Adoption Support

RELEVANT GUIDANCE

The Adoption Passport: A Support Guide for Adopters

Adoption Statutory Guidance 2013

AMENDMENT

This chapter was updated in June 2022 to reflect the changes in Adoption.

In June 2015 the government announced its’ intention that local authorities should deliver their adoption services on a regional basis by 2020. Pan-London and regional collaboration resulted in nine South London local authorities coming together into a single Regional Adoption Agency, Adopt London South. The eight other south London Boroughs are:

Wandsworth;
Sutton;
Croydon;
Lambeth;
Southwark;
Lewisham;
Kingston;
Richmond.

Adopt London South, was launched in July 2019 and Merton’s adoption functions relating to recruitment and assessment of prospective adopters, family finding and post adoption support were gradually transferred to Adopt London South. Adopt London South has held operational responsibility for those transferred functions since September 2019.

Adopt London South is operated under the terms of a Partnership Agreement, which confirms the legal and governance arrangements; the budget; staffing and funding contributions for the 9 local authorities. The Head of Service reports to the Adopt London South Management Board. The Board is chaired by the Southwark Director of children’s services and comprised of Directors from each Local Authority with the Assistant Director Children’s Social Care & Youth Inclusion attending on Merton’s behalf.

The Adopt London Regional Executive Board oversees effective collaboration across the 4 Adopt London Regions, Adopt London North, South, East and West to promote consistency of practice and quality of service across the 23 London boroughs which are part of Adopt London. A shared Adopt London website provides advice, guidance and information to anyone who is interested in adoption.

Adopt London South is hosted by Southwark Council. The adoption functions provided on behalf of Merton and the other south London boroughs are:

The recruitment of persons as prospective adopters;
The assessment of prospective adopter’s suitability to adopt a child;
The approval of prospective adopters as suitable to adopt a child;
Identifying a particular approved prospective adopter with whom it proposed a child be placed, as soon as reasonably practicable;
Managing the process by which recommendations in individual cases are formally submitted to Adoption Panels and to facilitate consideration by the relevant local authority decision maker; and
The provision of adoption support services;
To identify suitable adopters for particular children, for whom a local authority is the “corporate parent” or where consent to adoption is given by the birth parent.

The aim of bringing these local authority adoption services into a single Regional Adoption Agency is to:

Increase the number of prospective adopters recruited and assessed as suitable to adopt a child;
Increase the number of children with adoption plans who are adopted;
Reduce the length of time children with adoption plans wait to be adopted;
Improve post adoption support services to families who have adopted;
Reduce the number of individual adoption agencies in the south London region to improve efficiency and effectiveness of adoption functions.

1. What is Adoption Support?

Adoption Support includes any support likely to be required for an adoptive placement.

All Adoption support is now arranged through Adopt London South other than financial payments that are made to Adopters which are assessed and provided by Merton.

2. Duty to Provide Information

Merton has a duty to provide information on adoption support services to anyone requesting information about adopting a child, anyone wishing to adopt a child, any parent of an adopted child within the borough, or any parent of an adopted child who becomes known to the council. Merton will fulfil this duty through referring any individuals to obtain this information from Adopt London South. This includes information about the full range of support, therapeutic, counselling, financial, contact arrangements, for example.

Information must also be given about:

The right to ask for an assessment for support;
The contact details of the Adoption Support Advisor;
Which borough is responsible for support and contact details;
Contact details about First4Adoption;
Priority school admissions (where relevant). Details can be found in School Admissions Code (GOV.UK);
Priority council housing and discretionary housing payments;
Entitlement to early education from 2 years;
How to make a complaint to the council or the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.

Potential and prospective adopters should also be given information about:

Accessing information from Adoption Pay and Leave (GOV.UK website);
The right to receive a copy of the Child Permanence Report;
The entitlement to a life story book.

Information does need to be provided to a person who does not wish to receive it, or if already sent in the previous 12 months and there have been no changes, or if the same information has been requested a number of times in a short period.

