Government adoption advisor visits Adoption UK

19 Jan 2012

Members of Adoption UK staff held the ear of adoption Tsar Martin Narey for one morning last month highlighting the importance of continued support for adoptive families.

Martin Narey, who is currently Government advisor on adoption, visited the Adoption UK offices in Banbury to learn more about it services and their value to adoptive parents.

Staff from across the organisation provided Mr Narey with an overview of their work and how it can help adoptive families.

Mr Narey said he would like to see more local authorities signing up to support and training packages and agreed with the notion that providing support from the very beginning of the adoption process would help produce better outcomes for adoptive families and their children.

When asked the question of what Mr Narey needs to be saying to the Government about what needs to be done to positively change the assessment process, he heard how introducing a statutory entitlement to adoption support services, not just an assessment would make a massive difference. Furthermore, Adoption UK will be putting their views forward as to what should be the minimum standard that any adopter should expect as preparation.

Mr Narey added that he had been contacted by a number of adopters and had been struck by their persistence and resilience adding that they were able and articulate stemming from “having to fight battles in arenas they shouldn’t have to”.

Furthermore, he spoke of the criticism he had received from some agencies after the publication of his initial report but had since received a more supportive response since “they had gone away and looked at their own services and realised they were poor”.

Mr Narey will be working with Prime Minister David Cameron and Children’s Minister Tim Loughton over the coming months to overhaul the adoption system. An expert panel made up of representatives from the adoption sector has been set up to advise on these changes. Adoption UK’s chief executive Jonathan Pearce will be a member of this panel.

For more information on Adoption UK's policy and lobbying activities please visit our Campaigning page.