Figures released in parliament by children's minister Nadhim Zahawi show that in the first 11 months of the Adoption Support Fund (ASF), which opened to applications in May 2015, the average payout was £4,927.
For 2016/17, this figure fell to £3,638 and in 2017/18 was £2,920 - representing a 40.7 per cent drop in the space of two years.
However, the figures also reveal that the number of approved applications has risen significantly over the same period.
In 2015/16 there were 3,610 successful applications, rising to 7,191 in 2016/17 and 9,465 in 2017/18. That represents a 262 per cent increase.
In total £17.79m was paid out from the fund in 2015/16, £26.26m in 2016/17, and £27.64m in 2017/18.
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