Issue - meetings

Bi-annual adoption report (information report)

Meeting: 18/12/2018 - Cabinet Member for Children and Families (Item 15)

15 Annual Adoption Panel Activity Report April 2018 (information report) PDF 441 KB

Purpose

It is required by Standard 25.6 of the Adoption National Minimum Standards 2011 for Local Authority Adoption Services that the executive receives a six-monthly written report outlining the management and performance of the adoption agency.

The Cabinet Member is asked to note the performance of the Portsmouth Adoption Agency in terms of:

1) Reducing waiting times for children being placed in permanent families;

2) Sustained number of children adopted in contrast to the national picture; and;

3) The progress of Portsmouth becoming part of a regional adoption agency.

Decision:

The Cabinet Member noted that

1) It is required by Standard 25.6 of the Adoption National Minimum Standards 2011 for Local Authority Adoption Services that the executive receive a six-monthly written report outlining the management and performance of the adoption agency.

2) The Cabinet Member noted the performance of the Portsmouth Adoption Agency in terms of:

1.1 Reducing waiting times for children being placed in permanent families.

1.2 Sustained number of children adopted in contrast to the national picture

1.3 The progress of Portsmouth becoming part of a regional adoption agency

The Cabinet Member noted the report.

Minutes:

The Director presented the report and highlighted the following areas:

· That there was continued progress in the number of children being placed for adoption.

· That the timeliness and number of Looked After Children leaving foster care through adoption has generally continued to be in accordance with government-led targets. Portsmouth had an average of 31 children needing adoptive families at any time over the course of a year. For the period 1st April-31st October 2018 seven children had been adopted and applications for adoption orders for two children were currently pending in court.

· That of those children placed with adoptive families there were two pairs of siblings age 0-6yrs, who had been placed together and despite a robust support package in place one adoption placement had ended for an older child with emotional and behavioural issues.

· That a Regional Adoption Agency (RAA) project team had been established to drive the development of Adopt South, which would comprise Portsmouth City Council, Hampshire County Council, Isle of Wight Council; Southampton City Council as well as the voluntary adoption agencies (VAAs), Barnardo's, Parents and Children Together (PACT) and Adoption UK. With the contributions from the VAAs the four local authorities would provide a regional agency specialising in the recruitment of adoptive families.

· Whilst Portsmouth had experienced a reduction in the number of prospective adoptive families it had continued to use a range of means to identify the most suitable adoptive families for children. The majority of families recruited lived within a 50 mile radius (but not within the city) in order to protect the identity of the adoptive placement. Of the children matched, 75% percent were matched with Portsmouth approved adoptive families and 25% percent with other agency adoptive families. One of the benefits of Portsmouth becoming part of the RAA would be a reduction in the number and costs of children placed with other agency families.