisters in the care system, the Scottish Government has published its proposals: the Children (Scotland) Bill and Family...

Two Scottish appeals involving the rights of siblings in the Children's Hearings System will be heard by the UK Supreme Court later this year.The cases concern the opportunities siblings currently have to be involved in the decision-making by Children’s Hearings about...

Booking is now open for a seminar 'Beyond Together or Apart - making plans for siblings in care’. The seminar, organised by the Adoption and Fostering Alliance Scotland, will take place on Wednesday 6 November 2019 at the Jurys Inn, Glasgow.The seminar will give...

On 28 May the Scottish Government launched a consultation to ask the public how the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child should be incorporated into the law in Scotland. The Scottish Government has committed to incorporating the international human...

In March we heard the exciting news that the Scottish Government plans to improve the law for brothers and sisters in the care system. Minister for Children and Young People Maree Todd MSP later confirmed in an answer to a parliamentary question from Kezia Dugdale...

STAR is the only specialist service in Scotland offering support with contact for brothers and sisters in care. Today it celebrates its sixth birthday. Stand Up For Siblings are proud to have STAR as a partner organisation and would like to wish everyone at STAR much...

Further to the announcement made by the Minister for Children and Young People on the first anniversary for Stand Up For Siblings, more information has become available. The Minister responded to a Parliamentary Question from MSP Kezia Dugdale. You can see the...

Stand Up For Siblings has welcomed the announcement made by the Minister for Children and Young People, Maree Todd MSP, today.Earlier today the Minister announced that there are plans to make improvements to the law for brothers and sisters who are in the care system....

Today, the Minister for Children and Young People, Maree Todd MSP announced that there are plans to make improvements to the law for brothers and sisters who are in the care system. The law is to be strengthened in relation to keeping brothers and sisters together...

The Stand Up For Siblings collaboration was launched in March 2018. The launch marked the coming together of a number of organisations committed to supporting brothers and sisters to stay together or stay in touch when children and young people enter care. One year on...

It's almost a year since Stand Up for Siblings launched on 9 March 2018! On 8 March 2019, the Stand Up for Siblings partners are looking forward to a conference organised by two of its members Clan Childlaw and Siblings Reunited (STAR) which will look at practice,...

A number of new resources have been added to the Professionals section of our website, under 'Further reading and resources'. Click here to read the latest publications. If you have any items you would like added to this section, then please get in touch. You can...

On December 12th 2018, the ‘Positive About Youth’ awards ceremony took place, which is organised by Renfrewshire Youth Voice. Sisters Chloe and Danielle won the ‘Campaign for Change’ award for their incredible contribution to the Stand Up For Siblings project, where...

Social Work Scotland are inviting suggestions for workshops at their Annual Conference & Exhibition on Wednesday 12 and Thursday 13 June 2019 on the theme of Rights, Relationships and Recognition. Make sure sibling relationships are on the agenda! Find out...

On Friday 25 January, Stand Up For Siblings was pleased to welcome to Scotland Professor Daniel Monk and Dr Jan Macvarish to present their recently completed research ‘Siblings, contact and the law’. A summary of the research is available here. The slides from the...

In this blog for Stand Up For Siblings Sharon Laing from the Adoption and Fostering Service in East Ayrshire Council talks about the attention paid to sibling relationships within their service and provides some real examples of how this works in practice…East...

The Inner House today decided that the current way that the Children’s Hearings System considers brothers and sisters is compatible with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. You can view the judgment here. For responses to the judgment, you can view a...

In the UK, and in other countries, child protection policies have moved towards earlier intervention in the lives of vulnerable children and achieving permanence more quickly for looked after children. This comes from evidence that stability of placement and early...

CELCIS has been focussing on evidence into practice with its digital publication, REACH. Each day new articles, blog posts, podcasts and film interviews have been telling the stories of projects that are happening right now across Scotland to improve outcomes for...

No matter each organisation’s role and function, Scotland’s corporate parents share the same goals – to uphold the rights and safeguard the wellbeing of care experienced children and young people. Achieving these goals requires a whole range of activities, and with...

Stand Up For Siblings has responded to the Scottish Government’s consultation on the Review of Part 1 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and creation of a Family Justice Modernisation Strategy. You can review the response here. If you have any questions about the...

CELCIS (Centre for Excellence for Looked After Children) and SCRA, both partners in the Stand Up for Siblings movement, have worked together to produce a new research report. The report ‘Contact Decisions in the Children’s Hearings System’ is available to read here....

Sibling contact is one of the issues the Scottish Government is seeking views on as it reviews the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and shapes its family justice modernisation strategy. This is a great opportunity to speak up for changing the law and guidance to help...

Stand Up for Siblings is delighted to see protecting and supporting sibling relationships is among the 12 key intentions set out by the Independent Care Review that will shape the next stage of its work. The Care Review has reached an important milestone as it starts...

  Thank you to all of you who participated in Stand Up For Siblings Event in March and also to those who could not attend, but have shown an interest. We are impressed by the immediate impact that the event is having on social work practice. Professionals have...

Amy Davidson, a young champion with The Fostering Network, reflects on her experience of speaking at the recent Stand Up For Sibling conference… “Being asked to speak about my experiences in the care system has given me a platform to make change. Most importantly the...

Fiona Duncan, chair of the Independent Care Review has pledged that the Care Review will work with Stand Up For Siblings to understand how to make life better for brothers and sisters in care across Scotland. 1000 Voices (commissioned by the Care Review and delivered...

Clan Childlaw and Siblings Reunited (STAR) have come together to launch a series of workshops to help facilitate sibling contact. The workshops are free and are taking place across Scotland from spring 2018 onwards. The first session has already taken place in...

  Stand Up For Siblings has received the support of the First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon. At the launch event on Friday 9 March, in a pre-recorded message, the First Minister said: “One issue that’s been raised time and time again is the relationship between young...

David Faith, Policy and Learning Coordinator, Who Cares? Scotland writes about the importance of keeping brothers and sisters together… “The issue of sibling separation and contact is perhaps the key issue for understanding why, and to what extent, the care system in...

A multi-agency event will take place on Friday 9 March 2018 to formally launch Stand Up for Siblings. Stand Up For Siblings is a collaboration between a number of child welfare, children’s rights and legal organisations and academics within Scotland including Who...

Welcome to our new online resource - Stand Up For Siblings! The site has been created for anyone with an interest in sibling relationships of looked-after and care experienced children and young people. We have brought together our expertise (legal, policy, practice,...

Two Scottish sisters, Chloe, age 18, and Danielle, 17, generously and bravely have agreed to share their experiences of sibling separation and contact. Thanks to both of them for sharing their story. Watch the video below.

  Helen Sharon Johnston – pictured centre with her sisters - writes for Stand Up For Siblings about her experiences… As a child growing up I didn’t like my brothers and sisters, we fought all the time, and very rarely got along. If you’d asked my parents they’d tell...