Adoption Link vs Register

[ShootingStarsinthesky]

Do you know if the Adoption Link Site has all of the children that are currently looking to be adopted throughout the whole of the UK, the whole Register or is it just LAs that have put their children on the site? I know that there are less children available at the moment but surely more than in the 200s in the whole of the UK??

It is my understanding that it is LA's who put children on Adoption link directly. There will be crossover with the register as LA's are not going to waste their time listing on adoption link if they can match a child easily within their pool of adopters.

I would say that at the moment as there are large numbers of approved adopters waiting and far fewer children due to the effects of the BS case, as children get placement orders granted, LA's will likely have more than 1 good match lined up to compare, so children waiting won't necessarily ever make it onto the adoption link site.

So with all that in mind that number is correct in terms of children waiting who are either harder to place or are from the few areas where there are less adopters already approved on their books.

As an example I know of an LA that has 70 adopters approved and 2 children with current placement orders, so when a child comes through they'll look at their 70 adopters, likely find a match and no need to put the profile on adoption link...

I think you asked this on AL too? One of the admins has posted this on the Q&A:

The number of children shown for Adoption Link on our statistics page is purely the children that social workers have chosen to put on Adoption Link. When we relaunch this site in 2 or 3 weeks time there will be also be a summary of national statistics on that page, and I have pasted the text from this below:

In England, 5,050 children were adopted from care during the year ending 31st March 2014, compared to 4,010 in 2013. (Source: BAAF) At 30th September 2014, 3,470 children had a placement order but were not yet placed (a 26% decrease from 31st March 2014). At that time is was estimated that there were more adopters than children children waiting. (Source: Adoption Leadership Board quarterly data) At the beginning of March 2015 there were 630 children on the Adoption Register for England. (Source: Guardian Social Care Network) 27 children were matched by the Register last month. (Source: Adoption Register for England, March 2015)

In Wales, 345 children were adopted from care during the year ending 31st March 2014, compared to 329 in 2013 - a 5% increase. (Source: BAAF)

In Scotland, 297 children who ceased to be looked after in the year ending July 2013 were adopted. (Source: BAAF)

In Northern Ireland, 89 looked after children were adopted in the year ending 31st March 2014 (up from 88 in 2012-13 and 60 in 2011-12). (Source: BAAF)

Not every la will use adoption link even for harder to place children but they will use the adoption register.

You'd think so wouldn't you? Yet out of 3000 children waiting, only just over 600 have been put on either Adoption Link or the Register. Something seems to be wrong.