Child Care Solicitors

The entire adoption process, from initial assessment to approval, normally takes around eight months to complete, although it can sometimes take longer.

Following an initial meeting with an adoption agency and attendance at a series of preparation groups and/or information sessions, the applicant will be formally invited to make an adoption application. When this has been accepted you will be appointed a social worker to handle your case.

Adoption agencies provide prospective adopters with preparation groups and these are typically held following the submission of the formal application for adoption, although some agencies allow you to attend such groups before you apply, so that you can better understand what is involved.

At preparation groups, prospective adopters have the opportunity to meet up with more experienced foster carers and adopters. The groups are also usually attended by adopted adults and sometimes by birth parents. Here, you will learn all about the various challenges faced, both during the process of adoption and when raising an adopted child.

There are usually six to eight separate sessions of preparation groups involved and they cover a very wide range of relevant issues, such as child development, loss and trauma, identity and adoption support mechanisms and the actual legal process of adopting.

The assessment involves the agency asking a large number of personal questions that may seem intrusive, but which have your interests as a prospective adopter at heart. There is no charge for assessment if you are adopting a child in the UK. Your allocated social worker will, during the assessment process, decide whether you are a suitable candidate for adopting and if so, the type of child that will best suit you in terms of his or her age, ethnicity, health, language, religion and other matters. Your attitude towards the prospective adopted child’s birth family will also be looked at and whether, for instance, you would be amenable to maintaining some form of contact with them.

There will be six to eight home visits by the social worker, over a period of several months and during this time they will get to know your family members, friends and neighbours and be able to better assess the home environment. Your own childhood, past relationships, employment and other matters will be explored during this stage of the process to help decide on your suitability to adopt, checks will also be carried out in order to verify some of the details you have supplied.

A ‘Prospective Adopter’s Report’ will then be completed by your social worker and their manager, based on all their findings and this will include their recommendations on the sort of child you seem most suitable to adopt. This report is sent to a local adoption panel, which meets once a month and you will be invited to attend a hearing. Most people attending the panel, which is composed of professionals from relevant disciplines, are approved to adopt.

Your case will be reviewed annually until a child is placed with you and you will need to keep the agency informed of any changes in your circumstances in the meantime.

For further information on this and other family matters, contact specialist family and child care solicitors, such as Duncan Lewis.