How did you get involved with adoption and Adoption UK?

I am an adult adoptee with lived experience of being adopted and hope to become an
adopter too one day. Lived experience aside I have been involved with adoption in various
capacities such as in my role as an Adoption Ambassador for Scottish Adoption. This role
broadened my knowledge of adoption and opened many doors for me.
Through this role, I co-facilitated a teen group for young people who are adopted.
Additionally, I was privileged to work with an extraordinary group of adopted young people
on a Digital Life Stories Project in partnership with the Scottish Book Trust. I have loved and
learnt a lot from all these experiences and was keen to represent the voices and lived
experiences of the adoptees I have worked with and give them the platform they deserve.
Consequently, when I heard about the Trustee role at Adoption UK I jumped at the
opportunity!

Any specific skills or areas of expertise relevant to the work of Adoption UK?

As a teacher I am used to advocating for young people and listening to what they have to
say. Moreover, I have seen first-hand the impact that Adverse Childhood Experiences can
have on a young person and am used to discussing such matters and addressing any arising
issues sensitively.
Additionally, due to various experiences such as co-facilitating a podcast 'takeover' for the
Adoption and Fostering Podcast and delivering training sessions at Consortium of Voluntary
Adoption Agencies (CVAA) conferences I have experience and skills pertaining to public
speaking surrounding adoption.
Moreover, I have additional language skills which are relevant to the work of Adoption UK
such as those related to using person centred and inclusive language. These skills were
bolstered during my time completing an Equality and Diversity Internship wherein I was
responsible for completing Equality Impact Assessment forms (EqIA) for various pieces of
policy.
I have also, for my work as well as my own edification, undertaken numerous training
courses such as on safeguarding, child protection, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)
and Early Trauma. I believe that much of what I have learnt from these courses will be
relevant and beneficial to the work of Adoption UK.

How do you want to see Adoption UK develop over the next 5 years?

Over the next five years I want to see Adoption UK ensure that it is the adoptee who is at
the centre of everything that Adoption UK does. Additionally, I want Adoption UK to actively
seek ways to develop with the times to continue to accurately reflect the current wants and
needs of those it represents. To ensure this happens I believe that the voices of young
people and lived experience needs to be actively included in contemporary discourse.
I also want to see Adoption UK continue to advocate for equality by further developing
effective strategies to ensure that LGBTQIA+ and BAME adopters are not unfairly prejudiced
at any point during the adoption process or thereafter.
In addition, I want to see Adoption UK continue to campaign for parity between adoptive
and non-adoptive parents, such as by improving employment rights and financial support
for new parents who are self-employed adopters.