Charlotte Ramsden reflects on National Adoption Week

Charlotte Ramsden, Chair of the ADCS Health, Care & Additional Needs Policy Committee and Strategic Director of Children and Adult Services, Salford Council, has written a lovely reflective blog post on National Adoption Week and our duty to both find the right families for the children waiting to be adopted, and support those families and children on their lifelong adoption journey.

Charlotte writes:

Adoption is changing and understanding what this means for those who want to adopt is crucial if we are to continue to find adoptive parents to love our children. Whether it is the determination to find the right home for a baby, a sibling group, an older child or a child with additional needs, or whether it is addressing the risks of social media or anxieties about available support, the right person or family is there and it is up to us to find them. One of my most memorable social work cases was a foster carer who loved the three siblings with additional needs that she cared for so much that she adopted them all. The development of post adoption support and the Adoption Support Fund has made this possible and will hopefully encourage more people who want to adopt to take that first step and enquire about making the difference for the children who are waiting.

To all the adopters, foster carers, residential care workers, special guardians and more who love and care for our children – thank you. For those who think adoption may be for them, then this National Adoption Week get in touch with your local authority or a voluntary adoption agency near you.

You can read the entire blog on the ADCS website.