Concern at 59 per cent dip in adoption rate

Shock figures reveal the number of local children adopted from care has slumped by more than half.

Department for Education data shows that Wigan Council has seen a drop in looked-after children taken in permanently by families from 49 in 2015 to 20 in the year ending March 31, 2019.

The local authority is part of the regional agency Together for Adoption which also comprises St Helens, Warrington, Halton and Cheshire West and Chester Councils. All but Halton saw a similar fall.

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The agency supports children and families before, during and after adoption and recruits and assesses adult adopters.

Wigan Council children services director James Winterbottom said there is a national shortage of adoptive families, and that the number of people interested in adopting or that have been approved for it, has fallen.

Mr Winterbottom also said the percentage of Wigan children leaving care via an adoption order is higher than the regional and national averages.

He said: “Despite this, we have significantly reduced the wait for children with adoption plans to be matched and begin living with their adoptive families.

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In 2015/16 on average a Wigan child waited nine months between their placement order being made and them being matched with a family. For the children adopted so far this year their average wait has been just three and a half months.

“Since March last year we have placed 130 children with adopted families and we currently have 40 children across the region waiting to be adopted and looking for their forever home.”

Charity Adoption UK said the fall is partly offset by rises in kinship care placements where children are still leaving care for loving homes. But it is still “very concerned” that delays in court processes and low numbers of prospective adopters are leading to long waits for children.

Nationally, figures show the number of adopted looked-after children dropped from 5,360 in 2015 to 3,570 this year.

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