Information for Parents about adoption

Adoption is a way of providing a new family for a child when living with his/her own family is not possible.  Because we are an adoption agency, we are legally allowed to arrange adoptions by placing children with suitable families, but we cannot make the arrangements legally binding.  Only a court can do that by making an adoption order.  This ends the child’s legal relationship with his/her original family and gives him/her new legal parents.  (S)he becomes a full member of his/her adoptive family as if (s)he had been born to the adopters.

So adoption means changing parents, permanently.  This is such an important thing to happen in a child’s life that the law requires adoption agencies and courts to put the child’s long-term welfare first when they make decisions about adoption.

If your child is adopted, you will no longer have any legal rights over him/her, nor be able to claim him/her back.  You will not be entitled to see him/her again.  In a small number of cases a court may make an order for some contact between a birth family and the adopters.  This means that you need to think very carefully about the idea of your child being adopted.  If you have any worries or doubts or questions, we are ready and willing to help you all we can.  You may find it helpful to talk things over with your family and friends too.  Or you might want to consult someone like your doctor, clergyman or solicitor.

Knowing about you

Before we can arrange an adoption we are required by law to ask for a lot of information about you and your child.  This information is so very personal that the law says we must treat it as confidential (though we have explained to you that we need to pass some of it on to other people, that is the Adoption Panel and the potential new family).  We need all this information so that we will have the fullest possible picture of your child and his/her family background and can make the best decision about his/her future.  You can help us with this by telling us as much as you can about yourself and your family, and by understanding why we will be asking your doctor about the family’s health.

It is important for your child’s new parents to know something about his/her background, and over the years your child him/herself will want to know about his/her origins.  Information about the family’s health can be very important, too, especially when the child grows up, because some medical conditions are inherited.  It is therefore important to know about both parents and their families.

Choosing a family

We are required by law to make very thorough enquiries about adopters.  We ask them for all sorts of information about themselves and their background, and we try to make sure we understand what kind of upbringing they would offer to your child.  We have to be certain in our own minds that they will be able to meet your child’s needs, and we are not allowed to place him/her for adoption without first considering whether that will be in his/her long-term interests.

We hope you will find it reassuring to know that so much thought goes into choosing the right family.

Please let us know if there is anything special you would like us to have in mind when choosing a family for your child.  You may wish to provide or receive information or photographs after the adoption order is made.  You might, for example, want him/her to have a particular religious or cultural upbringing (and we can give you the names of any agencies which might be able to meet your wishes about this).  Or you might be anxious that (s)he should not be the only child in his/her new family, or that (s)he should have the opportunity to develop any special interests, such as a talent for singing.  We cannot promise to do as you wish, because we must always put your child’s interests first when choosing a family for him/her, but we will certainly take your wishes into account and do our very best to meet them.

Are you willing for you child to be adopted?

If you are, the court will ask a social worker independent of this agency (known as a guardian) to visit you and make sure that you understand what adoption involves.  S/He will need to be sure that you are willing to agree to your child’s adoption quite freely and without any conditions. Sometimes, if someone has already been identified to adopt your child then you may agree to placement with named adopters. More commonly where there isn’t someone the agency has in mind you to may give your agreement to placement with adopters chosen by the agency. If (s)he is happy that you have thought about it carefully and know what you are doing, (s)he will ask you to sign a formal document giving your agreement.  S/He will sign it too, as a witness.  S/He will then give this form to the court, and report to them that you do understand that is involved.

Once you have given your written agreement, you are not allowed to take your child away from his/her new family before the adoption hearing, unless the court says you may.  If you do change your mind about agreeing to adoption, you should tell the court and your social worker right away that you are withdrawing your agreement.  Parents naturally have mixed feelings about their child being adopted, and the courts are very sympathetic to this.  But although they understand why parents sometimes change their minds, their first concern must be the child’s welfare.  This means that if you have been happy to let the arrangements for your child’s adoption get quite advanced, the court may not think it reasonable for you to change your mind at such a late stage.  So they could dispense with your agreement and make an adoption order anyway.

All this will make it clear to you how important it is for you to think very carefully and discuss the matter fully before giving your written agreement.

Are you unhappy about the idea of your child being adopted?

A court can only make an adoption order if:-

a) You agree
b) The court has presented to it enough evidence to dispense with your agreement.

It can only do so if certain conditions are met.  The important thing is for you to consult a solicitor.  Your local Citizens Advice Bureau will be able to advise you of solicitors who specialise in this sort of work.

The court will also ask a social worker independent of this agency (known as a Guardian) to visit you.  Their job is to safeguard your child’s interests on behalf of the court, so they will want you to tell them why you do not think it is a good idea for your child to be adopted.  They will report your views to the court, because it is very important for them to know how you feel about your child’s future.  You will also have an opportunity to go to the court yourself if you want to explain why you are not willing to agree to your child’s adoption.  An adoption order cannot be made unless the court is sure it would be in your child’s best interests for him/her to be adopted, and they will have to take account of your views in deciding this.

Before a child is placed for adoption the court will need to grant something new called a Placement Order. It can only do this if you have agreed for your child to be adopted or they believe that  they can dispense with your agreement. Your solicitor will be able to advise you and give you more information about this situation.

If you are objecting to this agency’s application for a placement order, you are not allowed to take the child away from where (s)he is living at the moment, unless the court says you may.

When your child grows up

Birth parents must register their child’s birth and name him/her.  When adopted (s)he takes the surname of the adopters.

If your child is a baby the adopters may change the child’s first name as well.  They get an adoption certificate from the Registrar General, which shows the child’s new name only and shows the adopters as his/her parents.  This certificate takes the place of a birth certificate for all legal purposes.  But when your child reaches 18 (s)he will be legally entitled, if (s)he wants to, to get a copy of his/her original birth certificate.  This will show his/her original name, and will also tell him/her your name, and the address you were living at when his/her birth was registered.  It is important for a child to have knowledge of his/her origins and so information is passed to adopters for the child.