Adoption needs to change, and it is changing, and regional adoption agency (RAA) leaders have a clear vision to modernise adoption to better meet the needs of children and their families.

Adoption England, a collaboration of regional adoption agencies and a small national team, works to improve and modernise adoption services and systems and launches today the new adoption strategy for England 2024-27 which outlines the overarching commitment for achieving permanence for children and giving them a sense of security, continuity, commitment, identity and belonging.
Over the last five years there has been a decline in children leaving care to a permanent home through adoption, special guardianship and child arrangements order or returning home. But the highest decline has been in adoption. In 2018/19 there were 3590 looked after children with an adoption order(AO), in 2022/23 only 2690 children had an AO, down by 25%, although there is more recent increase in plans being agreed so this trend may be changing.

There are many reasons for this decline including positive changes in social work practice focussing on family support and kinship care, the historic adoption legacy of closed adoptions, the impact of new case law and the pandemic. Despite an increase in recruitment between 2020 - 2022 there has also been a decline in adopters in the last 18 months, with less registrations of interest to adopt overall, but with regional variations. In some areas of the England the cost of living crisis has had a significant impact on the numbers of potential adopters coming forward.

Modern adoption is about encouraging more openness in adoption and maintaining relationships for children who are adopted. This helps to strengthen an adopted child’s sense of identity, reduce any sense of rejection, and enable them to thrive into adulthood. Modern adoption should offer comprehensive support services for adopted people and their adoptive and birth families. However, with public services under significant pressure there are serious challenges to meeting these needs within current resources.

This new strategy aims to tackle these challenges head-on and sets out the RAA leaders’ clear vision to modernise adoption to ensure that:

•Adopters from diverse communities are recruited, prepared, and supported to meet children's needs.
•Adopted people maintain relationships with people important to them and have a good understanding of the reasons why they were adopted.
•Children and young people, adopted adults, adoptive and birth families are listened to and have an influence in the services and practice provided nationally and regionally.
•Children move in with their permanent family in a timely way. Their needs are understood and met, and their feelings are held in mind and responded to sensitively.
•Adopted people and their families get tailored help and support when they need it.
 

Sarah Johal, Adoption England Strategic Lead said: ‘When adoption is in their best interests, it can offer children the chance to experience a lifelong connection, a sense of belonging with their adoptive family, and a feeling of psychological permanence. Over the next three years this Adoption England strategy will prioritise recruiting adopters from diverse communities, matching children with their permanent family in a timely way, ensuring that those whose lives have been impacted by adoption are listened to, maintaining relationships that are important to adopted people, and supporting adopted people and their families when they need it.

Our recruitment campaign @youcanadopt has been raising awareness of adoption, dispelling myths and addressing misconceptions for the last few years and we have adapted our approach over time based on what the data and those with lived experience are telling us and crucially the needs of the children.”