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Adoption

Information for Applicants

INFORMATION
for Step Parent Adoption Applicants
Making an adoption application is a very serious step and needs serious thought. The decisions to be made will affect the rest of the child's life. As part of this process, you should discuss this matter with someone who knows about adoption professionally. If you have not already done so, please contact your local Children's Services office to make an appointment to see a social worker. It is advisable for you to have read the booklets available produced by the British Agencies for adoption and Fostering (BAAF) and Parent-line Plus; see the end of this page for details.

Why adoption?

Be clear about why an adoption order is being sought.
Changing a name can be done in ways other than adoption; a solicitor can advise.
Securing inheritance can be done by making a will through a solicitor.
Guardianship of the child by the step parent in the event of the death of the birth parent with whom the child is living can be arranged by making a will through a solicitor - this is 'testamentary guardianship'.
Shared legal responsibility between step parent and birth parents can be arranged by the making of a joint Residence Order. Again, a solicitor can advise you.

What about the 'Absent' Birth Parent?
Except where the 'absent' birth parent has died, it is your responsibility to discover his/her whereabouts, and try to establish his/her views about an adoption application. It is not the duty of the Children's Services Directorate to do this.

We want to proceed - what do we do first?
If you have not already done so, you must give notice to the Local Authority of your intention to adopt the child/ren. The letter needs to be written to the Director of Children's Services at your local Children's Services office. It needs to include your child/ren's full name(s) (as on the birth certificate) and date(s) of birth. It should include the full names of both applicants (if you are married and are applying to adopt jointly). The letter needs to be signed by you both and to include the date of your marriage, and your address.

An adoption order cannot be made within 3 months of the receipt of your notification. The step parent must be 21 years old or over and the birth parent 18 years or over. Courts prefer couples to have been married for at least 12 months, and preferably two years. The child must have lived with you both for 12 months prior to the application. Once your letter of intention to adopt has been received, you will be sent a formal acknowledgement. Keep this letter safely, as the court may need it. Notice of intention to adopt expires after two years, so you will need to lodge your adoption application with the court within this time.

Do we both have to apply?
Both the step parent and the birth parent caring for the child/ren must apply together. If an adoption order is granted both the step parent and the birth parent become adoptive parents and appear as such on the adoption certificate, which will replace the birth certificate. As a result of adoption the birth parent and the step parent will now have exactly equal legal responsibility for the child/ren.

After the making of an adoption order the 'absent' birth parent loses all legal responsibility and ceases to be a legal parent. You may, of course, be intending to maintain contact between the 'absent' parent and the child/ren, and adoption does not affect this.

What should we tell the child/ren and when?
All children require truthful information about their birth parents and a full understanding of who they are. Before you begin adoption proceedings you will need to have spoken to your child, in terms which s/he can understand, about your plans for adoption. The court will need to know the child's wishes and feelings about the proposed adoption. A social worker will spend time talking with your child and prepare a detailed report for the court, which will include your child's views. The child must attend the court hearing with you. It is much better if a child grows up with the knowledge of his/her adoption as a natural 'fact of life'. Explaining is a continuing process which develops as the child gets older. There are some helpful books - see below. You could explore this further with the social worker involved in preparing the court report.

What are the practical steps we need to take?

Your next step is to obtain application forms. Three need to be completed for each child. You may apply either to the Magistrates or the County Court. It may be appropriate to take legal advice about which court to apply to.

The Magistrates' Court Office dealing with adoption for Worcestershire is based at Family Administration Centre, Kidderminster Magistrates Court, Comberton Place, Kidderminster, DY10 1QQ. Tel: 01562 514000.

The County Court office dealing with adoption for Worcestershire is at the Shire Hall, Foregate Street, Worcester, telephone number: 01905 730800.

A fee is payable for each child when you lodge the application with the court. In January 2002 the fee per child was £30 in the Magistrates' Court and £120 in the County Court. It is possible that the fee may be waived for families on a low income.

All completed forms should be returned to the court office together with the child's long birth certificate, your marriage certificate and other relevant legal papers. These may include statutory declaration (deed poll), residence/maintenance orders and divorce certificates. If the 'absent' birth parent has died, you will need the death certificate. The court will not accept photocopies; you can buy duplicate certificates from the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

What happens next?
The court will send a copy of your application and papers to the local Children's Services office. You will then be contacted by a social worker who will come to see you on a number of occasions to prepare the Schedule 2 report for the court (see below).

There may be a delay between lodging the application and hearing from a social worker. Child care services have to give priority to protecting children who are at risk of harm, so you may need to wait. If you have any major change of circumstances please let the court and Children's Services know.

What does the social worker do?
The social worker's main task is to ensure that the applicants, the child/ren and the 'absent' birth parent understand the full meaning of adoption. S/he is required by law to make a detailed report to the court, including the factual and personal information gathered from you and the 'absent' birth parent if possible. This process may take several months. The social worker can provide you with a written outline of the information the court requires. S/he must also make enquiries of other statutory agencies, e.g. the police.

Who else will be involved?
Anyone who has parental responsibility for the child/ren (which in practice generally means the birth parents if they were married at the time of the birth, or married later) will normally be asked to give his/her formal agreement to the proposed adoption.

If the birth parents were not married, the court may still need to consider the views of the "absent" birth parent.

If everyone is in agreement, applicants do not generally need a solicitor but this is for you to decide for yourselves.

The court will appoint an independent person called a Reporting Officer who will deal with the agreements to the proposed adoption and in most situations will need to see both birth parents.

If there is disagreement, you will need to discuss with a solicitor whether there are grounds to ask the court to dispense with the "absent" parent's agreement. The "absent" parent has a right to be heard. In this situation the court will appoint an independent person called a Guardian ad Litem. S/he will need to make much wider enquiries on behalf of the court. The Guardian's duty is to represent and safeguard the interests of the child.

What happens at the adoption hearing?
This is informal, private and confidential. You will both need to attend, with the child/ren and any brothers or sisters living with you.

The social worker providing the report will attend, with the Guardian ad Litem, if one has been appointed, and your solicitor if you have one.

Ultimately it is the court's decision whether or not an adoption order is made.

What happens after the adoption order is made?
If an adoption order is made, in due course the court will return all your documents, except the child/ren's birth certificate. Eventually you will be sent a short adoption certificate from the office of the Registrar General and an application form for a long certificate; you can apply for the longer version. The short adoption certificate looks the same as a birth certificate; it replaces it and serves exactly the same functions.

More information:
Helpful leaflets are available from:

British Agencies for Adoption and Fostering
200 Union Street,
London,
SE1 0LX
Tel: 0207 593 2000
(Leaflet: 'Stepchildren and adoption')
www.baaf.org.uk

Parent-line Plus
520 Highgate Studios,
53-79 Highgate Road,
London NW5 1TL.
Tel: 0808 800 2222
www.parentlineplus.org.uk.
(Leaflets: 'Changing Children's Family Name', 'Parental Responsibility' and 'Adopting Stepchildren')

Parent-line Plus also have an extensive booklist on the subject of stepfamilies.
Helpful books:
Joining Together’: Jo's Story published by BAAF, £6.50 + £1.50 p+p
(see above for address)   ‘Step Parenting’: by Erica De'Ath, published by British Medical Association, £1.20.

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Get in touch with our Contact Centre:
Call: 0845 607 2000 or Email: socialcare@worcestershire.gov.uk
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Page Information:
Last modification: 15:08:33, 13th May, 2008 by
Review date: 13th December, 2005

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Information for Applicants