Are you considering adopting a step-child or another child within the family?

Please note: For all non-agency adoptions, the applicants have to live in one of the seven local authorities that Adopt Thames Valley covers: Bracknell Forest Council, Oxfordshire County Council, Reading Council (Brighter Futures for Children), Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (Achieving for Children), Swindon Council, West Berkshire Council and Wokingham Council. If you do not live in one of the authorities listed above, please contact the local authority where you live. https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council

Eligibility

In order to be eligible to adopt a step-child or child within the family:

• The child must be less than 18 years old
• The prospective adopter must be at least 21 years old
• You must all have lived together as a family unit for at least six months (if a step-parent application)
• If you are caring for another child within the family, (such as a grandchild, or niece or nephew) then you need to have been caring for them for at least three years to be eligible to start the process
• If you are a foster carer and are considering adoption, the child needs to have been placed with you for at least one year

Things to consider

• The child needs to be aware of your application, and will be involved in the assessment process
• Even if your child is quite young, they need to have an age-appropriate understanding of adoption and what it means for them
• Both birth parents will need to be notified of the adoption (even if one does not hold Parental Responsibility for the child)
• Even if there has been no contact for some time, the absent birth parent will need to be traced and notified of the adoption application
• If the other birth parent holds Parental Responsibility (if they are named on the birth certificate, or the birth parents were married at the time of the child’s birth), then they will need to give their consent to the adoption
• Adoption legally ends the relationship between the child and their birth parent/s, but also with other members of the extended family, such as grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. This can have implications for inheritance rights, and this will need to be explored carefully during the assessment

Other options

You may feel that adoption is not the right choice for you and your family.

You may wish to consider these other options:

• Applying for a Parental Responsibility Order
  This is the simplest option where agreement can be reached by both birth parents and this order gives the partner parental responsibility. Formal agreements can also be made for partners who are married to or entered into a civil partnership with the parent of a child.
• Applying to change your child’s name by deed poll
  If the motivation for the partner adoption stems from the desire for a child to legally change their name to reflect new family circumstances, this can be done through a solicitor with the agreement of everyone with parental responsibility. You can find out more about this through gov.uk.
• Applying for a Child Arrangements Order
  This will give the person caring for the child parental responsibility. If the Order were to state that the child should reside with their birth mother and her partner (for example) then this would give the mother’s partner parental responsibility. However, this does not give the mother’s partner all the same rights as a parent.
• Applying for a Special Guardianship Order (suitable for family relations and foster carers, but not for step-parents)
  Special Guardianship provides a legally secure foundation for building a permanent relationship between the child and their special guardian, while preserving the legal link between the child and their birth family. The intention is that the special guardian will have clear responsibility for all the day-to-day decisions about caring for the child or young person and their upbringing. The child’s birth parents remain legally the child's parents, though their ability to exercise their parental responsibility is limited.

Assessment Process

• You will be allocated a Social Worker who will visit you at home to assess your family situation, your suitability to adopt the child and relationships within the family
• Your child’s wishes and feelings are at the centre of the legal process, and they will need to be interviewed alone by the Social Worker
• You will need to provide evidence of family finances, and photos of family members, as well as other supporting documents as part of the assessment
• The prospective adopter/s will need to undertake a DBS check, as well as other statutory checks
• Personal references will be contacted and interviewed as part of your assessment
• If you have children from a previous relationship, your ex-partner will need to be contacted, as well as any adult birth children
• This assessment takes at least three months to complete and then you apply to the Family Court to start the legal proceedings. This usually takes a minimum of 3 – 4 months.

Should you wish to enquire further about applying for this kind of adoption, please contact Adopt Thames Valley through our online enquiry form.