Today the Adoption With Humanity e-petition goes live on the government’s website.. Exciting times, but really sad times. I wish it hadn’t got to this. But it has. And it’s time to do something about it. This is why I am proud to say that our patron Oona King is fully behind us. This is what she said:
“Like Francesca, I am an adoptive parent of two lovely children. And like her I have experienced the utter frustration, despair and anger at the way the current system operates. This is not a political issue: successive governments have failed to solve the problem. So what’s the problem? Simply that a failing system discourages adoptive parents from adopting, and penalises children born into dysfunctional families.
“These are children whose birth parents have usually been abused or neglected. Often, the best way out for these most vulnerable children is adoption. But adoption just isn’t accepted by the system. That’s why only a few dozen babies were adopted last year. The courts and local authorities need to be held to account, and the government of the day must get a grip. Our government has a moral duty to get the system working, introduce national procedures, and rid the system of unnecessary obstacles. And there isn’t a moment to waste. I look forward to helping Francesca in her quest to change things for the better.”
Bruce Oldfied says: “Adoption today in the UK is itself dysfunctional. I find it particularly absurd that that colour and culture are preventing children being adopted by families because social workers and local authorities think it won’t work. I myself was adopted by a single white woman, an extraordinary lady who adopted six of us in all. None of us were white. Her love, encouragement and the stable home she gave all of us was far more important than the colour we were born with.
“She is the reason I am who I am today and also the reason I am a couturier. As a dressmaker herself she was my role model. Without her there would be no Bruce Oldfield. When Francesca told me what she was doing with Adoption With Humanity, I was immediately behind her. We need to get back to basics and to what adoption is all about and that is children who need parents and would be parents who have the love to give those children.”
I would like to try to understand why so many agencies mess prospective adopter about after months/years of going through the adoption process and being approved. They mess up their livelihood and not to mention their emotional state and there are no free support services to help people through failed adoptions that many couples have been chasing their dream of adopting a child/baby and at the last minute the agency pulls out with no valid excuse. When this happens where do individuals go for help and support? Please advise?