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NOTE: This information explains your legal position if social
services are concerned about your child’s welfare and are considering
Adoption proceedings. Written mainly for parents and carers, but the
information in it is also for other people, including other family members,
who are involved in the welfare of a child and may become involved in
Adoption proceedings. For specialist legal advice
we recommend you
seek the professional assistance of a experienced Solicitor. The legal framework for adoption is set out
in the
The Children and Adoption Bill 2006 which is now law. You can also
download a copy of the
Adoption and Children Act 2002
Adoption Advice
Who Can Apply For an
Adoption Order
»
Adoption
Panel
»
Placement
Orders & Consent
»
The
consent of a parent or guardian
»
Contact with Birth Families after adoption
»
Revoking a Placement
order for Adoption
»
note:
» Back to the top
of page
When children are taken into care they are usually “twin tracked”.
This means that plans for adoption are run alongside (twin tracked) against
any other plans, such as the child coming home or being placed with another
family member.
The apparent logic behind this is that if for any reason it is judged that the
child cannot be returned to the birth family, they have adoptive parents ready
and waiting for them and do not have to "languish" in the care system.
The government are also encouraging Local Authorities to drastically reduce
the time it takes from a child coming into care, to being adopted. This
is giving the parents hardly any chance to get a case together and fight for
their child. It is a disgraceful Dickensian system.
After 4 months of your child being in care
or accommodated social services will have to make a plan for permanence which
means a care plan will be made for where your child will permanently reside in
the future. They may well decide that your child should be adopted and this
should be included in the written plan. Social services have a duty to discuss
this with you fully. If a permanence plan was agreed that your children to be
returned to you, but then the Local Authority change it, place your child with
adoptive parents and fail to fully consult you about this then they are in
breach of the Human Rights Act 1998 and you must push your solicitor to bring
this to the attention of the judge.
If your child is under a care order, even an
Interim Care Order then the local Authority can legally place your
child with adoptive parents without having to apply to court to do so, because
they share parental responsibility (PR) with the birth parents and have more
say. But they have to apply to court to have your child actually legally
adopted.
If a child is accommodated (is in care with
the parents agreement) and social services decide to have the child adopted
the plan can only go ahead if at least one of the parents or another person
with PR agrees to it. They cannot place a child for adoption if they cannot
get someone with PR to agree to it, without a care order in place.
Before implementing a proposed adoption plan
for adoption the local authority must provide a counselling service for the
child and the parents explaining everything about the adoption and what it
entails for them and their children.
»
1. Who Can Apply
For an Adoption Order
Single people.
Married couples applying jointly.
Unmarried couples applying jointly (whether of different sexes or the same
sex).
A Step-Parent (provided the child has had his/her home with them for at
least six months preceding the application).
Foster carers (provided the child has had his/her home with them for at
least 12 months preceding the application, although they can apply for
permission from the court to apply within a shorter period).
Lesbian and gay couples.
Others not fitting into the above category (e.g. a partner of the child's
parent) - the child must have had his/her home with them for at least three
years preceding the application.
To be considered as adoptive parents, a
"couple" (married or unmarried) would need to prove they have a stable and
lasting relationship and that they can provide a loving family environment for
a child. There is also a continuing restriction as to age and domicile.
»
2. Adoption Panel
Social services must also prepare a report
for the “Adoption Panel” on the adopter’s home and suitability. This must also
contain all the information required under regulations about the child and
parents and parents.
This is a panel of between 7 and 10 people,
and may include social workers, adoption agency workers, medical advisers, and
at least two independent members. Parents are not invited to Adoption Panel
meetings. The social services plan will be considered and recommendations
made. These are based on:-
Whether adoption is right for the child
Whether the adopters are suitable to be
adopter’s
Whether the match of child and adopter is
right for the child
The local authority must notify (in writing)
the child, parents, adopters whether the panel agreed for the adoption to go
ahead or not. If the placement is approved the local authority can go ahead
and place the child with the adopters. The parents are not told the name and
address of the adopters.
The placement must be reviewed after 4
weeks, then after 3 months and then 6 months. This is just a formality.
»
3. Placement Orders & Consent
A Placement Order is an order authorising a
local authority to place a child for adoption where there is no parental
consent, or where consent should be dispensed with.
Placement by consent is the free unconditional agreement of the parent or
guardian of a child to that child's adoption.
The consent can be withdrawn at any time up and until an adoption order is
made.
Consent must be given on a special form and
witnessed by an officer from CAFCASS, (The Children and Family Courts Advisory
and Support Services). A social worker cannot just “tell” the judge you have
consented to having your child adopted.
