It is now the accepted wisdom that as adoptions become more complex, so adoption support becomes more necessary. New legislation underlines the requirement for all adoption agencies to continue to support families, directly or indirectly, after an adoption order is made, and the term “adoption support” now covers all the work with children, adopters and birth families necessary to make an adoption happen and to make it last. This marks a change from the recent tendency to draw a line between preparation and placement, post-placement support and post-adoption services.
But what exactly does adoption support mean? The diverse chapters in this book give a snapshot of what is currently happening, explore possibilities of what can happen and encourage thought about what should happen. All contributors are experts in their field, offering different perspectives from first hand experience of developing, providing or enjoying adoption support services. They address crucial questions such as when and how adopted persons, adopters and birth families need support; what is available and how they get it; whether social workers and families have different perceptions of what is helpful, and how support can be measured and evaluated.
Contents include chapters on:
the nature of support and of consultation; a new model of adoption support for a new Act; an adoptive parent’s “wish list”; support groups for adopters, birth parents, adopted children and young people; the supporting role of adoption (and after adoption) panels; therapeutic approaches; the importance of health and education; support for adopted adults and their families, for transracially adopted and fostered adults, for minority ethnic groups and for disabled children and their families. There is a separate chapter on services in Scotland, and an account of an innovative online project.
The consultation document Providing effective adoption support (2002) will soon lead to further regulations and consultations. This timely anthology will contribute to, and inform the debate for legislators, adoption support providers, child care managers , panel members, adoptive parents and adopted adults.
