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BAAF comment on Government consultation on major changes to adoption law

Issued: 8 April 04

The Government has announced a consultation on how major changes to adoption law will be implemented. The changes, due to take effect next year, radically overhaul current arrangements for linking adopted adults and their birth relatives.

The Adoption & Children Act 2002 gave birth relatives a statutory right to request a regulated intermediary service to trace an adopted adult and establish if contact would be welcome. Under the proposed regulations new organisations - Adoption Support Agencies - will be able to provide this service.

Welcoming the consultation, Felicity Collier, chief executive of the British Association for Adoption & Fostering, said:

“We welcome this consultation which recognises the need of many birth relatives to seek information about children from whom they were separated by adoption many years ago. It also recognises the need of many adopted people to know more about their family history and establish contact with their birth relatives if they wish. Thousands of birth parents have waited for many years to explain to the children they gave up for adoption why they made this decision, and to gain reassurance that their children are alive and well.

“Many adopted adults want to understand the circumstances around their adoption and will welcome contact from birth relatives. Some may have hesitated from tracing their birth parents for fear of rejection, or because they did not want to disrupt their birth parents' lives. There will also be adopted adults who do not wish to be contacted. The new scheme recognises this and information will only be disclosed with an adopted adult's consent. Research shows that adopted adults who have been traced by their birth families, and not wanted any contact, were pleased that they were told of the enquiry and able to make their own decision about whether they wanted contact or not.

“Many adoptive parents understand that children need to know about their genetic origins, but some will be shocked by this development. All the evidence shows that if there are good family relationships between adopted adults and their adoptive parents, contact with birth parents does not jeopardise the relationship. ”

There have been around 875,000 adoptions since 1926. The number of adoptions peaked peak in 1968 when around 25,000 children were adopted. Last year 3,500 children were adopted from care. The decline in adoptions is mainly explained by changes in social attitudes towards illegitimacy, abortion legislation, and increased birth control. It is estimated that over 2 million people may be interested in applying to an adoption support agency or may be the subject of an application.

The consultation will run for four months and the regulations are due to come into force in September 2005.

Ends

Contact:

Lucy Handford, Media Assistant, 020 7593 2054

Note

1. The British Association for Adoption & Fostering (BAAF) is the UK's leading adoption and fostering charity.