This is Cassie, my little sister …. she’s adopted!
Sara and Tony* knew they wanted another child. They already had their biological son Harry*, and discovered getting pregnant again wasn’t going to happen naturally. In their 40s the couple were considering their options in terms of growing their family and a little brother or sister for Harry. Sara and Tony decided they didn’t want the challenges of IVF, especially…
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Five Black British women talk to Black Ballad
Black Ballad, a UK based lifestyle initiative for Black women is hosting a podcast featuring five Black British women – all talking about adoption – each from their own perspective. Part of the Black Ballad Presents: The Survival Guide podcast series, host and Head of Black Ballad (BB) editor Jendella Benson talks with four adoptive mums;…
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Adopting a child by Patricia Dopemu
At one time or another, many of us will have thought about adopting a child, especially as we know some children can wait longer for a new parent. For author Patricia Dopemu and her family, adoption was a lifelong calling. She had the desire but felt she wasn’t quite ready, or that she needed to be rich, until a friend…
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Adopt London Choir – That’s Christmas to me
The festive season is here and the Adopt London Choir is back with a Christmas song that not only gets you in the mood, but also demonstrates the friendship, support and sheer enjoyment of a group of adoptive families and staff. They have come together in what has been another year none of us expected. Choirmaster Megan Tanner and…
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Hello and welcome to the Adoption Shared podcast…
‘Adoption Shared’ is a series of podcasts for the adoption community. The podcasts share personal stories of adopters, as well as advice and guidance from adoption professionals. Produced by We Are Family (WAF) in partnership with Adopt London, the podcasts offer a convenient way for adopters, WAF members and the general public to listen on demand, when it’s convenient. In…
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The Adoption and Fostering Podcast – Annual Conference 2021
Supporting the development of children’s identity through childhood and into adulthood – Friday 26 November 2021, from 9.30am – 2.30pm Scott Casson-Rennie and Al Coates MBE are back for their online Annual Conference, and Adopt London is pleased to offer 50 FREE tickets to Adopt London families. You can attend if you have children placed with you, are approved adopters, or are…
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Adopt London say thank you to foster carers during #WhyWeCare campaign
As we approach the end of this year’s Fostering Network’s Fostering Fortnight – 10-24 May, we wanted to shine the spotlight on the many foster carers who work with Adopt London. When children come into care they are usually placed with a foster carer. It’s here children are given the opportunity to really feel safe, to…
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Nature and our mental health
The mental health of all of us has been in the spotlight during the last year. Whether impacted by concerns for our family, friends or ourselves, the effect on children has been immense. With all the interruptions to education and their social lives, it’s been a worry for many adoptive parents, who may have struggled to help children manage their…
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Eddy Finds a Family
Sarah and her husband tried for a child for eight years. It was a difficult journey but they completed their family in 2016 and adopted their son. At the time Sarah felt there were not many books available to help children understand adoption in a better way and so, during lock down she decided to self-publish her first children’s book…
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Mother’s Day lock-down mayhem
Sitting in the midst of lockdown mayhem where rules and regs change daily, we’ve no idea from one moment to the next what’s coming our way and yet sat in front of me my four (and a half – very important half) year old is making me mimic her reindeer impression… She’s the utmost joker and every time I want…
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Christmas can be a difficult time
The Christmas season is so exciting for many children. For some children, where trauma has affected their early life experiences, it can be a particularly challenging time, as so much is unexpected and unexplained. We’ve put together some suggestions and a few ideas that might help you and your family this Christmas. Plan ahead Talk to your children and identify…
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Lockdown – Life as a new adoptive parent
During our COVID 19 adoption experience, we often referenced the simile “we are treading water”. We had been advised that the trick to surviving transition, placement, the new routines is to ‘keep going’ and we must admit, it is true, you must persist in ‘treading water’. There are the overwhelming moments when a wave of decisions consumes you, or a…
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The Kite’s Tale – a special sibling relationship
Adoption is a hugely positive option. It’s not something that just “happens”, it is a rationally thought through choice. By the time most parents meet their new child, they have generally been through years of longing, have shed countless tears and have learnt which shopping centres to avoid as they are filled with smiling mums with buggies. Our children are…
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Some People – A Young Person’s View
An adopted young person has written an extraordinary poem about their early life experiences. They wanted to share this emotional insight. Some people Some people know what it’s like to be called a mistake in front of their friends to be short on food to be short on water…
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Being Adopted – A Child’s Perspective
We’ve been reading a fantastic book called Being Adopted – A Child’s Perspective. The book is for adopted children aged six years old and upwards, and written by London born Abi Dowinton, who is now 10 years old. Abi talks about her own special story, which will resonate with other adopted children. Your child may be wondering if there are…
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BLM – meeting adopters and sharing ideas
Hi I’m Henrietta, Project Lead for Adopt London, Black Lives Matter. I qualified as a social worker with a master’s degree in 2000. I have worked within the public sector and as a senior manager for over 18 years. I also worked as a Service Manager within Adoption and I am passionate about improving service user experience. My husband and…
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Adopt London Choir – support families and staff can lean on
Spaces available for new choir members. The Adopt London Choir is a wonderful new initiative to support adoptive families and adoption workers, as we celebrate National Adoption Week. It provides so many benefits from a positive effect on mental health to meeting other like-minded individuals, and just experiencing that feel good factor. Watch the Adopt London Choir in action and…
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Essential listening – the #YouCanAdopt podcasts
Listening to podcasts is a great way to find out more about any topic, but especially adoption. It gives you detailed information from people who are very often adoption experts – either being adopters themselves or they may be social workers or an adoption specialist. As part of the #YOUCANADOPT campaign launched last month, six podcasts have been produced covering…
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NATP – free memberships for adopters and Special Guardians
Since May this year The National Association of Therapeutic Parents (NATP) have been supporting hundreds of Adopt London adopters and Special Guardianship families through the COVID19 lockdown period with free 12 month memberships. They have one to one therapy sessions, peer group meetings and so much more. Their aim is to give families as much support with therapeutic parenting for…
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Happy Birthday – We are 1
Today – 1 October – is the official 1st birthday of Adopt London, celebrating the coming together of 23 London local authority adoption teams as one. We are stronger together as we recruit adopters and support adoptive families across the London area. We are four Regional Adoption Agencies (RAA) – covering the north, east, south and west of our…
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