3. Examples of Adoption Support

Adoption support is defined as including:

Possible Financial support to adopters. This can include paid adoption leave at similar rates to maternity and paternity leave;
Priority access to social housing, and access to additional support to cover a spare room whilst adopters wait for their child to arrive in their new home;
The role of the designated teacher in offering support to previously looked after children and to their new school; see Supporting the Education and Promoting the Achievement of Children with a Social Worker, Children in Care and Previously Looked After Children Procedure;
Services to enable groups of adoptive children, adoptive parents and birth parents to discuss matters relating to adoption;
Assistance, including mediation, with contact arrangements between adopted children and their birth parents or others with whom they share a significant relationship;
Therapeutic services for adopted children;
Assistance to adoptive parents and children to support the adoptive placement and enable it to continue, including respite care;
Assistance to adoptive parents and children where a placement disrupts or is at risk of disruption;
A range of adoption support services, including access to counselling, information and advice for both adoptive parents and their children, who may have complex needs;
Assistance with cross boundary matters;
Intermediary Services - see Intermediary Services Procedure.

Support provided under 4) to 8) above may include cash assistance.

4. When to Assess the Need for Adoption Support

4.1

In relation to adoptions arranged by Adopt London South practitioners must assess the need for adoption support at the following stages of care and permanence planning:

When preparing the Child's Permanence Report for presentation to the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel or the Senior Manager, LAC, Permanency and Placements needs to be consulted to whether the child should be placed for adoption;
When preparing the Prospective Adopter's Report for presentation to the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel as to the suitability of prospective adoptive parents to adopt;
When considering and preparing the Adoption Placement Report for presentation to the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel in relation to the proposed placement of a child with particular prospective adopters.

4.2

In relation to placements arranged by Adopt London South adoption support must also always be considered at a child's Adoption Reviews following the adoptive placement.

4.3

Adopt London South must also undertake assessments of need for adoption support at the request of the following:

Children who may be adopted, their parents or guardians;
Persons wishing to adopt a child;
Adopted persons, their parents, birth parents and former guardians;
Other children of adoptive parents (whether or not they are adopted);
Birth siblings of adopted children;
Relatives of the adopted child or other persons with whom the child has a beneficial relationship.

The requirement to assess the need for support is limited to the entitlement to services of the person making the request.

As well as adoptions arranged by the local authority, children adopted from abroad are entitled to be assessed for therapeutic services and disruption support. It is only where the adoption is by a step parent that there is no requirement to carry out an assessment, although in such cases, counselling, advice and information may be offered as appropriate, through mainstream universal services under s17 Children Act 1989.

5. Which Local Authority Should Carry out the Assessment?

The table below sets out which local authority has responsibility for carrying out the assessment of need for adoption support, and in what circumstances.

Circumstance	Responsibility for Assessment
Child being Looked After and in respect of whom an adoption plan is being considered	If the child is looked after within one of the 9 Local Authorities that are part of Adopt London South then Adopt London South will complete the Assessment.
Child placed with or adopted by family living in the area of the local authority arranging the adoption	The local authority for the area where the child and adopters live. If this of the 9 Local Authorities that are part of Adopt London South then Adopt London South will complete the Assessment.
Child placed with and/or adopted by family living outside the local authority area	The placing local authority has responsibility at the time of the placement and for up to 3 years after the Adoption Order is made, and then the local authority where the adopters live or the respective adoption consortium in that respective area will have the responsibility. (If the area is within one of the 9 Consortium members of Adopt London South have responsibility). The exception is where there is an on-going financial package of support these financial agreements remain with the placing local authority.
In all other cases (i.e. non agency placements except step parent adoptions)	The local authority where the requester lives must assess.

6. Which Local Authority Should Provide Support?

Adopt London South are responsible for carrying out the assessment of need should provide support to meet the identified needs.

The exception to this is where ongoing financial support and/or supporting contact arrangements have been agreed by the placing authority before the Adoption Order was made, in which case the responsibility to provide such support will remain with that authority for as long as eligibility for the service continues.

