Government to extend funding for adoption support

The £130m Adoption Support Fund (ASF), which provides adopted children and their parents with a range of therapeutic support, including cognitive therapy, play and music therapy, has helped more than 50,000 adoptive families across England since its inception in 2015.

It was due to end in July 2020 but education secretary Gavin Williamson announced last night, at an event organised by the charity for vulnerable children, Coram, that the funding would continue until March 2021.


However, it remains unclear how much will be invested into this extension, but the Department for Education said an announcement is expected later in the year.


Charity Adoption UK said it was delighted that ‘lifesaving’ support for adoptive families would continue for another year but warned that a long-term commitment is still ‘crucial’.


The education secretary also announced almost £650,000 investment into Regional Adoption Agencies, who will co-ordinate work to find more adopters across the country, especially for harder to place children, such as siblings, older children and those from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. 

This will include targeted digital work and work with black churches and mosques to increase the numbers of people from BAME communities coming forward to adopt.


According to the latest statistics released by charity Adoption UK, there are currently 4,140 children in England with a plan for adoption and 1,700 families approved to adopt.


The shortfall is accompanied by figures from the Adoption & Special Guardianship Leadership Board, which shows that of the children awaiting adoption, 28 percent are aged over five; 4 percent have a disability; 20 percent are from Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) background, and 57 percent are in sibling groups.


Dr Carol Homden, CEO of Coram, welcomed the Government’s renewed commitment to adoption recruitment and support, particularly at a time when more adopters are ‘urgently needed for the children waiting’.


‘The availability of consistent and timely post-adoption support is crucial in encouraging prospective adopters to come forward, and we hope the funding boost announced today will enable the recruitment of a wide range of adopters, and help all adoptive families to thrive,’ she said.

Mr Williamson said that in recent years, the trend that ‘concerns us all’ was the disparity between numbers of children awaiting adoption and adoptive families ready to take them.

‘This is a trend that must change and I want to do everything I can to help you do that,’ he said.


Sue Armstrong Brown, chief executive of Adoption UK said, ‘Adopted children are among the most complex and vulnerable in society as they have often suffered serious neglect or abuse in their early lives.

'But adoption can have a transformative effect on these children and the testimony of adoptive parents is proof that you can successfully parent children who are deemed harder to place, if the right support is in place.’


• National Adoption Week runs from 14 - 20 October and aims to inspire more people to adopt. For more information visit www.adoptionuk.org.uk