Who this is for

Adoption practitioners and managers (Voluntary Adoption Agencies, Regional Adoption Agencies, Local Authorities, and independent social workers), children’s social care services, children and family social workers, foster carers, kinship carers, designated teachers, and other professionals working with children and families.

Details

This expert-led session will focus on supporting young, adopted people with an emphasis on identity, origins, and how teenagers make sense of their early and sometimes adverse life experiences.

The morning session, with Dr Zoe Webb will focus on the theory and psychological frameworks that guide therapeutic support of young people as they navigate the challenges of discerning aspects of their identity. It will explore how the unique experiences of adopted young people create unique challenges within the formation of their identities. It will offer strategies to help those supporting young people through these challenges including both relational and practical ideas that nurture an affirming environment within which they can allow their authentic and genuine identity to emerge.

In the afternoon, Tanya Killick will share key insights from adopted young people about identity, belonging, and growing up. Drawing on their lived experience, she will highlight what they most want professionals and carers to understand. Topics include the importance of peer connection, how school environments shape confidence and wellbeing, the impact of how early-life information is shared, and the ways different aspects of identity—such as race, culture, neurodiversity, gender, sexuality, and disability—intersect with adoption. The session will focus on practical, meaningful changes that genuinely support young people.

Learning 0utcomes

• Developing a deeper understanding of the theoretical and psychological frameworks that shape how we form our identities.
• Exploring how adoption intersects with multiple dimensions of identity, including sense of self, gender identity, sexual orientation, and wider personal and social factors.
• Learning practical strategies to support young people during this stage of development, including navigating sensitive conversations and fostering an affirming, empathetic environment.

• Understand the importance of peer connection for adopted young people, including its role in wellbeing, identity formation, and resilience, and explore practical ways to create meaningful peer-support spaces.
• Recognise how school experiences shape daily life, and apply young people’s own suggestions for small but effective changes that improve their sense of safety, confidence, and inclusion.
• Improve the sharing of early-life information by considering timing, accuracy, sensitivity, and the emotional impact of gaps, and by developing approaches that support curiosity, trust, and emotional safety.
• Acknowledge the intersections of identity—such as race, culture, neurodiversity, disability, gender, and sexuality—and consider how services can respond more effectively so that young people feel fully seen, understood, and supported.

About the trainers

Dr Zoe Webb

Dr Zoe Webb (BSc, PhD, DClinPsy) is a highly experienced clinical psychologist with over 15 years of working with children, young people, and their families. Following her work within NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, she has been in full-time independent practice since 2015. Dr Webb offers therapeutic support to children, adolescents, and adults, working individually, dyadically, or systemically across a broad range of mental health and well-being difficulties, including anxiety, depression, anger, and self-harm. She has a specialist interest in developmental trauma and attachment. In addition to core training in CBT, systemic, and narrative approaches, she has undertaken advanced training in DDP (certified practitioner), Theraplay, the Dynamic Maturational Model, the Meaning of the Child, CAPA, and EMDR. Dr Webb also provides psychological and cognitive assessments and is skilled in developing comprehensive formulations to support care planning. She delivers training and offers supervision and consultation to professionals, parents, and carers.

Tanya Killick

Tanya is a qualified Social Worker with extensive expertise in adoption, trauma, neurodiversity, and youth participation. As both a professional and a lived experience expert, Tanya brings a unique depth of understanding to her role, blending therapeutic insight with real-world experience from over a decade of working directly with adopted young people, birth families, and adoptive parents.  Tanya leads the nationally recognised Adopteens and Adopt a Change projects at PAC UK, where she has developed innovative, youth led approaches to participation, identity exploration, and peer connection. Her work centers on amplifying the voices of young people and ensuring their experiences shape practice, policy, and professional understanding. Through this work, Tanya has supported young people to create films, deliver training, design resources, and influence systems in powerful and meaningful ways. What Tanya loves most is seeing young people grow in confidence, find connection with their peers, and use their experiences to influence real, meaningful change.

Instructions

A member of staff will be in touch with attendees one week prior to the event to share a pre-event delegate pack.

If you have any questions regarding this webinar, please contact us at [email protected]. We will aim to answer your query within two working days.

CVAA accept online payments only. In case you do not have instant access to your company card, we suggest using your personal card instead to book a training event and claim it back with your agency in your expenses. Requesting an invoice to pay for our standard practice events is not possible.

Who this is for

Adoption practitioners and managers (Voluntary Adoption Agencies, Regional Adoption Agencies, Local Authorities, and independent social workers), children’s social care services, children and family social workers, foster carers, kinship carers and other professionals working with children and families.