7. Process of Assessment for Adoption Support

In all cases where an assessment is required, the practitioners involved should conduct assessments by following the guidance set out in Working Together to Safeguard Children. The assessment should take account of the adoption context and, where the assessment relates to the child, all the developmental needs of the child should be covered including health, education and emotional needs, and contact issues. The relevant education service and health trust should be consulted as necessary.

Assessments of need for adoption support under paragraph 4.1 (a) and (b) above should be carried out by Adopt London South with the support of Merton prior to being presented to the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel.

The assessment under paragraph 4.1.(c) at the time of the child's proposed placement with prospective adopters should be considered at the Matching Meeting and also have the approval Head of Service for Corporate Parenting, prior to being presented to the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel with the Adoption Placement Report.

At all stages, the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel must consider and may give advice on the proposed adoption support and this advice will be considered by the Agency Decision Maker, before making a final decision on the contents of the Adoption Support Plan - see Placement for Adoption Procedure.

Any assessment (under paragraph 4.2) considered necessary at an Adoption Review, as a result of which a change in the Adoption Support Plan is required, should be referred to the Head of Service for Corporate Parenting, Permanency and Placements ADM for approval.

Requests for assessment for adoption support under paragraph 4.3 above will be allocated to an Adoption Social Worker to carry out an assessment. The assessing social worker will usually need to interview the person being assessed - where this is a child, the adoptive parents will also need to be interviewed depending on the circumstances and the age, understanding and wishes of the child.

An assessment will not be required before providing advice and information.

Where an assessment is carried out as a result of a request under paragraph 4.3, a written report of the assessment should be produced and agreed by the Team Manager, Adoption in Adopt London South and also shared with the Head of Corporate parenting in Merton.

A copy of the assessment report, once approved, should be sent to the person assessed with notice of the outcome of the assessment, which should state:

The person's assessed needs for support;
Whether the local authority proposes to provide adoption support services and if so, what the proposed services are;
Where the assessment relates to the need for financial support, how this has been determined and calculated and the conditions to be attached, (see Section 9, Financial Support).

Where the person assessed is a child, and it is not appropriate to send the notice to the child, notices should be sent to the adoptive parent or the most appropriate adult.

Where services are proposed, a draft Adoption Support Plan should usually be attached to the notice and those assessed should be allowed time to consider and make representations on the proposal as set out in Section 8, The Adoption Support Plan.

Where the service proposed is one-off, the notice of the outcome of the assessment will be sufficient to outline what is proposed and a draft plan will not be required.

8. The Adoption Support Plan

8.1 Contents of Adoption Support Plan

An Adoption Support Plan should set out clearly:

The objectives of the plan and the key services to be provided;
The timescales for achieving the plan;
Those responsible for implementing the plan and the respective roles of others; what should be provided, when and by whom;
The criteria that will be used to evaluate the success of the plan;
The procedures that will be put in place to review the services to be provided and the plan no plan should exceed a 3 month duration.

The Adoption Support Plan will need to be completed after consultation with the appropriate Health Trust, Children and Young People's Mental Health Services (CYPMHS) or education service where any special arrangements may need to be made. Where the child is placed in the area of another local authority, the agencies in that authority's area will need to be consulted as to what services may be available for the adopters and the adopted children. In these circumstances, the prospective adopters should be assisted with any cross-boundary issues that may arise.

The Adoption Support Plan should include any proposed financial support, how the amount has been calculated, where it is to be paid in instalments - the frequency of payment, the period over which it will be paid and when the first payment is to be made, the conditions and the consequences of failing to meet them and the arrangements for review, variation and termination, (see Section 9, Financial Support ).

8.2 Consultation with proposed recipients of adoption support

Once a proposed Adoption Support Plan has the approval of the Head of Service for Corporate Parenting, a copy should be sent to the proposed recipients of the support, as well as to any party involved in the delivery of the plan.

The recipients of the proposed support should be given 10 working days to consider the proposals and make representations to the local authority about the proposed plan. Any representations made should be considered by the Head of Corporate Parenting in Merton and the Head of Service in Adopt London South who will amend the draft plan as appropriate and inform the recipients of the outcome of their considerations.

