What happens after you have adopted?
Following the adoption order you’ll perhaps wonder – what then? Am I left on my own? Is that it?
Not if you don’t want it to be!
Adoption Services East Midlands offer Post Adoption Support Services including advice and information, counselling, financial support and help with getting benefits.
Just like any parent, you will be expected to meet the general costs of raising a child. Sometimes though, means-tested financial assistance is given to families adopting children with particular needs, or to help make it possible for siblings to stay together.
Under the Adoption and Children Act 2002, we have a duty to provide a whole range of post adoption services that include:
- Group meetings for adoptive families
- Social events
- Children’s activity days
- Information about National Events
- Training opportunities
- Assessment of post adoption support needs, referral and signposting to other agencies
- Information via our newsletter
- Help with post box or contact issues
- Liaison with schools and other agencies
- Birth records counselling for adopted adults.
- Attachment & Trauma Seminars
- Information and services mail-out
- Individual family/ work
- Consultation/ referrals to CAMHS & other therapeutic & supportive service
- Adoption Support Services for Birth Families
- Birth Parents Support Services
- Access to birth records, post 18 yrs of age
Common Questions and Answers about Post-Adoption Suport
Q: When can I contact you for help?
A: Adopters can contact us for support and advice
at any time following the making of an adoption order.
Q: What support will I get from you after adopting?
A: It is ideal for you to continue to work in partnership with us here at Adoption Services East Midlands, particularly in the first few years. This is so that the child gets the best possible start as part of your family.
Adopting a child is a lifelong commitment and our experience is that many adoptive families seek help or advice later on. We are always here to help.
Q: What other support will I get?
A: Adopted children are entitled to the same range of universal services that all children can apply for. This could be, for example, special educational and medical services, as well as advice and counselling. In addition adoptive parents can request an assessment of Post Adoption Support Needs for their child to be carried out by the Adoption Services East Midlands Team.
Sometimes the best form of support comes from other experienced adoptive parents. The most useful organisation to contact, or become a member of, is Adoption UK. They charge a small annual subscription. In return you will receive a very informative magazine and access to personal advice from people who have adopted children themselves.
Websites with information about adoption and post adoption >>
Q: What rights do birth parents have after the adoption?
A: Once an adoption order has been made, the birth parents have no legal rights over the child and cannot claim him or her back.
However, we do arrange for birth parents to have news of their child. Adoptive parents are asked to write to birth parents each year via the adoption team.
In many cases, birth parents are happy to do the same. We know that this exchange of information (“the post box”) is beneficial to all parties.
Read more about the Post Box scheme >>
Q: Will the child still see their birth parents or other relatives?
A: There may be some direct (face to face) contact arrangements between some children and their birth relatives.
More and more children are benefiting from continuing to have direct contact with some members of their birth family. It will depend on the child, but this could be a birth parent, foster carer who has looked after them for a long time, brothers or sisters, grandparents or other relatives.
If they have made strong attachments, it can help a child a great deal to keep these up. This is something we will discuss with you before a child comes to live with you.
Q: May I choose my adopted child’s name?
A: Names are a key part of a person’s identity. Adopters often like to choose a new middle name for their child and he or she always takes the adoptive family’s surname.
However, except in some very rare circumstances, adoptive parents are asked keep the forename chosen by the birth parents. One of the reasons we ask this is because all children over the age of six months will already recognise and respond to their given name.
Keeping the child’s original first name also prevents confusion about their identity should they choose to access their original birth certificate when older.
