National Adoption Week 2023

The primary aim of this week is to enhance understanding of adoption from various perspectives, including adoptees and adoptive parents, who share their experiences about adoption and its emotional aspects.

This year, National Adoption Week brings together adopted people from different generations to celebrate how adoption has evolved. Throughout the week we are going to be sharing resources, blogs and recordings.

UPCOMING EVENTS

NEW RESOURCES

The evolution of adoption through the years 

A group of adopted people – from baby boomers to Gen Z - have come together to share their story as part of a new short film which spotlights how adoption has changed over the years. John Simmonds – Director of Policy, Research and Development – reflects on the film. 

Read more

Early permanence from a legal perspective 

James Bury - Head of Policy, Research and Development - reflects on our recent webinar for legal professionals about Early Permanence led by Jane Poore – Adoption Consultant - and Alexandra Conroy-Harris – Legal Consultant. He explores the importance of Early Permanence and the role that the courts play in this process. 

Coming soon

OUR RECORDINGS

Lunch and Learn | Diversity and adoption webinars 

We are delivering a series of webinars in relation to diversity and adoption on behalf of RAA Leaders. These short webinars explore promising practice in adoption work in relation to issues of diversity. We will be hearing from practitioners and experts who will be able to inform and educate us about practicing in an anti-discriminatory way that embraces the diversity of children and adopters.

Watch the series

Moving to Adoption webinar

Director of Research in the School of Social Work at the University of East Anglia (UEA), Professor Elsbeth Neil introduces the UEA Moving to Adoption model. Drawn from a two-year practice development project, the UEA model promotes sensitive practice that is responsive to the child’s needs. It can be applied to the moves of children of all ages and a range of circumstances. Although the focus is on adoption, the model’s principles are applicable whenever a child is to be moved from one carer to another.

CORAMBAAF CONVERSATIONS

Our podcast series is dedicated to exploring topics related to adoption, fostering and kinship care. We invite children's social care professionals and experts by experience to join us to share best practices, their experiences and knowledge.

RECOMMENDED READING 

For adopters 

• The adopter's handbook on therapy

• The pink guide to adoption for lesbians and gay men

• The primal wound

For social workers 

• The secure base model - new edition out now!

• Undertaking an adoption assessment in England

• Undertaking checks and references in fostering and adoption assessments

• Writing a later life letter

• Placing large sibling groups for adoption

• Adoption by foster carers

Journal articles (open access) 

• The motivations and decision-making processes of parents who adopt older children (June 2023).

• Keeping in touch: Looked after children and young people’s views on their contact arrangements (May 2023).

• BRAC2eD model: An approach to de-bias decision-making in adoption assessments with prospective adopters from minoritised ethnic groups (March 2023). We also recorded a podcast episode with Dr Tam Cane about her article.

• The educational experiences of children in care across five decades: A new perspective on the education of looked after children in the UK (March 2023).

• Creating a New Narrative: A theory of how adopted individuals readjust their adoptive identity in parenthood (September 2022). 

• How adopters’ and foster carers’ perceptions of ‘family’ affect communicative openness in post-adoption contact interactions (December 2021).