Brothers and sisters
Vision statement four: Where living with their family is not possible, children must stay with their brothers and sisters where safe to do so and belong to a loving home, staying there for as long as needed.
Organisational Progress
What is happening
The materials reviewed describe a range of work underway to improve how support is designed, delivered and experienced, with the aim of cherishing relationships between brothers and sisters. Across the sources, the workforce describes systemic barriers to brothers and sisters living together, alongside the need for tailored support so that meaningful time together and lasting relationships can be enabled. Alongside this, accounts describe practical efforts to respond to these challenges through more flexible, relational and child-centred approaches, while also pointing to where limitations remain.
Click on the take me to navigation pane and jump to different sections here, including sources. To see what changes Scotland is making and still has to make for the promise to be kept, click on the relationships route map in Plan 24-30. See more about the work of change across Scotland here.
The materials reviewed describe work underway to establish specialised forms of support that respond to the specific needs of brothers and sisters who are living apart. This includes the development of dedicated, child-centred spaces equipped with appropriate resources and supported by staff with relevant skills and experience. In practice, these environments are described as places where brothers and sisters can spend time together in ways that feel safe, enjoyable and familiar, helping recreate a sense of ordinary family life.
Where dedicated spaces are available, approaches emphasise both physical and emotional safety, enjoyment of time together and attention to the relationships between brothers and sisters and their caregivers. Activities are shaped around the needs and preferences of each group, with flexibility to adapt plans in response to children and young people’s interests, ages and dynamics. The design of these spaces combines indoor and outdoor environments with meaningful activities that support connection.
The materials also point to the importance of providing regular and predictable opportunities for brothers and sisters to spend time together, particularly for those who have experienced long periods of separation or irregular time together previously. Consistency and continuity are described as helping relationships rebuild and strengthen over time.
The materials reviewed describe active efforts to engage caregivers in ways that support relationships between brothers and sisters. This includes recognising the practical and emotional challenges caregivers face when supporting groups of brothers and sisters, or when helping children and young people who are living apart spend time together. In practice, building connections between caregivers is described as a key approach, helping create informal networks of support that extend beyond formal settings.
There is also work underway to improve accessibility for different caregiver groups, including kinship carers. The materials describe efforts to make routes into support clearer and easier to navigate, alongside raising awareness of what help is available. These approaches aim to reduce barriers that can prevent some caregivers, children and young people from accessing support.
The evidence also highlights the importance of attending to caregivers’ own needs. Providing spaces where caregivers can rest or connect with others while brothers and sisters spend time together is described as helping reduce pressure and contribute to a more positive overall experience.
The materials reviewed describe approaches that focus on tailoring support to the interests, preferences and circumstances of each group of brothers and sisters. This reflects learning that a single, standard approach does not work, particularly where ages, relationships and experiences differ. In practice, flexibility is central, with plans adjusted in response to changing needs and family circumstances.
Creating a sense of normality is highlighted as an important aspect of this work. Ordinary activities such as watching films, sharing meals or spending time outdoors together are described as helping brothers and sisters feel connected and part of a family, despite living apart. The materials also recognise that supporting relationships requires careful attention to dynamics within groups, including age differences, previous experiences and how relationships have been shaped over time.
What is being learned about change?
This section draws together learning from the materials reviewed about how change is being understood and shaped in practice. It reflects what is emerging across accounts of work underway, rather than evaluating effectiveness or setting direction. The focus is on identifying patterns in how approaches are being adapted, what appears to make a difference to experience, and where learning continues to develop.
The evidence suggests that specialised support can help strengthen relationships between brothers and sisters when they are living apart. Dedicated resources, skilled staff and environments designed with children and young people in mind appear to create conditions where relationships can develop more naturally. Learning across the materials highlights the importance of responding to the specific needs of each group, particularly where these needs cannot be met through more general forms of support.
Key elements of success
- Dedicated resources and staff with relevant skills.
- Environments that feel safe, welcoming and enjoyable.
- Support shaped around the needs of each group.
- Partnership working that helps fill gaps in provision.
Examples
- Providing dedicated spaces where brothers and sisters can spend time together doing activities they enjoy, indoors and outdoors, without feeling rushed or observed.
- Planning activities that reflect the interests, ages and relationships within each group, with flexibility to change plans as children and young people’s needs shift.
- Creating environments that feel familiar and relaxed, helping time together feel closer to ordinary family life rather than a formal arrangement.
What to stop and what to change
- Reliance on generic support that does not reflect the specific needs of brothers and sisters.
- Limited access to skilled staff or appropriate spaces.
- Environments that prioritise supervision over enjoyment and connection.
- Sudden endings or gaps in support that disrupt relationships.
Learning across the materials suggests that engaging caregivers in meaningful ways strengthens support for brothers and sisters. When caregivers feel supported, informed and connected to others in similar situations, they are better able to sustain relationships over time. The evidence also highlights the importance of recognising structural barriers that can make supporting relationships more difficult for caregivers.
Key elements of success
- Practical and emotional support for caregivers.
- Opportunities for caregivers to connect with one another.
- Clear and accessible routes into support.
- Attention to what matters to brothers and sisters.
Examples
- Providing comfortable spaces where caregivers can relax while brothers and sisters spend time together, helping reduce stress and responsibility.
- Enabling peer connections between caregivers so they can share experiences, stay in touch and offer mutual support.
- Making routes into support clear and straightforward, reducing confusion and delays for families.
What to stop and what to change
- Limited involvement of caregivers in shaping support.
- Lack of awareness of available help across different caregiver groups.
- Complex or unclear processes that make support hard to access.