Details

This bespoke evidence seminar delivered by Dr Morvwen Duncan will explore how adoption practitioners can provide comprehensive and well-informed mental health support for adopted teenagers and help adoptive parents do the same.

We will discuss the unique challenges faced by adopted teenagers, emphasizing the crucial aspect of identity formation during adolescence. Our agenda includes insightful sessions on the prevalence of mental health difficulties, risk factors analysis, and practical applications of renowned models like Kim Golding’s Pyramid of Needs and Bronfrenbrenner’s framework. Develop skills in the identification and onward referral treatment of adopted teenagers based on NICE guidelines, with hands-on case studies for practical application.

You will have an opportunity to engage in enriching discussions, hands-on case studies, and smaller group tasks to refine your skills in the identification and onward referral treatment of adopted teenagers based on NICE guidelines, with hands-on case studies for practical application. You will be equipped with practical tools to support adopted parents, navigate identity issues, and implement effective strategies.

By the end of this webinar, you will have acquired a well-rounded skill set, enabling you to navigate the complexities of supporting the mental health of adopted teenagers with confidence and effectiveness.

Learning outcomes

• Gain insights into the distinctive challenges faced by adopted teenagers, fostering a deeper understanding of their mental health needs
• Explore the intricacies of identity formation during adolescence
• Apply theoretical knowledge on the prevalence of mental health difficulties including anxiety, depression, PTSD, and conduct disorder
• Develop skills in the identification and onward referral treatment
• Acquire strategies to support adopted parents
• Develop a toolkit for addressing self-harm concerns and implement ACT/CBT strategies to provide comprehensive support for mental health challenges
• Embrace a holistic approach to mental health support, integrating theoretical knowledge, practical skills, and empathetic strategies to make a positive impact on the well-being of adopted teenagers

About the trainer

Dr Morvwen Duncan

Dr Morvwen Duncan is a HCPC (The Health and Care Professions Council) registered Clinical Psychologist and the founder & director of The Lotus Psychology Practice. She currently works across private practice, as an Expert Witness to the Family Courts and within the NHS as the Lead in a Forensic Child and Adolescent Mental Health Team.

Dr Duncan is experienced in working with children and young people of all ages, including children with complex needs due to neurodevelopmental co-morbidities, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Dr Duncan has particular expertise in working with looked after and adopted children, having worked within the Tavistock Fostering and Adoption Team and at Great Ormond Street Hospital’s Attachment and Trauma Team.

Dr Duncan is also actively involved in research, having spoken at international conferences with several academic publications across a range of areas of mental health.

Instructions

A member of staff will be in touch with attendees one week before the event to share a pre-event delegate pack.

If you have any questions regarding this webinar, please contact us at [email protected]. We will aim to answer your query within two working days.

CVAA accept online payments only. In case you do not have instant access to your company card, we suggest using your personal card instead to book a training event and claim it back with your agency in your expenses. Requesting an invoice to pay for our standard practice events is not possible.

Who this is for

Adoption practitioners and managers (Voluntary Adoption Agencies, Regional Adoption Agencies, Local Authorities, and independent social workers), children’s social care services, children and family social workers, foster carers, kinship carers, designated teachers, and other professionals working with children and families.

Details

In this training session we will hear from Dr Zoe Webb, a clinical psychologist with whom we explore how to best support adoptive families to understand developmental trauma and mental health needs of young people. We will consider different strategies to help adoptive parents to differentiate between behaviour linked to trauma and ‘expected’ types of behaviour linked to their level of development.

“All the speakers were great. Mel seemed very approachable and was open about her own misgivings and how her own practice had developed. Aaron and Dani were fabulous! Such insightful, well articulated, engaging and friendly young people. All the speakers made the webinar an absolute pleasure to attend.” – Attendee, June 2021

We will then hear from senior practitioners at Scottish Adoption and learn from the lived experience and reflections facilitated by their young ambassadors on the issues as they see it, that are at play during adolescence. We will discuss the need to explore their identity, the need to separate from their adoptive parents and their need to see their birth family.

“[I liked…] the expertise and experience of the facilitators on this particular topic, and the contribution of the people who were adopted. Their generosity in sharing their experiences was very powerful and made the webinar even more meaningful.” – Attendee, June 2021

During this training you will be able to network with fellow practitioners from other agencies, share best practice and glean new ideas.

