I would like to thank Adoption UK for this report and for those people who have taken the time to contribute to this. The barometer is an important report for regional adoption agencies to hear directly from adoptive families and adopted people about their experiences of adoption and helps provide important feedback to help improve the delivery and development of effective support.

It is encouraging to see that the work at the start of the adoption journey is improving with the approval and matching process seeing better responses this year and an improvement to 89% agreeing their social worker supported them well. It is also encouraging that there has been an increase in life story material and a written adoption support plan from previous years. Getting it right at the front end of the adoption process is important to help prepare and support adopters to better understand their children’s needs and prevent an escalation of issues as children get older. These are key areas of work for Adoption England, as set out in our new strategy.

It is encouraging to see that more adopters are staying in touch with important people to the child, including brothers and sisters and foster families. If we are to continue to have adoption as an option for some children leaving care, then addressing how we support birth families, adopters and adoptees is critical. Adoption England are underway supporting the culture change necessary with professionals as well as developing national practice standards around supporting relationships and connections for children. How we design this support, making the most of professional and lived experiences, whilst keeping them affordable, is a challenge.

The difficulties families experience accessing appropriate education and health support continue to come out strongly in the report, along with the delays for families accessing adoption support. Adoption England is committed to continue the work to ensure that adopted people and their families get tailored help and support when they need it. The Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) has been very beneficial for families and a derivation of its delivery model was received very positively by the sector as a potential alternative model during Covid. However, to date, the lessons learnt have not influenced consideration of future delivery options. Adoption England have been calling for an opportunity to test ideas and make better use of the funds to deliver therapeutic support in a more efficient and effective way moving forward. 

This report highlights that help and support is woefully inadequate for adopted people as they move into adulthood, as well as accessing their records and with a lack of emotional and practical support with reconnecting with family members. Whilst this is a key area of focus for Adoption England there are challenges about how much can be achieved without additional resources to undertake this important work.

Adoption England welcomes the report and agrees with the recommendations made  to improve the support available for adopted people and their families.