New figures show more than half the children awaiting adoption in SW are in sibling groups
Posted on Tuesday 17th October 2017
39% of children in Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole and 57% of the children in the South West waiting for adoptive families are brothers and sisters in groups of 2 or more according to new information published today to mark National Adoption Week (16-22 October). Figures from national adoption information service, First4Adoption, based on the latest government information*, show that sibling groups wait longer than single children to be placed with a “forever family”.
Heather Freeman, Aspire Adoption Manager, says “The majority of people adopting for the first time choose to take a single child into their family. Also, it is often in the best interests of the children that a sibling group finds a family together rather than experience further trauma by being separated. This presents an extra challenge for social workers and these factors account for the high proportion of siblings in our region waiting for an adoptive family”. Aspire Adoption is one of the first Regional Adoption Agencies to be set up in the country and was launched in July, with a formal opening by Jamie Baulch, Olympic athlete. Jamie was adopted as a baby and has talked openly about his adoptive family and his search for his birth mother.
The new research, by Adoption Match and based on data from the Adoption Register for England also reveals that :
- 63% of sibling groups awaiting adoption in the South West are children aged 4+
- 62% of these groups awaiting adoption are made up of boys
- 17% of the siblings groups awaiting adoption are Black and Minority Ethnic children
Heather Freeman from Aspire Adoption adds, “We’re asking anyone who may be considering adoption to think about whether they could parent siblings. There’s no denying that having more than one child comes with real challenges but it also has advantages and brings great rewards. If you’re interested in finding out more, please contact Aspire today on 0300 123 9868 today.
39% of children in Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole and 57% of the children in the South West waiting for adoptive families are brothers and sisters in groups of 2 or more according to new information published today to mark National Adoption Week (16-22nd October). Figures from national adoption information service, First4Adoption, based on the latest government information*, show that sibling groups wait longer than single children to be placed with a “forever family”.
Heather Freeman, Aspire Adoption Manager, says “The majority of people adopting for the first time choose to take a single child into their family. Also, it is often in the best interests of the children that a sibling group finds a family together rather than experience further trauma by being separated. This presents an extra challenge for social workers and these factors account for the high proportion of siblings in our region waiting for an adoptive family”. Aspire Adoption is one of the first Regional Adoption Agencies to be set up in the country and was launched in July, with a formal opening by Jamie Baulch, Olympic athlete. Jamie was adopted as a baby and has talked openly about his adoptive family and his search for his birth mother.
The new research, by Adoption Match and based on data from the Adoption Register for England also reveals that :
- 63% of sibling groups awaiting adoption in the South West are children aged 4+
- 62% of these groups awaiting adoption are made up of boys
- 17% of the siblings groups awaiting adoption are Black and Minority Ethnic children
Heather Freeman from Aspire Adoption adds, “We’re asking anyone who may be considering adoption to think about whether they could parent siblings. There’s no denying that having more than one child comes with real challenges but it also has advantages and brings great rewards. If you’re interested in finding out more, please contact Aspire today on 0300 123 9868 today.