Adoption Breakdown

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 3rd April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Tom Gordon]

That is one of the key points about adoption disruption and breakdown, and the hon. Gentleman makes it very eloquently. There is concern that if we do not help people who are adopting now, we will not have a next generation of people who will adopt.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am grateful to the hon. Member for securing today’s debate. We know from Adoption UK’s adoption barometer that 42% of families experience challenges or crisis. It also notes that it can take them an average of five months to get the support they need, and we need to shrink that timeframe. Does he agree that we need to have money reserved for the urgent support that these families need?

[Tom Gordon]

The hon. Member is exactly right and puts her point eloquently. Far too often, families and children are left waiting, which causes additional pressures that can lead to adoption breakdown, so I completely agree with her. As I said, while the early stages of adoption may involve training and some resources, the ongoing assistance tends to dwindle.

I applied for this debate after meeting some of my constituents at a regular surgery. Ian and Verity experienced this issue at first hand when their adopted child began exhibiting violent behaviour. When they reached out for help, they were shocked to discover just how little was available to them. Unfortunately, like many services, post-adoption support has become a postcode lottery. Available services are often fragmented, underfunded and difficult to access, leaving parents without the necessary help to manage the challenges.

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[Janet Daby]

Yes, I know Home for Good; I have met the people involved and they do excellent work on fostering and adoption. There is so much more that could be done, so I absolutely take on board what the hon. Member has mentioned.

[Rachael Maskell]

I am grateful to the Minister for her commitment and for all that she is doing in this area. When young people are placed in adoption, can we look at ensuring that there is more open adoption? We certainly need to look at the data on that. We know that a teenager finding their birth parents can often lead to an adoption breakdown. That teenager might never be able to restore a relationship either with their birth parents or with their adoptive parents.

[Janet Daby]

I thank my hon. Friend for her comments. Adoption can be quite complex, especially when children reach their teenage years, as they are able to make contact through different social mediums. Contact and how it is managed is under constant review. We need to ensure that, where it is appropriate, where it is right and where it is safe, contact continues for adopted children. Again, I stress that is where it is appropriate, where it is right, and where it is with the agreement of the adoptive parents. Much of that takes place during the assessment process and the adoption order itself.

The majority of adopted children will have experienced neglect or abuse, which leads to ongoing and enduring problems. Providing support for families at an earlier stage before needs escalate to crisis point is critical. We are funding Adoption England to develop consistent and high-quality adoption support provision across all regional adoption agencies. This includes implementing a new framework for an early support core offer, which covers the first 12 to 18 months after placement. Adoption England will also be rolling out a new adoption support plan book for all new adoptive families.

This year we will fund Adoption England with £3 million to develop more multidisciplinary teams in regional adoption agencies. These are joint teams with local health partners that will enable families to receive holistic, high-quality support.