Adoption UK held a panel for parents and children prior to the Senedd election
MEMBERS of the public were given the chance to ask each political party about their adoption policies during a webinar with Adoption UK.
On Wednesday evening, representatives from Welsh Labour, Plaid Cymru, Welsh Conservatives, Welsh Liberal Democrats and Propel attended the event entitled:
‘Do adopted young people have a fair chance in Wales?‘
Ahead of the 2021 Senedd Elections, the panellists set our their party’s plans to support adoption in Wales.
Ann Bell, Adoption UK’s Wales Director, called it: “a fantastic opportunity to grill representatives from the competing political parties about what they’ll do for adoptive families and whether they’ll make adoption a priority.”
Welsh Labour
Julie Morgan MS, Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services opened the event with Labour’s thoughts on adoption:
“I’m very pleased the latest adoption UK barometer and rating showed that Wales was ahead of the other UK nations in some areas for approvals for matching and for national policy for newly placed families. We set up a National Adoption service in 2014, to try to reduce drift and delay for children who are waiting to be adopted, and to encourage a broader range of adopters. We’ve invested £2.3m specifically in adoption and this has helped to fund the Adopting Together service and various types of adoptive support.”
Key features expected to be in Labour’s manifesto:
- Better contact with birth parents and siblings
- Training needed in schools on adoption awareness
- “We are committed to improving the mental health services for young people.”
- Full medical history of an adopted child given to adoptive parents
- Continue with Project Connected: “we provide groups for seven to 10 year olds, 11, to 25 year olds and 18 to 25 year olds, where they meet the children, young people are able to meet monthly, so that they can share their common experiences.”
- Harmonise two areas of childcare: the foundation phase and a childcare setting
- Continue £2.3m per year funding
- “The aim of the Welsh Government is to reduce the number of children in care by providing support.”
Welsh Conservatives
Abigail Mainon, Senedd 2021 Conservative candidate, began with her thoughts on adoption:
“The Welsh Conservatives would like to address this issue holistically. So it’s not just looking at adoption policy, but looking at the resources that are available to children and young people that are going through this service, ensuring that we streamline the adoption services so it’s an easier experience for adoptive parents and for the children who are going through this process. We back calls from Adoption UK, and for schools to receive additional financial support to provide extra targeted support for these more vulnerable children.”
Key features expected to appear in the Conservative’s manifesto:
- Increased finance for schools
- Open to public consultation
- Treat physical and mental health the same: invest in mental health services
- Easily accessible support for families
- “Different local authorities in Wales have different policies. And it should not be a postcode lottery, it should be the consistency of service that we have across Wales.”
- Full medical information available to potential adoptive families, including about Foetal Alcohol Syndrome
- Designing policy based on children and parents
Welsh Liberal Democrats
Senedd 2021 Liberal Democrat candidate Jo Watkins spoke about her party’s approach to adoption:
“There are three main areas I would like us to focus on, in terms of having a stronger Lib Dem presence in the Senedd. Firstly, the support given to adoptive families. As the child grows older, they need to be able to access help and support and they need to be able to access it swiftly. I would also like to have a special focus on schools. Our school staff need training, they need their professional development to focus on some of these key areas. Also, I definitely want us to be able to look at health and the situation with Foetal Alcohol Syndrome, and not being diagnosed easily and properly.”
Key features expected to appear in the Lib Dem’s manifesto:
- Yes to adoption awareness training in schools
- More funding for mental health
- Pupil Premium Plus (which includes specific funding for each adopted child) in England is a good idea, potentially worth implementing in Wales
- Support should be specific to individual needs and easily accessible
- “We should all make sure that all of the adopted children get exactly the same rights no matter where they live in Wales.”
- Disclosure of medical info needed including pre-birth life – “it is really important that they go in with their eyes open, and that they can really understand what it is that they might be facing.”
- Childcare offer would be in place for all children
- Early intervention is critical: “we will teach people who may not have been able to learn in their own past lives as to how they can be better parents.”
Plaid Cymru
Helen Mary Jones MS opened with a speech about how Plaid Cymru will aid adoption services:
“The party will commit to maintaining the National Adoption service: I think we’ve been very clear that that has been a success. I think there’s an argument for taking a more national approach towards fostering as well. We want to maintain the current support for potential parents and children, young people that happens before adoption. And we would look to find ways to legislate to give adoptive parents and children who’ve been adopted a legal rights to ongoing support until the child is an adult.”
Key features expected to appear in Plaid Cymru’s manifesto:
- Continuous training in schools
- Better use of financial resources
- Support should be accessible when needed
- Seeking a pathway and necessary training to diagnose FAS: “It’s inexplicable to me that we still don’t have a national diagnostic criteria for Foetal Alcohol Syndrome disorder.”
- Full medical history given to potential adoptive parents
- Guaranteeing a free childcare place for every child over the age of one
- Maintain current funding
- Keep families together when safe to do so
- Legislation that gives families the right to access support after adoption
Propel
Leader of Propel, Neil McEvoy MS, outlined Wales’ newest political party’s views on adoption:
“We have far too little economic opportunity. We should have started grants for young people who want to start businesses, we should have government sponsorship schemes. So maybe young people can be paid to go through university; we would be looking as well at a fast-track system for children or former children in care to become social workers. In terms of adoption, generally, I don’t feel enough support is in place for families when they encounter adversity.”
The key features expected to appear in Propel’s manifesto:
- Early intervention
- Keeping siblings together
- Teaching adoption awareness training
- Making sport affordable to improve mental health
- National advocacy service
- FAS pathway needed: implementation of ‘Robbie’s Law’ which involves transparency about medical history of adoptive children
- Prioritising support for families
- “I think there needs to be in law a right for children to see their siblings.”
Adoption UK was set up 50 years ago to support adoptive families in the UK. The charity hoped that the event would encourage more discussion around adoption prior to the Senedd elections.
“The current administration has made great strides in investing in support for adoptive families over the last five years but we know that outcomes for adopted children still lag way behind their peers. It is vital the next government prioritises adoptive families to help bridge this gap. We know adopted young people need support to help them to fulfil their potential,” said Ann Bell, Adoption UK’s Director for Wales.
The parties will each reveal an individual manifesto soon, in which you can find their concrete plans for adoption.
