Get support For prospective adopters The adoption approval process Stage one: initial checks and preparations Information gathering In stage one your adoption agency needs to gather a lot of information about you to assess your suitability as an adoptive parent. There are very few things that automatically bar a person from becoming an adopter. To adopt, you must: Be over 21, Be legally resident in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for at least 12 months, Have no criminal conviction or caution for offences against children or for serious sexual offences. This applies to everyone in the household. There are other things that will be taken into consideration. This will include: A criminal records (DBS) check , Financial information such as your income, savings, substantial loans and routine expenditure, Employment status and working arrangements , A medical examination – usually done through your local GP but be aware that you’ll have to pay for this yourself , Previous childcare experience , Personal references from family and friends , If you’ve had a substantial previous relationship in the past 10 years, they may need to speak with your ex-partner, especially if you’ve had any children together. Your social worker will visit your home to check it’s suitable in terms of safety and sleeping arrangements. Also, if you own a pet, you’ll need to commit that in the rare and unlikely event that your pet and child don’t get on that you’d move your pet out of the home. It's important to remember that a child does not need perfection, but if you think the checks will highlight issues that may potentially prevent you from proceeding, it’s worth raising these at an early stage. It may be possible to put certain adjustments in place. For example, it may be possible to address health and safety concerns about accommodation or to resolve financial issues. These can be difficult conversations to have with an agency, but they’re better had early in the process. Training Your adoption agency will invite you to several adoption preparation training sessions. These sessions will set out: What to expect during the adoption process, The backgrounds and experiences of children who are placed for adoption, The impact on children of early life trauma including pre-natal trauma and exposure to substances such as drugs and alcohol, The attachment process and the impact on children of attachment difficulties, The type of parenting that benefits children with early life trauma and attachment difficulties, The potential challenges as well as the joys of parenting an adopted child, The importance of reflecting on the ways in which you were parented and your attachment history when embarking upon adoption, Considerations when making decisions about age, ethnicity, sibling groups and additional needs of an adopted child, The importance of preserving a child’s existing positive relationships and ways in which contact with birth family members may be enabled, The post-adoption support that’s available. You’ll usually have the opportunity to talk to experienced adopters. Preparation training is an opportunity to ask questions, for example about additional training and support once children have been placed and the potential support and funding available to support children in nursery and school. Adoption preparation training can seem daunting. There’s a lot of new information to take in and reflections to make and some of this can be emotive. However, many prospective adopters report that the training is an important and significant part of their steps towards adoption. It’s also an opportunity to meet other prospective adopters and to begin to form a support network. When you’ve completed the preparation training, your agency and you can decide whether to take your application to Stage Two. Stage two: preparing the Prospective Adopter Report (PAR) After you’ve completed the initial checks and training, you’ll be allocated your own dedicated social worker who’ll meet with you to carry out an assessment, often referred to as the Home Study. Based on this they’ll prepare the Prospective Adopter Report (PAR) which will give a detailed assessment of your suitability to adopt. Your social worker’s role is to ensure you’ve fully considered what adoption involves, how it may change your life and that you can meet the needs of an adopted child. They’ll also support you through the assessment and approval process. You’ll need to meet with your social worker about 6-8 times to complete the assessment, if you’re in a couple then you’ll each have an individual session and the rest together. These sessions can last around three hours at a time and are usually conducted during working hours. So, if you do work, you’ll need to think about how you talk to your employer about taking time off. You’ll be asked to carefully consider your own past experiences and relationships, particularly during childhood. Having had a less-than-ideal childhood is not a barrier to adoption. Your social worker will want to know if and how you’ve resolved any difficulties. This is because raising children who have experienced early life trauma can trigger past loss, hurt and trauma. If you plan to adopt as a couple, your social worker will want to know aspects of your relationship such as how you approach problems and resolve conflict. They’ll ask you about how you arrived at the decision to adopt, whether you’ve experienced infertility or the loss of a child. They’ll also want to know whether you have birth children or other adopted or fostered children. The needs and views of the children in your family will be considered. They’ll also explore with you what sort of support network you’ve got in place to draw on for practical and emotional help. You’ll be asked to carry out some self-led research and will be given resources, including a reading list. We recommend you carry out as much research as possible and talk to experienced adopters. Your social worker will help you to consider and decide upon whether you’d like to be approved to adopt a sibling group, a child with additional needs or a child with a different ethnicity from your own. The assessment process is sometimes described as intrusive. While it can touch on sensitive issues it’s important that prospective adopters are properly prepared to adopt a child who may be more complex to parent. Many adopters report they valued the assessment process as an opportunity to positively face and talk through different parts of their lives. Your social worker will draft the report and you’ll have an opportunity to read it and to discuss anything you are unsure of or disagree with before it’s finalised. Adoption panel Your PAR will be submitted to the agency’s adoption panel, which may be referred to as an approval panel. The panel is a group of people with a range of experiences of adoption, who recommend prospective adopters for approval. A formal panel meeting will be held to discuss your assessment and to recommend whether you’re suitable to adopt. You’ve the right to attend to answer the panel’s questions and to ask any questions you may have. While the panel meeting may feel daunting and a difficult part of the process, many adopters find attending to be an important and significant event, especially as they’ve had the opportunity to represent themselves, rather than the panel having to rely entirely on the written assessment. It’s important to remember that the agency don’t want to set you up to fail and will help you feel as prepared as possible for the panel. The panel’s recommendation will be sent to the adoption agency who make the final decision on whether you’ll be approved to adopt, including potentially the number and ages of children you may be considered for. In some cases, the panel may recommend at this stage that you and your social worker carry out some additional assessment. You’ll receive written confirmation of the agency’s decision. If you’re approved to adopt, you’ll move into the matching stage of the adoption process. Further information about the adoption process Adoption UK – Find a regional adoption agency Gov.uk - Child adoption You Can adopt - Who can adopt? Adopt Cymru - The adoption process in Wales Adoption UK - The adoption process in Scotland Citizens Advice - Adoption in Scotland Scotland's Adoption Register Gov.uk - The adoption process in Northern Ireland View a printable version of this page Matching Manage Cookie Preferences