Learning outcomes

• Explore strategies to support adoptive parents in understanding developmental trauma and mental health needs of young people, including differentiating between behavior linked to trauma and ‘expected’ behavior linked to development level.
• Understand the experiences and reflections of young ambassadors facilitated by senior practitioners at Scottish Adoption on issues at play during adolescence, such as exploring identity, separating from adoptive parents, and the need to see birth family.
• Network with fellow practitioners from other agencies, share best practices, and gain new ideas.
• Gain insight into the perspectives of adoptive families and how to better support them in navigating the unique challenges of raising children who have experienced developmental trauma

About the trainers

Melanie Thomson 

Melanie Thomson is the Children’s Worker at Scottish Adoption. In addition to proving post adoption support to children and their families, Melanie facilitates a number of different groups for adopted children and young people. Melanie strongly believes in the power of group work within post adoption support and alongside her team of Adoption Ambassadors, manages the @TeenTalk social media channel https://www.scottishadoption.org/teentalk/ where the aim is create an online adoption community for children and young people and educate the wider world via their lived experience.

Dr Zoe Webb

Dr Zoe Webb, BSc, PhD, DClinPsy, is a qualified child and adolescent clinical psychologist with over ten years experience of working with young people & their families. Having worked previously within Child and Adolescent Mental Health services in the NHS, she has been in full-time independent practice since 2015. Zoe works therapeutically with both young people and adults, individually, dyadically or systemically on a range of mental health & well-being difficulties (inc. anxiety, depression, anger, self-harm etc..) with a specialist interest in developmental trauma & attachment difficulties. She is trained in the core therapeutic models used within clinical psychology practice (inc. CBT, systemic, and narrative) and has completed additional training in Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP; certified practitioner), Theraplay (to level 2), the Dynamic Maturational Model of attachment, The Meaning of the Child, Child Attachment & Play Assessment (CAPA), and EMDR (level 1 & child).

Instructions

A member of staff will be in touch with attendees one week prior to the event to share a pre-event delegate pack.

If you have any questions regarding this webinar, please contact us at [email protected]. We will aim to answer your query within two working days.

CVAA accept online payments only. In case you do not have instant access to your company card, we suggest using your personal card instead to book a training event and claim it back with your agency in your expenses. Requesting an invoice to pay for our standard practice events is not possible.

Who this is for

Adoption practitioners and managers (Voluntary Adoption Agencies, Regional Adoption Agencies and Local Authorities) and Independent Professionals.

Details

Group work for young people who are adopted can have immediate and long lasting impact on not only children and their families lives, but also enrich your organisation as a whole. By utilizing service users lived experience, organisations can be enabled to develop a better understanding of the life-long impact of adoption, what’s needed and when. Learning from the lived experience influences every part of how an agency connects with the adoption triangle.

“All the speakers were great. Mel seemed very approachable and was open about her own misgivings and how her own practice had developed. Aaron and Dani were fabulous! Such insightful, well articulated, engaging and friendly young people. All the speakers made the webinar an absolute pleasure to attend.” – Attendee, June 2021

Scottish Adoption has been running young people’s groups for over 12 years. Within this time, the influence of the impact of these young people’s groups on the practice and structure of the agency cannot be underestimated.

“[I liked…] the expertise and experience of the facilitators on this particular topic, and the contribution of the people who were adopted. Their generosity in sharing their experiences was very powerful and made the webinar even more meaningful.” – Attendee, June 2021

As part of our commitment to #keepthepromise we would like to share our knowledge base on setting up and establishing a young people’s adoption group work programme.

This training will be facilitated by Melanie Thomson, Scottish Adoption Children’s Worker and Dani Armstrong, Adoption Ambassador.

Learning outcomes

• exploring the benefits of teen work
• practical skills to start a group
• realising our young people’s aspiration that all adopted young people should have access to an adoption support group

About the trainer

Melanie Thomson is the Children’s Worker at Scottish Adoption. In addition to proving post adoption support to children and their families, Melanie facilitates a number of different groups for adopted children and young people. Melanie strongly believes in the power of group work within post adoption support and alongside her team of Adoption Ambassadors, manages the @TeenTalk social media channel https://www.scottishadoption.org/teentalk/ where the aim is create an online adoption community for children and young people and educate the wider world via their lived experience.

Instructions

A member of staff will be in touch with attendees one week prior to the event to share a pre-event delegate pack.

If you have any questions regarding this webinar, please contact us at [email protected]. We will aim to answer your query within two working days.

CVAA accept online payments only. In case you do not have instant access to your company card, we suggest using your personal card instead to book a training event and claim it back with your agency in your expenses. Requesting an invoice to pay for our standard practice events is not possible.