Five new Regional Adoption Agencies have been granted £3.4
million as part of the government’s ambition to create a
world-leading adoption system with faster matching, so
children are placed in a loving, stable homes more quickly.
The additional funding will go to 17 councils to speed up
the matching process between children awaiting adoption and
adoptive families, as well as improving adopter recruitment
and reducing costs.
Children and Families Minister said:
We want every child to be in the loving, stable home
that’s right for them, and adoption can transform the
lives of these vulnerable children - and their adoptive
families - in a remarkable way.
By coming together and joining forces through the work of
Regional Adoption Agencies, councils can use the network
to match children with the right families much more
quickly.
Regional Adoption Agencies were created to replace the
previous system of council adoption, to bring together
groups of local councils to work together on adoption. The
regional agencies help widen the pool of potential adoptive
families and help match children awaiting adoption with the
most suitable family as quickly as possible.
This model also provides more support for adoptive families
going through the process and for those considering
adoption, as well as helping to improve the quality of
services locally.
Regional Adoption Agencies were introduced with a
commitment for all councils to join one by 2020. To date,
141 councils have joined a live or developing regional
agency.
Chair of the Adoption Leadership Board, Andrew Christie,
said:
Regional Adoption Agencies will be the platform on which
a modernised adoption service is built; providing better
support to adopters and transforming the life chances of
many of the most vulnerable children. Funding five more
RAA projects is a major step towards this goal.
Heather Freeman, head of service of Aspire Adoption, one of
the first Regional Adoption Agencies, said:
I have no doubt that becoming a Regional Adoption Agency
has already benefitted children and families touched by
adoption or special guardianship in the Bournemouth,
Dorset and Poole local authority areas. Aspire Adoption
went live in July 2017, and within the first six months,
more children had been placed for adoption with local
families than ever before.
Combining the skills and experience of social work staff
from across the region has also resulted in improving the
support we can now offer families once those children
have been placed. There is much more to do but becoming a
Regional Adoption Agency was right for us.
The new Regional Adoption Agencies and the local
authorities involved are:
- Kent: made up of Kent, Bexley and Medway
- Coast to Coast: Cumbria, Durham and Sunderland
- Lancashire: Blackpool and Lancashire
- Ambitious for Adoption: Harrow, Bromley, Redbridge,
City of London and Slough
- Adoption for South East: Surrey, East Sussex, West
Sussex, Brighton and Hove