8.3 Approval of Adoption Support Plan

In relation to proposed Adopt London South adoptive placements, the proposed Adoption Support Plan will be submitted to the Adoption, Panel when the proposed placement of a child with particular prospective adopters is recommended. The final Adoption Support Plan will be approved, taking into account any advice given by the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel. See Placement for Adoption Procedure.

In relation to other situations in which adoption support is proposed, the Adoption Support Plan will be approved by the ADM.

8.4 Distribution of Adoption Support Plan

A copy of the final plan should go to all those involved in implementing it, and to the recipients of services (or appropriate adult). Where the child has an Independent Reviewing Officer, a copy should be sent to them.

8.5 Reviews of Adoption Support Plan

Where adoption support is in place prior to an Adoption Order, the Adoption Support Plan should be reviewed at the reviews of the adoptive placement - see Adoption Reviews Procedure - or at any time if there is a significant change of circumstances, within 4 weeks of the notification of the change.

After the Adoption Order has been made, the Adoption Support Plan will be reviewed if a change in circumstances is brought to the notice of the local authority. The Head of Service for Corporate Parenting will decide on the format and content of any such review, which will depend on the circumstances of the case. It may refer to only one element of the Plan or be relatively minor in which case an exchange of correspondence may be sufficient. (For annual reviews of financial support, see Section 9.7, Annual review of support).

Where the change of circumstances is substantial, such as a serious change in the behaviour of the child, it may be appropriate to conduct a new assessment of needs involving other parties.

If as a result of a review, whether before or after an Adoption Order has been made, it is proposed to vary or terminate the support, the proposed change must be referred to the Head of Service for approval, who, in the case of agency placements, may decide to refer the case back to Adoption Panel for information and advice and then to the Chair for a decision to be made.

Once approved, the person concerned must be notified of the proposed change, together with a copy of the revised Adoption Support Plan in draft. They must then be given 10 working days to make representations on the proposals.

Any such representations should be submitted to the Head of Corporate Parenting whose decision as to the final contents of the revised Adoption Support Plan should take into account any representations made.

Notice of the decision must then be sent to the person concerned with reasons and, where appropriate, a copy of the revised plan.

8.6 Urgent Cases

Where there is an urgent need for support, the support can be provided before a Plan is drawn up but the above procedure should then be followed as soon as possible.

9. Financial Support

9.1 Introduction

Financial support is intended to supplement existing means of support available to adoptive parents and the child or children being adopted. Adopters must be given advice of entitlements to employee's rights to leave and pay, benefits, tax credits and allowances, and these should be taken into account when considering amounts of financial support.

9.2 Criteria

Please refer also to the Adoption Support Service Regulations 2005 Chapter 8 'Provision of Financial Support Services' and the circumstances in which provision of financial support may be paid are as follows.

Where it is necessary to ensure that adoptive parents can look after a child;
Where the child needs special care which requires a greater expenditure of resources by reason of illness, disability, emotional or behavioural difficulties or the continuing consequences of neglect - and the child's condition is serious and long-term;
Where it is necessary for the local authority to make any special arrangements to facilitate the placement or the adoption by reason of the age or ethnic origin of the child or the desirability of the child being placed with siblings or a child with whom they have previously shared a home;
Where such support is to meet the recurring costs of travel for visits for the child to members of the birth family/significant others;
Where the local authority considers it appropriate to contribute towards expenditure on legal costs, including Court fees (in cases where the adoption is supported by the local authority), or expenses associated with the child's introduction to adoptive parents or expenditure on accommodating the child (e.g. adaptations to the home, furniture, clothing or transport).

9.3 Types of Payment

Payment to adoptive parents may be made in the following ways:

Regular payments - which will be based upon the developmental age of the child and calculated as agreed from time to time by the local authority;
Lump sum payments (settling in costs, special needs and adaptations), which will cover items or adaptations that are required as a consequence of assessment of each child's individual needs. Payment may be in instalments and will end at a time specified by the local authority;
Payments in special circumstances (for example, a child with additional needs or where foster carers adopt a child for whom they are already caring or where adopters incur legal expenses in contested cases). Payment may be in instalments and may end at a time specified by the local authority.

