Local authority or voluntary agency

[hackneylady]

Hello there,

sorry for this basic question, and I'm sure you've been around it lots of times but I'd be really grateful for your advice.

Could you let me know what you think are some of the pros and cons of local authorities versus voluntary agencies?

I understand it's a bit more flexible these days, in that an LA can assess you but then look beyond their boundaries if they don't have a child that they think matches you? But then I wonder what's the incentive for them?

I also have the impression (possibly entirely false) that some of the agencies are a little bit more energetic, but then some people say that they are more likely to find 'hard to place' children (which wouldn't necessarily be a problem, just trying to figure it all out).

We've spoken to one voluntary agency who we really liked and seemed very positive, but I'd be really interested in hearing other people's thoughts. Thanks so much.

La's pay for adopters that have been approved by any other agency. Because of the timescales for adoption they will place with other adopters rather than wait for their own.

I thnk it depends what you are looking for. It is my understanding that agencies get the children that the LA cannot place. If you are hoping for a baby then you would probably have more luck with the LA. However sometimes agencies are less 'fussy' than the LA.
That's just my understanding though x

I pretty much agree with everyone! Although I would say that it is my understanding that it is not the job of a local authority to find you a child. They assess you because they want you to adopt one of their children. They probably only take you on if they think that this will be the case. So if lots of people were asking for babies and they rarely had babies in their area etc they would probably stop 'recruiting' potential adopters looking for babies.

It is a subtle difference but it is my understanding that local or county authorities are looking for couples or individuals or families for children, not the other way around, so they may not go out of their may to find you a child if they do not have a child they think you could parent.

Having said this....

Some authorities will work in collaboration with other areas of the country (probably close by) and if a child from a neighbouring country is placed with one of their adopters it may be good for them so they may tell you about children in the other areas or they (in the case of our county authority) will tell you about some sort of exchange event where you can go and hear about children in all the counties represented.

Usually the information times are called an exchange day or information day and are where just information and social workers (and some foster carers) are present. The other type of event is where the children (usually harder to place children) are present and also information, social workers and usually the foster carers. These are at a fun event usually called an 'activity day'.

Also, if the country really cannot match you or if you have been approved for three months or more you can apply to go to an exchange event run by an organisation like Adoption UK.

www.adoptionregister.org.uk/adopters/exchange-days

Or an activity event organised by BAAF

www.baaf.org.uk/ourwork/activitydays

As far as voluntary agencies go I have known a few people to use them and it was always because of special features such as a Christian family who used the Catholic one or a military family who used the military one. And I know if you adopt from overseas you can go through PACT.

I personally cannot see what benefit that voluntary agencies bring as they do not have any children to place but I am sure that they do suit some people.

We just went with our local county and have been very happy and have had excellent post adoption support (our little boy has been here about 9 months and was three when he came).

But in your shoes I might look at local authority or county ones, more than one, and voluntary agencies and be asking all your prospective agencies the same questions. Then I would be collating the answers then go with the one which either answers the questions the best for you or your gut feeling or a combination of those or other factors!

The questions I would ask would be about whether they would be interested in you as adopters, the kind of children they usually place with adopters, the training and preparation they offer, times scales and the kind of post adoption support they can offer. In some ways although I have listed them like this I feel the post adoption support question could be the most important one. I would be looking for concrete answers and not a vague 'we will support you'!

Good luck.

Thanks very much, all, and especially Italian for those questions, very helpful indeed.

I think what baffled me slightly was a colleague of mine who's just been approved by Lambeth, who told him and partner from the off that they were unlikely to have a child who would be a good match for them and that they would start looking elsewhere immediately upon approval.

Post adoption support is very very important to me, and I wonder if any more cuts to local authorities will make this more difficult in the future.

Really interested in others' experiences of LAs and agencies, so feel free to keep sharing if you can be bothered/have time.

I think I might stick with an LA (either your own or a neighbouring one) - when it comes down to it, the post-adoption support for the child will need to be funded by the placing LA, so you wouldn't be avoiding anything budget-related by choosing a VA.

However, post-adoption support for the adopters matters too, and can vary hugely depending on each locality. Have a good look at what is offered in a few LAs - is there a help desk, access to a children's psych, access to unlimited training courses for adopters, an in-house team of attachment specialists including play therapists, a buddying scheme for adopters, etc etc (Our LA offers all those - for now!)

hackneylady it is curious that a local or county council authority would approve a person they knew they could not find a child for from within their own area BUT obviously it must be happening. In fact I do know of a case where it happened around here but sadly in the end (as far as I know) the couple did not go on to adopt.

Obviously, in my opinion, a good situation would be where a local or county authority did feel they may have children who the potential adopters could adopt, since the plan is to adopt not just to be approved to adopt. But if in the end no authority could feel sure they would have suitable children it is still worth getting approved with an authority you have confidence in and then looking yourself via exchange days or activity days etc.

A local or county authority further afield might be good because often children are placed away from where they come from originally, so if you are in a small area it will be harder for children to come from that area and be placed in that area, where as a big county they may come from the south and be placed in the north of the county etc. Does that make sense?

