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Types of adoption

There are four main types of adoption in the UK: adoption of a child from foster care; fostering to adopt; non-agency adoption and overseas adoption.

Adopting a child who is being looked after by a local authority

Local authorities are responsible for safeguarding children, sometimes placing children in care with a foster carer or family member while the Court makes a decision on their long term future. If the child is unable to return home, or find a permanent home within their family network, the Court may make a Placement Order which allows the child to be placed with an adoptive family.

The child's social workers then look for adopters for the child, which is known as matching. When a suitable family is found, the child is supported to move in with their new family. The social workers continue to support the new family after the child is placed to make sure the child has settled. After a minimum of ten weeks, the adopters can apply to the Court for an adoption order.

'Looking at our kids asleep every night makes our hearts soar; we look at each other and smile, and still can't believe how lucky we are to have two such gorgeous children.' – Andy and Paula, Adopters

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Fostering to adopt

Local authorities have a duty to ensure that every child with a plan for adoption is placed in their permanent home as soon as possible. A foster to adopt placement must be considered in every case where the child cannot be cared for by their birth family.

If the courts have not granted a Placement Order but it is likely that this will be the outcome of legal proceedings, a child can be placed with approved adopters who are also assessed and approved as foster carers for the child. These people will provide the day-to-day care for the child as their foster carers.

If the Court decides that a Placement Order should be made, because there is no possibility for the child to return safely to the care of their parents, the foster adopters then go onto adopt the child once the Placement Order is made. This means that the child has lived with their permanent family as from as early as possible and that they have not had to live in a temporary foster care placement while the decisions about their future were being made.

Foster to Adopt can also be used for children who will be joining older siblings recently placed for adoption, babies whose parents have requested that they are adopted, or babies whose parents are in care themselves. While not every child has contact with their birth parents during the Court process, some contact is usually expected by the Court who must ensure that birth parents have every reasonable chance to parent their children.

It is not appropriate to use fostering for adoption where there is a strong likelihood that a child will return to the care of their parents. We consider the risks with the potential adoptive parents of a child leaving their care.

However, sometimes, a family member will come forward at a relatively late stage in the Legal Proceedings, and then we have to explore the potential for the child to grow up in their extended family network. Some adoptive parents feel that this is a risk worth taking because Fostering for adoption allows the child to get to know their new family from the earliest possible age.

'The positives of Fostering for Adoption are enormous; the child doesn't experience multiple moves with different carers and the adoptive parents have the chance to nurture the child from a very young age.' – Wendy Wood, Service Manager.

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Non agency adoption (including adopting as a step parent)

It is sometimes possible to adopt a child who was not placed by an adoption agency (usually their local authority.) This is managed under private law-and is sometimes referred to as non-agency adoption.

The motivation for adopting under this pathway is usually to confirm an existing relationship, enabling the applicant to acquire parental responsibility for the child, and for the child to enjoy the benefits of a permanent family.

If you are awarded an adoption order the child's position in your family becomes the same as if they had been born to you, meaning that they have equal legal status with any other children you have parental responsibility for, now and throughout their lifetime.
They also can acquire nationality from you - if this is different from their own. Sometimes this does not impact on their being able to retain their original nationality-but some countries do not allow dual nationality - something to consider carefully.
Common examples of non-agency adoption include:

  • adoption by a stepparent. (Link to more detailed information)
  • adoption by a family member other than a parent
  • adoption by a foster carer
  • adoption following a surrogacy arrangement – only required if the intended parent(s) do not have any biological relationship to the child
  • adoption following adoption overseas but where the arrangement made in the child's country of origin is not recognised in the UK (see inter country adoption)

In any instance, before you can apply for an adoption order the child needs to have been living with you for:

  • Stepparent, Intercountry and surrogates - at least 6 continuous months
  • Foster Carer or a family member other than a parent -1 continuous year

Criteria

The same basic criteria apply as with applications to adopt a child placed by an adoption agency: you must be over the age of 21, be UK domiciled or habitually resident in the UK for 12 months and not have been convicted of specific offences.


Role of the local authority and Adoption South East

An adoption order may only be made by a Family Court following an assessment by the local authority or it's representatives. Under our partnership agreement Adoption South East undertakes non-agency assessments for residents who live in and pay council tax to any of the following local authorities: East Sussex, West Sussex, Brighton and Hove and Surrey. Potential applicants are legally required to issue notice of their intention to apply for an adoption order to ASE given that we act on behalf of the local authority.