In the case of a mother who has just given
birth, her consent will not be valid if given in the first six weeks of the
birth. If a child under six weeks is placed with an adoption agency they will
have to look after the child until it is six weeks old and then ask for
parental consent or apply for a placement order.
»
4. The consent
of a parent or guardian may not be necessary if:
The parent or guardian cannot not be found or they are incapable of giving
their agreement, e.g. because they are mentally ill.
The court is satisfied that the welfare of the child requires that consent
be dispensed with. The welfare of the child outweighs the rights of the
birth parents. However, the courts must still consider the impact on the
child of ceasing to be a member of his/her birth family and the change in
his/her relationship with the family that adoption would bring.
A court cannot make a placement order unless
an effort has been made to notify the parents or guardians who have parental
responsibility for the child that an application for a placement order is
being made.
Adoption proceedings will then follow as
above.
Once a child is adopted the all legal ties
with the birth parents are severed. They loose all parental responsibilities
and the adopters then have a legal relationship with the child instead.
When the adoption order is finally made for
the child the birth parents must be informed of this. But if they feel they
cannot face hearing this they can make a declaration that they do not wish to
be involved in any future questions concerning the adoption. It is always
worth staying involved through as you have the right to have legally ask
for the placement order to be revoked (cancelled) and your child returned to
you again if the child has not been adopted within 12 months of the placement
order, or if the placement has broken down within a year of the placement
order.
See below for advice on this. The LA or other adoption agency must send you a
written report confirming this.
»
5.
Contact with Birth Families after adoption
After a child is adopted the birth parents
are often given indirect contact once a year. (e.g.. A card via a third party.
This usually ceases from the adoptive parents after a while and the birth
parents are left very upset. However in some rare cases the birth family
still have some kind of contact with the adoptive family and the child by
Direct Contact (face to face contact
Direct contact could be open, informal and
unsupervised between the two families. It could also be carried out via the
adoption agency or local authority instead and be supervised.
Indirect contact can be both families
exchanging information about the child (letters, cards, gifts, photo’s,
videos), or just the adopters sending information. Sometimes it is the
adopters sending information via a third party. It depends what is arranged at
court.
If your child is being considered for
adoption and you do not consent you should always try and make sure you can
get some form of contact, direct if possible. Make sure the court is well
aware of your wishes, so that links with you and your children can still be
maintained. Other members of the birth family can also apply for contact. The
local authority do not have to agree to this if the child is under a care
order, but the judge can order that contact takes place. The adopters wishes
are also considered with regard to contact.
RESEARCH YOU CAN USE TO FURTHER YOUR CASE FOR KEEPING CONTACT WITH CHILD
AND BIRTH FAMILY
Most children who know and
remember their birth family feel very unhappy about losing these
relationships. They would prefer to stay in touch with these important
people.
(Thomas et al, 1999;
Macaskill 2002)
Staying in touch with
important people from the past can help children settle in their new families.
Birth parents can assure children who are worried about them that they are ok
(even when you are dying inside).
(Fratter 1996; Thoburn 2004)
Keeping in touch with the
birth family can help children understand their roots, and feel positive about
their background. (The LA may want you to do a “life story book” for your
child containing pictures of the family, etc so that the children have an
understanding of where they are from).
(Fratter 1996; Wrobel et al,
2003)
Contact with birth relatives
can help children feel better to know that their birth family still loves and
cares for them.
(Thoburn 2004)
»
6. Revoking a Placement
order for Adoption
The Adoption and Children Act 2002 received
Royal Assent and therefore became law on 7th November 2002. However, the Act
finally came into full effect on 30th December 2005. One of the provisions
was that “Freeing Orders” for Adoption were replaced by “Placement Orders”.
After one year has expired from the date of
the placement order for adoption, the local authority are bound by law to
inform the "former parents" whether an adoption order has been made and (if
not) whether the child is currently placed for adoption.
If the child has not been adopted after 12
months then the parents are legally entitled to apply to The High Court for
the placement order to be revoked (cancelled) on the grounds that they wish to
resume parental responsibility.
While the application is pending the adoption
agency or local authority having parental responsibility shall not place the
child for adoption without the leave of the court.
How to apply for Revocation of a Placement
Order:-
You can do this through a solicitor or you
can apply yourself by downloading the relevant form A4 (Application For
Revocation Of An Order Freeing A Child For Adoption) from the HM Courts
Service website.
See
http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/HMCSCourtFinder/Form.
You send the completed form plus the fee of
£80 to:-
The Royal Courts of Justice
Court of Appeal
1st Avenue House
42 - 49 High Holborne
LONDON
WC1V 6NF