The evidence suggests that individualised and adaptive approaches are better placed to support meaningful relationships between brothers and sisters. Tailoring activities to what children and young people value, and adjusting plans as circumstances change, helps time together feel more relevant and sustaining. Understanding group dynamics and responding sensitively continues to be an important part of this work.
Key elements of success
- Activities shaped by interests and preferences.
- Flexibility to adapt plans over time.
- Opportunities for ordinary, everyday experiences.
- Attention to the dynamics within each group.
Examples
- Planning time together that reflects what brothers and sisters enjoy doing, rather than relying on set activities.
- Creating opportunities for everyday experiences, such as eating together or relaxing, that help relationships feel natural.
- Adjusting support in response to feedback from children and young people about what helps them feel connected.
What to stop and what to change
- Inflexible approaches that cannot adapt to changing needs.
- Failure to recognise and respond to group dynamics.
- Standardised activities imposed without consultation.
- Support that is not shaped by what brothers and sisters say matters to them.
Sources Referenced
The purpose of the below citations and summaries is to ensure that sources used are clear and accessible. Web links to the sources are provided, where possible.
Document summaries are provided for any document where analysis produced more than ten ‘coded segments’. ‘Coded segments’ refer to portions of a document that analysts identified and labelled as relevant to the key themes for each Vision Statement.
All documents that have informed the development of the Vision Statement, even if they had fewer than 10 coded segments, are cited in the ‘Additional Sources’ box below.
This report, published by AFKA Scotland, presents an evaluation of Siblings Reunited (STAR), a service supporting separated brothers and sisters in the care ‘system’ to maintain relationships through shared time together. The evaluation sought to understand what STAR achieves, how it operates, areas for improvement, and transferable learning for similar services. Methods included observations, surveys, an arts-based activity with children, a volunteer focus group, and interviews, and analysis of STAR’s policies and referral materials.
STAR provides a dedicated, non-statutory space (a farm-like setting) where siblings can meet in a relaxed environment. The service has a consistent group of long-standing volunteers, a wide range of flexible and inclusive activities, and a physical environment that supports play and emotional safety. The service also benefits carers and professionals by managing the planning of sibling meetings and offering carers space to connect during sessions.
Overall, the report highlights STAR as an effective, child-centred model for supporting sibling relationships in care, with clear lessons for practice emphasising safety, consistency, separation from statutory systems, flexibility, and attention to the emotional and physical ‘feel’ of the environment. They provide clear recommendations within their report for anyone wanting to create a similar service.
The evaluation also identifies several areas for development. These include reviewing the referral process to increase access for children in kinship and residential care, improving facilities for year-round use, and strengthening recording and documentation practices. Given STAR’s growth and current reliance on volunteers and donations, recommendations are made for longer-term funding and administrative support.
Process Evaluation of Siblings Reunited (STAR): Final Report. Association for Fostering, Kinship and Adoption (AFKA) Scotland, 2023. https://www.standupforsiblings.co.uk/2023/12/20/star-siblings-reunited-project-evaluation/.
Who Cares? Scotland—a national independent membership organisation for care experienced people, dedicated to supporting, empowering and amplifying the voices of Scotland’s care community—provided targeted analysis of their existing evidence for The Promise Story of Progress, sharing material that mapped to the relevant vision statements and contributed insight into how their internal data, participation activity, and qualitative evidence could inform the experiential strand of the Promise Story of Progress.
Their reports reflected advocacy work carried out between 1st January 2020 and 30th June 2025, during which time Who Cares? Scotland advocacy workers supported around 4,800 individuals. Although the report findings do not represent the experience of every care experienced individual in Scotland, they highlight issues that need continued attention as Scotland works to understand what is changing and what still needs to be addressed.
An anonymised and abridged collation of these reports is available at: Who Cares? Scotland. The Promise Story of Progress: Vision Statement advocacy reports by Who Cares? Scotland (abridged). The Promise Scotland, 2025. https://www.plan2430.scot/media/5hnlt5ye/wcs-vision-statement-advocacy-reports-abridged.pdf
CELCIS. “Family Pictures on the Wall and a Strong Sense of Self Growing up in Kinship Care.” 2025. https://www.celcis.org/knowledge-bank/search-bank/blog/family-pictures-wall-and-strong-sense-self-growing-kinship-care.
Cusworth, Linda, Linda Hooper, Gillian Henderson, Helen Whincup, and Karen Broadhurst. Born into Care in Scotland: Circumstances, Recurrence and Pathways. Scottish Government, 2022. https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/research-and-analysis/2022/04/born-care-scotland-circumstances-recurrence-pathways/documents/born-care-scotland-circumstances-recurrence-pathways/born-care-scotland-circumstances-recurrence-pathways/govscot%3Adocument/born-care-scotland-circumstances-recurrence-pathways.pdf.
Fostering and Adoption Statistical Bulletin 2024-2025. Care Inspectorate, 2025. https://ci-web-media-production-bucket.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/resources/annual_data_reports/fostering-and-adoption/fostering_and_adoption_statistical_bulletin_2024-2025.pdf.
Irvine, Jackie. Regulating for Better Outcomes: The Role of Oversight in Fostering. Care Inspectorate, 2025.
Keeping the promise: A Local Perspective. The Promise Scotland, 2025. https://thepromise.scot/resources/2025/keeping-the-promise-a-local-perspective.pdf.
Morris, Mary, and Anthony O’Malley. Keeping The promise in Regulation: Our Revised Approach to How We Regulate and Inspect Services for Children and Young People. 23, no. 2 (2024): 86–93.
https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/91003/1/Morris-OMalley-SJRCC-2024-Keepting-the-promise-in-regulation-our-revised.pdf