Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is taking steps to simplify the re-application process for the Adoption and special guardianship support fund.

The department regularly discusses policy issues with a range of sector bodies and interested parties.

Between 2018 and 2021, the Institute of Public Care (IPC), at Oxford Brookes University, carried out a three-year mixed-method evaluation, on behalf of the department. Their report can be accessed at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6391c41a8fa8f53ba783e8ad/Evaluation_of_the_Adoption_Support_Fund_2018_to_2022_-_summary_.pdf.

The report found that “a high proportion (83%) of parents and guardians participating in the longitudinal survey found the funded support helpful or very helpful overall”. The IPC report also found “a statistically significant (substantial, with large effect size) improvement in parent and guardian estimates of the extent to which the main aim of the funded support had been met by the end of the intervention” and reported that parents and guardians scored on average “7 out of 10 in relation to a question about the extent to which positive change(s) for their child and/or family had been sustained 6 months since the conclusion of adoption support fund-funded support”.

The impact of the therapies available within the adoption and special guardianship fund (ASGSF) is currently being assessed from multiple angles. The National Institute for Health Research is conducting a randomised control trial into Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP), one of the main therapies the ASGSF funds. This research is currently in its third and final phase and it will provide robust evidence regarding the effectiveness of DDP. The department started to collect data from outcomes measurement tools for ASGSF-funded therapies in December 2023. As therapy treatment comes to an end, this data will give an overall picture of the impact and adequacy of individual ASGSF-funded therapies.

The department has been making a range of changes to improve the timeliness of the ASGSF application process. For example, we have streamlined the online application process to reduce administration for local authorities and regional adoption agencies (RAAs) and have changed systems to ensure that application outcomes are delivered more swiftly. We have also introduced a direct communication link with therapy providers to give early updates on any changes and advice on submitting applications.

These changes should help to reduce delays within local authorities and RAAs before applications are received. The additional support to providers, with better sharing of information about the ASGSF, should also help families to receive support more quickly.

The department has considered what changes to the ASGSF portal will facilitate making the re-application for therapies more efficient. The streamlining of the application process has already reduced the information required, and an option to simplify the process in the case of a re-application is under consideration.