Three organisations have been appointed to guide an initiative that will see ten councils share £2m of funding to trial methods of adoption support.
Consultancies Mott MacDonald and Core Assets along with the British Association for Adoption and Fostering (BAAF) will implement and test the prototype phase of the £19.3m Adoption Support Fund before it is rolled out to all council areas next year.
The fund will enable local authorities to offer extra support such as training for parents and specialised therapy for children during the prototype phase of the £19.3m Adoption Support Fund.
Councils piloting the initiative are Manchester, Newcastle, North Yorkshire, Solihull, Leicester, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Cornwall, East Sussex and Lewisham.
Core Assets’ head of social care Andy Gill added: ‘The local authorities gave us invaluable feedback which we’ve honed and are now implementing. We believe this is a keystone in adoption reform and will make a real difference to both the adopted child and family. Any further lessons will be incorporated into the national roll-out version next year.’
Jeffrey Coleman, BAAF’s project programme director, said: ‘Adopters are increasingly aware that accessing adoption support services is key to meeting the challenges of adoptive family life.
‘The prompt availability of support, of the right kind and at the right level, is not something adopters can take for granted. The Department for Education’s Adoption Support Fund initiative is an important step towards addressing this problem.’
Colin Hurst, Mott MacDonald’s project director, said: ‘The Adoption Support Fund will enable children to benefit from being part of a family and develop a rich social life, good education and bright future, while providing families with access to essential therapy services.’
