Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Trans (LGBT+) and thinking about adoption?
From the earliest days of adoption in England, it has been possible for single people (regardless of sexual orientation) to adopt. Same sex couples could not adopt and although adoption agencies helped many couples by approving one of the couple singly, it took a change in law from December 2005 to allow adoption orders to […]
Single and thinking about adoption?
There is nothing unusual about single parenting – around 25% of households in the UK with dependent children are headed by a single parent. Many people plan to have children but as the years pass by they may not find the right partner. Others may be happily single and not looking for a partner. The […]
Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund
The Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) has been established because many families need some kind of therapeutic support following adoption and too many have struggled to get the help they need in the past. The Fund will enable them to access the services they need more easily in future. How it works Who […]
Fertility issues and thinking about adoption?
Adoption is one of a range of alternatives that you may be considering if you cannot conceive and give birth to a child. You may have experienced miscarriages or secondary infertility. Your options Couples and single people who have fertility issues are faced with a number of possible options including: Assisted conception (IVF and other […]
Pupil Premium: school support funding
State-funded schools in England can receive funding to help them give extra support for all children adopted from care. It has been shown in various studies that children adopted from care do not perform as well as their classmates at school. Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) and Pupil Premium provides funding to help education providers […]
Adopting siblings
61% of the children waiting to be adopted will need to be placed with a loving family that could provide a home to their brother or sister also. Would you be prepared to adopt a sibling group? This may not be the first you think about when considering adopting a child but it’s probably one of the […]
Success stories: sibling adoption
This family was approved by DFW Adoption and the photograph tells the story of a happy family group and 3 children growing up together with their siblings. Our warm thanks to Peter and Stuart, adoptive parents, and their lovely children Rebecca, Ryan and Rihanna for allowing us to print their photo and their views. […]
Confidentiality
First4Adoption takes confidentiality seriously and offers a confidential service to those who contact us. You can choose to remain anonymous however sharing your information helps us to provide you with the best service. Any personal information that you choose to give us will be held securely and in compliance with data protection law, and will […]
Concurrent Planning
Concurrent Planning is for babies and young children under 2 in care who are likely to need adoption, but who still have a chance of being reunited with their birth family. Concurrent carers are dually approved as both foster parents and adoptive parents and perform the role of foster carers while the courts decide whether […]
Support for adopters
Due to early trauma and and separation, adopted children have often developed certain coping mechanisms that means they can find it difficult to form relationships and display challenging behaviour. You will have learned various techniques during your preparation training on how to cope with this but as you get to know your child you will become aware of the complexities […]