Opinion

Permanency must be key focus of placement making

1 min read Social Care Editorial
Sorting out the myriad problems with the care system has to be a top priority of Education Secretary Gillian Keegan in 2023. Further evidence – if any were needed – that the system is not working well came with two reports on adoption just before Christmas.
Derren Hayes: '“The Care Review offers an opportunity to rethink our approach to placement making – it is crucial for children and families the right solutions are found'
Derren Hayes: '“The Care Review offers an opportunity to rethink our approach to placement making – it is crucial for children and families the right solutions are found'

Research by the Consortium of Voluntary Adoption Agencies found that there are substantial societal savings to be made when adoptions are successful but that these benefits are being eroded by the 23 per cent fall in the number of children adopted in the last five years. Meanwhile, figures published by the government's Racial Disparity Unit shows there were 50 per cent fewer black children adopted from 2015-20 and they waited longer to be adopted than white peers.

The decline in adoptions began in 2015, so it is no surprise that the government closed the Adoption and Special Guardianship Leadership Board (ASGLB) last month. What replaces it – if anything – is still unclear, and sector leaders will be keenly awaiting the publication of the government's response to the Care Review in the hope it will deliver a strategy for the future.

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