+ What is adoption?

Children who, for whatever reason, cannot live with their birth parents/family need the security, permanency and love of a new family. Adoption is the best way of doing this as full legal Parental Responsibility transfers over to adoptive parents and away from the birth parents at the point of a court given Adoption Order, and cannot be revoked.

+ What is the difference between adoption and fostering?

When a child needs to be placed outside of their birth family, the chances are they will initially go into foster care. Foster Carers provide a family home for a child whilst decisions are made about the child’s long term future, and the expectation is that, where possible, work will be done with the birth family to enable the child to return home. However if it is not deemed appropriate that the child goes back to their birth family, decisions will be made about the future placement of that child, and what official court order that would come under.

These orders include (i) Care Orders (which means the Parental Responsibility stays with the Local Authority) and the child will stay living with Foster Carers who work either for the Local Authority or a private fostering agency, and the child will have a Social Worker, and independent reviews until they leave care at 18; (ii) Special Guardianship Orders (where Parental Responsibility is shared between the Special Guardian(s) and birth parents) where either a birth family member, friend of the family or Foster Carer can apply to have permanent responsibility for the child, thus removing them from the Care system; or (iii) Adoption Order – where the child is placed with a totally new family and Parental Responsibility is removed from the birth parents and passed to the adopters permanently. The child is no longer then within the care system and his/her adoptive family have full legal rights and responsibilities for them.

Therefore Foster Carers have responsibility for a child whilst they remain in the legal care of the Local Authority.

+ How long does the adoption and fostering process take?

• The adoption and fostering process should take around 6 months. In general, the timescale for completion of Stage 1 (from your registration of interest to formal application) – should take around 2 months. For Stage 2 (from your assessment to your approval at adoption or fostering panel) should take around 4 months.

• Registration of interest (ROI): This includes a variety of checks such as police checks, references from local authority (social services), your mortgage provider or landlord, employer, personal references and a full medical check.

• The pre-assessment process (stage one): During this stage we’ll ask you to explore why you want to adopt or foster, whether adoption or fostering is right for you and what you could offer a child.

• Preparation training: Training sessions to give you more information regarding adoption or fostering.

• The assessment process: During the assessment, your social worker will explore your life story and family history. If you’ve children at home, they will also need to get to know them and understand how they feel about adoption or fostering . The worker will then complete a Prospective Adopter’s Report (PAR) or a form f if fostering. This will be presented to the adoption or fostering panel.

• Adoption or fostering panel and approval: The panel will consider the information provided and you’ll be invited to meet them in person. They’ll then make a recommendation to the Agency Decision Maker (ADM) about whether you’re suitable to adopt or foster.

• Family finding/matching: When you’re an approved adopter we’ll start looking for a child or children who would fit well with you and your family. This is called ‘matching’. Your social worker will support you in looking at profiles and expressing an interest in a child or sibling group whose needs you feel you can meet.

  + Why are children adopted?

  Children enter care for a variety of reasons; unfortunately today the most common reason is abuse and/or neglect. If social work teams cannot assist families to make it safe for children to return to live at home or with live with extended family, the decision may be made by courts that children require long term care through either adoption or long term fostering. Long term fostering is sometimes a more suitable option for older children or those children with very strong attachments to their birth family. Most of the children placed for adoption are cared for by their local authority in foster homes prior to placement for adoption.

  + Types of adoption?

• Adoption If a child cannot be looked after by their birth parents, he or she will be fostered or adopted. Adoption gives a child in care the chance to become part of a ‘forever family’ permanently. Adoption transfers all legal parental rights and responsibilities from birth parents, or a local authority, to adoptive parents.

• Concurrent care - fostering for adoption People taking care of children who may, or may not, return to their birth parents are called ‘concurrent carers’, or ‘foster to adopt carers’. Concurrent carers are approved adopters, assessed to take care of a specific child. They could later adopt the child if a court of law agrees.Some children are placed with concurrent carers with the potential to become their adoptive parents, rather than placing them in temporary homes.If a decision is made that a child cannot go back to and remain with their birth parents, the concurrent carer can apply to adopt the child.

• Special guardianship A special guardian is legally responsible for taking care of a child until he or she reaches the age of 18. Special guardians can be a member of the child’s family, or a family friend. A ‘special guardianship order’ is granted by a court before someone can take on this very important role. When a child is cared for by a special guardian they are no longer looked after by the local authority. All parental rights are given to the special guardian. Older children who do not want to be separated from their birth families are more likely to be looked after in this way. Unlike adoption, special guardianship gives a child a loving and stable home without separating them from their birth parents. Birth parents remain a child’s legal parents with parental responsibilities, however their ability to exercise these responsibilities is extremely limited.

  + Who can adopt of foster?

  There are many misconceptions about who can and who can’t adopt. However, there are just three criteria that you need to meet in order to be considered for adoption or fostering. You need to be at least 21 years old, living in the British Islands and in possession of a record clear of convictions or cautions for certain criminal offences.

+ How much information should you recieve about the child?

Adopters and foster carers should be given all of the information about the child and their birth family that is available to help them make an informed decision. This will include information on any health needs, the family circumstances of the child, their background and information about their birth parents.

+ Am I entitled to adoption leave?

Adoption pay and leave entitlements for adoptive parents are similar to the pay and leave rights available to birth parents. If you’re working when your adopted child joins your family, you’ll usually be entitled to paid time off work known as Statutory Adoption Pay and Leave.

If you’re adopting as a couple, only one person will be able to get adoption leave, although the other parent might be able to get shared parental leave or paternity leave.

Statutory adoption pay is, First six weeks: 90% of your average weekly earnings before tax.