If you are considering seeking an adoption order, we can offer an appointment to discuss this with one of our social workers. You can contact us here to start a discussion about the process.

Pending meeting the Social Workers and a statutory minimum notice period of three months, you should not apply for an adoption order to the Family Court. Once you have notified ASE that you intend to apply for an adoption order you must do so within 2 years of your notification.

Legal advice and other costs

It is helpful to seek legal advice - to help you understand the implications of an adoption order. Coram Children's Legal Centre is one example of where legal advice can be sought. Where legal advice is not free, you must fund this yourself.

Currently there is also a fee payable to the Family Court of £183 per child) if you progress to applying for an adoption order and you may require a medical examination in certain circumstances. If this is the case you will have to pay a fee to your General Practitioner for this.

Considering options

Adoption is a very significant step and unlike other arrangements it is irreversible, so must meet the child's needs not only now, but throughout their whole lifetime.

As well as conferring a legal relationship between the applicant and the child, it ends this with others, so can impact on a child's right to have a relationship and stay in touch with birth relatives, as well as affecting their inheritance rights.

If the child is very young there may be limited opportunity to assess what the full impact might look like many years later, or to involve the child in decisions about their future meaning that sometimes a less permanent option may be something to consider, at least for the current time.

The Social Worker can discuss this and other issues with you at your appointment. The appointment is intended to provide information and opportunity for reflection before you take further steps.

Role of the ASE Social Worker and the Children's Guardian if you make an application

Following your appointment, you may decide to provide notification of intention to apply for an adoption order. A Social Worker is then allocated to undertake an assessment.

They will gather and analyse information that the Court requires. The information is very detailed and is specified in the Family Procedure Rules.

To ensure that we capture all the relevant information we will ask you to complete a detailed application form (called a Registration of Interest Form.)

Much of the information you will provide to us directly, but we also need to ask other people and agencies about you and your family. This is because we have a duty to ensure that the child is and would continue to be, safe in your care under an adoption arrangement.

The Social Worker will arrange a series of appointments with you-in both your own home, and at our offices over a 3-month period.

We meet you with and without the child, and we meet everyone else who would be impacted by the proposed adoption. This includes anyone with parental responsibility for the child, as well as the child themselves.

At the conclusion of the assessment, the Social Worker make a recommendation to the Court having weighed up the benefits and disadvantages of all the available options.

This means that we may not recommend an Adoption Order if we think that there is a better option for the child.

The Court will consider the Social Worker's recommendation and in complex cases also receive a report from a further professional: a Children's Guardian whose role is to witness consent for adoption when this has been given by the birth parent(s,) and to represent the child's interests.

If you are not in agreement with the views of the Social Worker, you will have an opportunity to let the court know why.

Further Information
Further information can be found on the UK government website for adoption - Adoption: a guide for family court users (A20) and for Intercountry - Intercountry adoption and the 1993 Hague Convention (A21)

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Adopting a child from overseas

You can adopt a child from overseas if:

  • They cannot be cared for in a safe environment in their own country and the authorities there agree that adoption would be in their best interests
  • You have been assessed as eligible and suitable to adopt from overseas by an approved Adoption Agency in the UK
  • You will need to meet criteria set in the child's country of origin and follow that country's adoption processes

If you are a resident of East or West Sussex, Brighton and Hove or Surrey, you can access a service from our partner organisation the Inter Country Adoption Service. They are a valuable source of advice and expertise and are rated as an Outstanding adoption agency by Ofsted.

Making an enquiry and initial advice is provided to you free of charge under our agreement with ICA.

However, if you progress further with an application there are fees which you will have to meet, both within the UK and the child's country of origin. The costs can be considerable.

Further information on the costs of undertaking an inter country adoption are available from the above organisation.

Please be aware that you must follow this process even if you are a UK based foreign national, planning to adopt from your own country, or the child is a relative.

If you don't and you attempt to bring a child from overseas into the UK for the purposes of adoption, you could be prosecuted.

Please be aware that whilst the UK recognises the adoption orders made in some countries this is not always the case, meaning that you may be required to provide notice to ASE on return to the UK with your child that you plan to apply for an adoption order in a UK Court.

If this is the case the non-agency adoption process set out earlier would apply.