Financial support cannot generally include the "reward" element which may be payable to foster carers and neither will payments be made so as to provide an income. However, payments may be paid above the usual level where it is regarded as necessary to ease the transition from foster care to adoption. Generally such additional payments can be paid for a period of 2 years although in exceptional circumstances, additional payments may be paid for a longer period.

9.4 Assessment for Financial Support

Where regular financial support is considered appropriate, the amount to be paid to adoptive parents will be determined by an assessment of their means. This will take account of the adopters' income and resources (excluding their home), reasonable outgoings and commitments, and the financial needs and resources of the child. (N.B. Support provided under Section 9.2 (v) to assist with legal costs or expenses associated with the child's introduction to the placement will not be subject to an assessment of means).

As part of this assessment, the adopters should be asked to complete a Financial Assessment Form and the completed form should be forwarded to the Finance Department. The Head of Service for Corporate Parenting will decide the level of support to be included in the draft Adoption Support Plan (see Section 7, The Adoption Support Plan), having regard to this assessment, and obtain budgetary approval as necessary depending on the amount.

In relation to proposed financial support for a new placement, the Adoption Support Plan will be submitted to the Adoption, Fostering and Permanence Panel with the Adoption Placement Report when a matching recommendation is being considered.

9.5 Notification

The adopters will be sent written confirmation of the decision to provide financial support. This will include the amount and terms of the support and information about annual reviews.

9.6 Terms and Conditions

If it is decided that financial support should be given to adoptive parents, payment may be subject to conditions and a date specified by which the condition is to be met.

Prior to making financial support available to prospective or adoptive parents, they will be required to enter into a contract which states their commitment to inform the adoption service:

Of changes to their home address;
If the child (for any reason) no longer lives with them;
If there are any changes to their financial situation/the resources of the child.

Where information is given orally, adoptive parents must confirm this in writing within 7 days.

Should adoptive parents fail to supply an annual statement, the authority must send 2 reminder letters at 10 day intervals. If they fail to comply, the authority may suspend payment of the financial support provided.

9.7 Annual review of support

Adoptive parents must also agree to complete and supply the authority with an annual statement / review of their circumstances for the annual review if they are in receipt of an adoption allowance.

The adopters should specify the following in the statement:

Their financial circumstances;
The financial needs and resources of the child or children;
Their home address and whether or not the child or children live at home with them;
If there have been any changes to their own or the child/children's circumstances.

The Adoption Service will carry out an annual review of the financial support, taking into account the information given. Any proposed variation or termination of the financial support must be notified to the person(s) concerned and dealt with by the Adoption Service in accordance with the procedure set out in Section 8, The Adoption Support Plan. Any decision to vary or terminate should also consider whether it is appropriate to seek to recover all or any of the financial support already paid.

9.8 Remuneration for former foster parents

Where the adopter previously fostered the child they are adopting, and they received remuneration in the financial support paid to them as the child's foster parent, the local authority may continue to pay remuneration for a transitional period of 2 years from the date of the adoption order. This can continue for longer than 2 years if the local authority considers the case to be exceptional.

The decision to include remuneration must have been taken before the making of the adoption order and is at the discretion on the Local Authority.

9.9 Ending of financial support

Financial support will end in the following circumstances:

When a child reaches age 18, unless they continue in full time education or training when support may continue until the end of the course of education or training being undertaken, subject to any other financial support the child may be entitled to receive;
Where a child ceases full-time education or training and commences employment;
Where a child qualifies for income support or job seekers allowance in their own right;
Where circumstances have changed significantly and the criteria are no longer met;
If a child leaves the adoptive home and this is regarded as a permanent departure;
Temporary absences do not apply, e.g. boarding school, hospital, and respite care.
The child dies.