The next 33 weeks: £145.18 per week or 90% of your average weekly earnings (whichever is less).

The next 13 weeks: unpaid.

Self-employed people are currently not entitled to any adoption pay.

+ Can I adopt if I have health issues?

As part of applying to adopt applicants have a medical that is usually conducted by their own G.P. Many health issues do not prevent people from adopting and the medical is influential in helping us decide about this.

In general, an adoption or fostering agency would be looking looking for people who are physically fit and well enough to manage the day to day challenges of parenting/ caring and who have a good enough level of emotional wellbeing to cope with the stresses of parenting/ caring for children from a variety of backgrounds. that applying to adopt and parenting can bring.

If you have a history of mental health, an agency would normally look at your current health and resilience, looking at individuals and couples and how they worked through their mental health issues. It can show resilience, strength and openness.

If you are living with HIV, an agency would want to stress that successfully managing your health, whatever your HIV status (or other illnesses) can show that you are a responsible adult and can be considered for adoption and fostering.

+ We have been in a relationship for 6 months, can we adopt?

While there is no regulatory requirement for a couple to be in a relationship for a specified period of time before they can adopt, the adoption process can be stressful and an agency would need some evidence that a relationship is likely to be able to withstand the adoption or fostering process before they can start any assessment and applicants also need to be able to provide references who can comment on the strength of their partnership.

Any agency would therefore usually expect that a couple have lived together for about two years before they progress any enquiry. However it is best to discuss this with individual agencies if your relationship is newer.

+ Can I adopt if I have a pet?

Of course, children love animals! However, you would have to ensure that whatever pets you have, they are safe to be around children. The agency would carry out a dog assessment as standard for all applicants who apply to adopt or foster. An agency may also ask for further assessments on other animals if we feel suitable.

What checks are required

There are lots of checks required for applicants wishing to adopt. This is guided by law and governed by the Government body Ofsted. The checks are to ensure that we place vulnerable children in the safest and stable homes possible. They include, police checks known as DBS, education, probation, social services, we will ask you for several personal references and will need to speak to your previous partners.

If you currently or have previously worked with children, an agency will need to seek employer references. There are certain criminal convictions that are considered a bar to adoption or foster but the agency will look into all criminal convictions on an individual basis and take into consideration the circumstances and time of the offence/s. You should always be honest and advise any convictions as early in the process as possible so it can discussed

+ Do previous partners get contacted?

If a previous relationship has resulted in the birth of any children an agency are required by Regulations to contact this ex-partner and seek his/her views, unless doing so would put you at risk. If you are at all worried about this please inform your agency as soon as possible. You should be reassured that an adoption and fostering agency understand that relationships can end acrimoniously and references from ex-partners may not always be positive, they will look at this information carefully in the light of all the other information they have gathered.

If you have lived with an ex-partner, even though there have not been any children from this relationship, it is good practice for an agency to make contact with them too.

We know that people often lose touch and the agency would ask that you make attempts to trace them via mutual friends or family or via social media. Again if you are particularly worried about this, please talk to the agency, they would never want to put someone at risk to get this information.

If you have been in a relationship of a significant duration (i.e. over 12 months) but haven’t lived together, again, the agency would want to, if possible, try to contact this person and obtain a reference. Any agency would never seek references without your consent or knowledge.

+ How do you make a complaint about an adoption of fostering agency?

Your agency will be committed to providing a quality service which is efficient, effective, timely and conducted in an open, friendly and respectful manner. If you feel this is not the case, you can contact your agency directly, or contact Proud 2 b parents who will be willing to listen and signpost you if necessary.

+ What makes a good foster carer?

Families come from a range of background and previous careers. Whatever background, all families have one thing in common;

• Are able to build good relationships with children and others around you
• Can see the potential in every child you foster
• Are reliable through a child's good times and tough times
• Can offer a secure, loving and caring home for a foster child

+ What are the different types of fostering?

• Sibling - Many of the children who need foster care are part of a sibling group. Being in care can be difficult for many children, but having their siblings with them can help them to feel more settled and safe. An agency will try to keep siblings together to maintain their family bond

• Parents and child - Becoming a parent at a young age can be overwhelming, especially if you’ve had a negative experience from your own upbringing. Fostering believes that families should be kept together wherever possible. One of the ways to achieve this is by ensuring that vulnerable parents have the opportunity to care for their children.

• Specialist - Specialist fostering scheme provides supportive placements for children and young people with complex needs who need individual care. The children that are referred to this scheme are typically teenagers who may have lived in a residential setting and need a supportive family home. They may have had difficult or traumatic life experiences and may display complex and challenging behaviours.

• Short term - Short term fostering is the most common type of fostering. ‘Short term’ can mean anything from an overnight stay to a period of two years. The need for short term fostering often arises at short notice in emergency situations. Children who require short term foster care need a temporary place to stay while plans are made for their future. As with all types of fostering, it is important that children are made to feel safe in short term foster care.

• Long term - The ultimate goal is for children in care to return to their own families, but this isn’t always possible. Long term fostering allows children and young people to stay with a foster carer for a longer period of time, allowing them to feel safe and secure. Where possible, children and young people in long term foster care maintain contact with their birth family.

• Respite - Respite fostering is ideal for people who have work commitments but still want to make a difference to a child's life by providing short term foster care. Respite foster care provides full time foster carers with a break. It's a great source of support for foster carers and it can benefit both the foster carer and the child by giving them a break from their usual routine.

+ What is a foster care allowance?

This is an amount of money paid to a foster carer or parent to cover the necessities of the care of a child. The foster carer allowance is reviewed each year by the government. Foster carers who look after children with specific needs might receive a higher amount. The allowance is dependant on your agency and can be varied from private agency to local authority.