First-ever survey of adopters reveals that they are made to feel like 'second-class parents' by adoption support services
Gretta Schifano
A report published by Adoption UK on Wednesday says that many adoptive families are not getting the support they need from the government or local authorities, and that current law regarding adoption pay and leave "sends out the message that adopters are 'second-class parents' and their children are 'second-class children'". Adoptive parents' statutory entitlement to adoption pay and leave is less than maternity pay and leave. Adopters must have at least 26 weeks' continuous service with their employer before being entitled to adoption leave, but mothers have the right to unpaid maternity leave no matter how long they have worked for an employer. Adopters who are entitled to adoption pay receive much less than maternity pay.
The report, It Takes a Village to Raise a Child, is the result of the first-ever survey of adoptive parents' experiences of adoption support, and comes as the government pushes to speed up the adoption process. Of the approximately 3,700 children adopted from the UK care system in the year to 31 March 2011, around 70% have been traumatised by abuse and neglect, says the charity, which can lead to major long-term difficulties. The report suggests that at any one time around half of adoptive families need support to deal with the effects of this trauma. The nature of the support depends on each family's needs, but the adopters surveyed felt therapeutic, education and counselling services to be the most helpful.
Before their child was placed with them, 62% of the 455 adopters surveyed said they didn't understand the importance of adoption support, despite the lengthy assessment and training process they had undergone. After adoption, local authorities have to assess an adoptive family's support needs if requested. Confusingly, although local authorities must have adoption support services, they provide them at their discretion. Almost two-thirds of the adopters were not informed of their right to an assessment and more than a third who had asked for an assessment had not received one.
Jonathan Pearce, Adoption UK's chief executive, says: "It's a national scandal that so many adopters are not even being assessed for adoption support, and support, not just assessments, should be a statutory entitlement."
Where local authorities had carried out assessments, 81% of the adoptive families had specific support needs identified. However, less than a third (31%) of them received those services in full, the survey found. Where support was provided, most said that it helped their family, and rated the services as good or excellent.
Clinical psychologist Dr Gordon Milson assesses children's support needs before and after adoption. He says that while children are in care, local authorities usually provide them with the support he recommends. However, once an adoption order goes through, the court's authority vanishes. "What I say makes little or no difference. It's just advice," he says. He believes that adoptive families should have regular wellbeing check-ups to spot any problems early on. He says: "There are many adopted children who prosper and do fantastically well, but there are some who struggle. The ones who struggle, we need to keep an eye out for."
Adoptive mother Sarah says she and her husband David had no idea what the effects of their children's early experiences would be when the children were placed with them aged one and three. Although both children had been neglected, and physically and sexually abused, she says they have been offered very limited personalised support beyond the obligatory check-ups before the adoption order went through. The children, Eddie and Lucy, are now teenagers: both have learning difficulties and exhibit inappropriate sexual behaviour. Sarah says: "It came as a shock when Eddie's problems really took off at age eight, and only then did we hear that this was due to his past." Eddie is destructive and has been excluded from school at times. Sarah works but David is at home because of the children's needs; they have lodgers to help pay the bills. Sarah says the children need therapy but there is no funding for this and the cost is beyond their means.
The Department for Education says local authorities must provide advice and information to adopters about support. "The provision of such support should be assessed on the individual needs of each case," says a DfE spokesman.
Pearce says it is problematic that adoption is under the control of both local authorities and the DfE, while support requirements cut across a range of government departments. "It's a failure of government to work collectively and jointly and co-operate on an issue that's of great importance. Given the fact that adoption is one of the bigger decisions that the state makes, there's a duty to make sure that those new families that are created are supported across governmental services, whether that's health, education, welfare benefits, whatever."
Lisa Nandy, shadow children's minister, welcomes the government's focus on adoption, but says: "Adoption itself is not a silver-bullet solution. Adoptive parents will often need ongoing support to ensure the best outcomes for the child."
Adoption can be transformative for children in care. However, without appropriate support, many adopters and their children struggle. Worst of all, adoptions can break down completely: no firm figures are available, but it is estimated that 10% of children adopted at three and 23% of children adopted between five and 11 go back into care, adding to their burden of trauma.
- Some names have been changed.
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