First off, who can adopt a child in England or Wales? To qualify you must be over 21 and happy to make space in your life and home for a child.
Now let us dispel some myths, you CAN adopt if,
To adopt a child, you must go through an agency, either one that is part of your local council or a voluntary adoption agency. (See links at the end of the article).
The agency will supply information, meet with you to assess your suitability, explain the process and provide the application form.
Once you have applied there will be a full assessment of you (and partner if involved) including:
Your social worker will prepare and send the assessment report to an independent panel who are experienced in adoption. They will make a recommendation based on your assessment.
This recommendation will be sent to your chosen agency and they will decide if you are suitable to adopt or not.
If approved, the agency will work with the local authority to start the process of finding a child.
After matching potential adoptive parents with a child, the suitability of the situation for the child and parents will be discussed between the agencies involved. A matching panel will make the final decision.
Once a child has been matched with an adoptive parent/s, the process of moving in is taken, understandably, very slowly. There are a series of visits and stays, supported by your social worker to make the transition as comfortable as possible before moving in permanently.
Before a child moves in, Social Services need to obtain a Placement Order (unless the biological parents have consented). This order gives Social Services the power as an adoption agency to place a child with a chosen adopter (you).
Once the relationship is working well under the Placement Order and the child has been living with you for at least 10 continuous weeks, steps are taken to get an Adoption Order.
The effect of an Adoption Order is to make the adopters the legal parents of the child. The biological parents lose their parental status as a result of this Order, so it is an important step that requires careful thought.
If the child has been placed with you under a Placement Order, then their biological parents are not allowed to oppose an Adoption Order without permission from the Court.
In some cases, the biological parents may try to prevent the Adoption Order from happening, but you would know well in advance if that was going to be a risk. The biological parents will be told about a hearing for an Adoption Order even if they are not allowed to challenge it, and so you can be anonymous on your application.
In most cases, the adopters do not attend the first hearing in case there are any problems with the biological parents, and instead typically attend when the order is granted.
Once the Court is satisfied that adoption is the best option for the child, an Adoption Order is granted and the Court confirms that you are the parents of your adopted child.
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