But weigh that up against the fact training and other services will be delivered in that area. So if you chose a county quite far away and you are accepted, they would have the 'burden' of travel for home study meetings at your house but you may well have the 'burden' of travel to their centre for training or meetings or some kinds of post adoption support.

The local or county council will get paid for the couple or individual if they are approved and go on to adopt from another county or local authority. So I guess if they are running courses for potential adopters it would make sense for the courses to be full (that is just my personal opinion).

Also in one sense it may be that no area will know for complete sure which children will be needing to be placed for adoption in the future.

Anyway, what do I know, as I say it does happen. In one sense you do just need a county council or local council or voluntary agency to approve you so I would look at all the other things too, like training and post adoption support.

Some voluntary adoption agencies are building post adoption support into their work as standard (I.e. actual therapeutic support). PACT do this, AdoptionPlus do it very well and Barnardo's are starting it.

The thing about voluntary agencies not having their "own" kids to place is true but Local Authorities may only have a very small number of children at any one time (I was chatting to one which had just seven). I went through a voluntary agency because I wanted to be matched from as wide a pool as possible which meant the National Register.

If I were to adopt another child (although please will someone shot me if I suggest any more kids!), I'd use a voluntary agency with post adoption support and I be proactive about my own matching by using Adoption Link.

Good luck whichever route you go.

Thanks again. Rude of me not to update, decided on LA, mainly because of the post-BS situation.

Be cautious with interpretation's of support, Most of support for our pre adoptive children is well in place before adoption. in most events regards too history with or without any identifiable significant development issues, these are purely as a precaution as too identify development issues early(early interventions) . These will appear in child's records but in most case's are not a problem, such are engaged Physo, Play therapist, Community Disability team's, CAMHS , all dependant on History and possible needs., and NOT Adoption support. But accessed through NHS is for free, and service will be transferred via NHS Community health services and paediatrics' where possible or discharged if not needed.
In our situation's Transfer's too other NHS Areas has worked brilliant over the years . Most are not hard too place children, but many are interpreted as such.

Hi Everyone, I wonder if anyone has any advice / guidance for me please. Unfortunately, I'm unable to have children of my own so I've decided to adopt. I don't know where to start! there's a minefield of information and agencies on the net .... any help gratefully received - Thanks

Hi newmum5677 - I would start by seeing if there are any information events in your area with various LA/Voluntary agencies. I think LAs are a good route to go down as they tend to get the children first. Lots of agencies/LA will have information events so you can find out more about the process. I don't think the process varies between agencies that much as they seem to have to follow similar structures. Good luck!

Hi Smudgymoo, thanks so much for the help; I'll look into local events :-)

I personally cannot see what benefit that voluntary agencies bring as they do not have any children to place but I am sure that they do suit some people.

I see this view a lot.

We adopted through a VA. We were willing to adopt ‘difficult to place’ children (older, sibling group)

We were linked to 2 DC , 3 weeks after being approved. Our agency were immediately looking nationally for us.

Our DC have minimal issues.

Post adoption support from the placing LA has been abysmal (post adoption order. Before that, they were falling over themselves). Our VA has been utterly brilliant. .

If you want to adopt a baby, go LA. If you are open to other types of children, consider VAs.

Simples.

Oh... and our VA arranged for training/support close to our home (run by unrelated LAs, i.e. neither ours nor placing). We’ve never had to travel too far afield for anything.

D’oh. Didn’t see this was a zombie thread

newmum...first friendly bit of advice. If you adopt... they WILL be your own children 😃 The term you’re looking for is ‘birth children’

DH and I adopted just over 4 years ago. I’m really happy to chat to you about our experiences throughout the approval process and beyond. PM me if you’d like.

We had the same dilemma and met with both our local authority and a voluntary agency. We choose the voluntary agency and are really happy about our decision. The after adoption support they offer is exceptional. I wouldn't necessarily agree that they only place the 'difficult to place' children. Our VA works with other authorities at the other end of the country, for example, where children can't be placed locally for safety reasons.

We used a VA after having a awful experience with the LA we fostered for it was a nightmare

The Va were quick kept in touch professional and very well managed
Also one big bouns for us was that we were able to choose our own child with support and had the whole of the U.K. to choose from

We adopted twice both children under 12 months

Our daughter was classed as hard to place

She may or may not have a illness that would effect her in her 40s so hardly somthing for now to worry about and she can’t even be tested until she is 18

Also I find that our sw was much more willing to challenge of their was a issue with the LA

because simply they were not paying her bills

thanks for all the advice guys. seems like va is the way to go. can anyone recommend any agencies? northwest

We just got approved with Adoption Matters and have found them really good so far. Enthusiastic and lots of courses. There seems to be a big focus on post adoption support too.

thanks lollysox. appreciate it 😁

I'm with Arc which is based in the north east, but they have an excellent reputation (deservedly) and have prospective adopters travelling from further away than you. Best bet though is to call a few & see how they make you feel - I contacted 5 or 6 LAs & agencies at the start & the difference between them was dramatic. It's a balancing act between what they can offer you and how you react to them.