The adoption process
A brief outline of each stage of the adoption process to help you understand a bit more about what to expect
Are you the adopter we need? We need adopters for children of all ages, brothers and sisters, and children with extra needs. We are particularly looking for adopters for sibling pairs and groups, toddlers and young children age 4 years and older, and children with disabilities.
If you are willing to consider a child with complex needs or a sibling group then we can look at an Adoption Support Package you would require when a child or children are placed with you, as part of your assessment.
For a sibling group, we can look at a Settling In Allowance from the local authority to help you buy additional items, such as two beds or even three!
For a child or children who have complex needs, we will support you with approaching the local authority for an Adoption Allowance if you need to give up work or not return to work for a period of time, to enable the child/children to settle.
If you feel you have the skills, but would need some financial support to do so, please speak with one of our assessing social workers who can discuss with you further.
After reading through the information below, please download our information pack which contains lots more guidance and advice about the process as a whole.
Following your first enquiry, you will be invited to an informal information session where we will talk to you about the adoption process and answer any questions you may have. You will also have an opportunity to meet other prospective adopters and hear from experienced adopters.
If you decide that you would like to go ahead, you’ll be asked to complete a registration of interest form (ROI couple or ROI single applicant) and a social worker will meet with you (either online, virtually, or in way that works – depending on the coronavirus (COVID-19) current situation). After the information event you’ll be emailed a ROI form and asked to send back the ROI when it is complete.
If you are a second time adopter please contact the team for a discussion and they’ll send you a copy of the ROI.
If your registration of interest is accepted we can move you onto the more formal two-stage assessment process which should take about 6 months to complete.
