ASGSF 

Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund: Changes Announced by the Department for Education

On 14 April 2025, the Department for Education announced changes to the operation of the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF). Whilst the Fund will continue to support the full range of therapies that it previously did so, the maximum value of therapy that will be made available to a family has been reduced from £5,000 to £3,000. Furthermore, the Fund has ended its separate funding for Specialist Assessments. The costs of a Specialist Assessment must now be met from within a family’s Fair Access Limit of £3,000. Adopt North East is working to understand and mitigate the impact of these changes for families.

Now that the Department for Education has announced these changes, the Fund is no longer closed to applications. Accordingly, as soon as possible, the Agency will submit applications for consideration and approval by the Fund. The Fund have advised that the time taken to decide a claim may be impacted by the large national influx of claims that have been pending. Adopt North East will do all that it can to secure prompt decisions for its families.

The last few months of uncertainty about the support available has been challenging for many families. Adopt North East is extremely sorry that this has been the case. Now that there is clarity and the Fund is once again operational, the Agency will work tirelessly to ensure families are able to access the support that they need.