The most recent statistics show that there were over 2000 children waiting to be adopted in 2022/23. Of those, many have additional needs. The sad truth is that having additional needs often means they wait, on average, 11 months longer in care than their peers. To address this concerning statistic, voluntary adoption agencies VAAs) across the UK have joined forces to find more adoptive parents for children with additional needs who are waiting for a family, and provide them with comprehensive information about the process involves. ARC Adoption North East is among 21 VAAs from all over the UK ..read more

This interview with Melissa was first published in November 2019. She is a mum of two children affected by attachment disorder. In the interview, she shares what that means for her and her family, and how she uses some of the techniques detailed here by Dr Mason, on a daily basis. You can follow Melissa’s brilliant account on Instagram @us2rabbitandmoo where she shares, very honestly, the highs and lows of parenting children with attachment difficulties. Did you know your girls were affected by attachment disorder before they came home? Through the adoption process, you learn about the differe ..read more

Life story work and contact with birth family is such an important part of the adoption process. But it’s definitely something where one size doesn’t fit all. How you go about it will depend on so many different factors. Some children haven’t lived with their birth family. Some have but were too young to remember. For others, their birth family will have been their everything for a lot of years. The majority of help and support that’s available to adopters and their children is from adults. Adults telling other adults how to share sensitive and sometimes difficult information with children. I ..read more

Adoption disruption continues to bring the most readers to the magazine when they’re looking for articles about it in search engines. So,  I thought it would be useful to hear from an adoption lawyer about the services they can provide to adopters who are facing disruption. Sarah from the Adoption Legal Centre has written this article to explain how they can help adoptive families. At the Adoption Legal Centre, we provide a wide range of services covering various issues that adoptive parents can face during their journey. The team Our team consists of Nigel Priestley, Sarah Brown an ..read more

Attachment is something a lot of adopted children struggle with. Learning to trust their caregivers is hard for children when they’ve been let down so badly in the past. Attachment-focused family therapy is something that can help children learn to trust their caregivers. Today’s article is written by Mikenda Plant who is a family therapist, supervisor, and trainer. Mikenda has worked for 25 years with children in care and adopted children, their families, and the professionals who support them. She is a Consultant & Practitioner in Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy. Mikenda is also the a ..read more

Having a massage is something a lot of parents use as a means of relaxing, switching off from their day, and getting some self-care. Some of the benefits of a massage include helping to reduce stress increase relaxation reduce muscle tightness improve your immune system Touch and massage can also have benefits for kids and are effective ways of building attachment, particularly with children who have experienced developmental delays and those with sensory issues. It is also a good way of supporting the development of motor skills. Many adopted children experience issues around attachment as ..read more

This article is written by Kate Brindley, a dedicated thrive coach. Becoming an adoptive or foster parent is a deeply rewarding journey, but it’s also one filled with challenges and uncertainties. From navigating the complexities of trauma to adjusting to the demands of parenthood, it’s easy for parents to feel overwhelmed and isolated. In the early days, it can often feel like you’re under a microscope, with every move scrutinized and judged. My name is Kate and as a thrive coach, specialising in trauma and attachment issues, I understand the unique struggles that adoptive and foster parents ..read more

The second article about post-adoption support is another Q & A about one family’s experience of asking for help. Their experience is similar to Christina’s, as no support plan was put in place before placement. Was a support plan agreed as part of matching or when your children were placed? We have two girls (sisters) and as far as I remember, there was no support plan as part of matching/placement. How long after your children had been home, did you realise you needed some extra support? We realised within the first month that we’d need help and extra support.  We were led to believ ..read more

When we started to consider adoption, I scoured the internet for stories from adopters sharing their experiences. I wanted to know what the assessment was really like. And how it feels when you meet your child for the first time. And what happens in the early days of placement. As well as eleventy billion other things. I really struggled to find many blogs or books from adopters. Ultimately, that led me to write my book about the adoption process from my perspective as an adopter. Since then, a lot of other adopters have taken to their laptops to share their experiences to help those thinking ..read more

Once you feel that you’re ready to move on to adoption, one of the first steps is to find an adoption agency that suits you. Finding an agency that’s the right fit might take time. They all have slightly different criteria so it’s worth speaking to a few before you make a final decision. This post looks at the difference between a voluntary and local authority agencies and how to decide which one to go with. What is an adoption agency? Adoption agencies have a range of different roles which will vary depending on the type of agency. These roles include: recruiting, assessing, preparing, and a ..read more