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Contents

1. Arrangements for Adoption Reviews
2. Convening and Chairing Adoption Reviews
3. Timescales for Adoption Reviews
4. Reports for Adoption Reviews
5. The Conduct of Adoption Reviews
6. After an Adoption Order is Made

1. Arrangements for Adoption Reviews

Once an adoption agency has authority to place a child for adoption, there is a requirement to review the child’s case under the Adoption Agencies Regulations 2005. Until the child is placed for adoption, this runs alongside the requirement to hold a Child Care Review in relation to the child – see Child Care Reviews Procedure.

The child’s social worker should provide written information about the intended arrangements for Adoption Reviews, to the child (depending on age and understanding), to the prospective adopters (usually this will be part of the Adoption Placement Plan), and to any other person considered relevant, such as the child’s parents.

Where the child is of sufficient understanding and wishes to attend the Review, he or she should be encouraged and receive help to attend the Review. The venue, timing etc. should be arranged to facilitate such attendance.

2. Convening and Chairing Adoption Reviews

All Adoption Reviews will be chaired by the child’s Independent Reviewing Officer.

The procedure for convening and preparing for the review is as set out in Section 2, Review Preparation , Child Care Review Procedure, except in relation to the involvement of the child's birth parents in the review.

NB There is no requirement to invite birth parents to Adoption Reviews or to consult them prior to a review, but the child’s social worker, in conjunction with the Independent Reviewing Officer, may consider that their views should be ascertained and reported to an Adoption Review or that the parents should be invited in appropriate cases.

Where a child has been placed for adoption, the prospective adopters must be consulted and invited to the review.

3. Timescales for Adoption Reviews

The timescales for holding Adoption Reviews will depend on whether the child has been placed for adoption.

3.1  Adoption Reviews of children not yet placed for adoption

Where the child has not been placed for adoption, arrangements must be made so that an Adoption Review is held:

• No later than 3 months after Authority to Place for Adoption has been obtained
• At least every 6 months thereafter until an adoptive placement is made.

3.2  Adoption Reviews of children who have been placed for adoption

Where the child has been placed for adoption, arrangements must be made so that an Adoption Review is held:

• Within 4 weeks of the placement
• Not more than 3 months after the first review unless an application for an adoption order has been made
• At least every 6 months thereafter until an adoption order has been made or the adoptive placement ends.

Where there are concerns that the placement is at risk of breaking down and regular meetings to consider appropriate support have taken place but the risk of breakdown is still evident, an Adoption Review must be convened immediately. 

Where placements break down, an Adoption Review and a Disruption Meeting must be held - see Adoption and Fostering Disruption Meetings - Responding to Unplanned Placement Endings Procedure.

Where a placement has been made with parental consent and notice is received that such consent has been withdrawn, an Adoption Review must be convened immediately and urgent legal advice should be taken as to whether an application should be made for a Placement Order.

Unless there are exceptional circumstances, for example child protection concerns and/or significant risk, no decision to move a child from a placement shall take place without a formal review having taken place.  In such circumstances, legal advice should be sought as soon as possible and prior to any action being taken. 

3.3  All Cases

The child’s social worker must inform the Independent Reviewing Officer of any failure to make arrangements agreed at a review or any significant changes in the child’s circumstances at a review, so that a decision can be made as to the need to convene a further review.

4. Reports for Adoption Reviews 

The child’s social worker will complete the first 17 sections of the Review of Arrangements Report for the Adoption Review, as set out in Section 2.10 of the Child Care Reviews Procedure, and send this to the Independent Reviewing Officer at least five days prior to the meeting.

The child (depending on their age and understanding) should be given the opportunity to complete or helped to complete their own written contribution.

The prospective adopters' adoption social worker will prepare a report for the review - see Section 2.10 of the Child Care Reviews Procedure.

5. The Conduct of Adoption Reviews

5.1	The Adoption Review will be conducted in the same way as a Child Care Review as set out in the Section 4 of the Child Care Review Procedure - except that Adoption Review will specifically consider the following areas: Whether it remains satisfied that the child should be placed for adoption and, if not yet placed, whether a Parallel Plan is being pursued The child’s needs, welfare and development, and whether any changes need to be made to meet the child’s needs or assist his/her development The existing arrangements for contact and whether they should continue or be altered – see Contact Policy Where the child has been placed for adoption, evidence of the child’s attachment to the prospective adopters and the arrangements in relation to the exercise of Parental Responsibility for the child (which will initially be recorded in the Adoption Placement Plan) and whether they should continue or be altered The arrangements for the provision of adoption support services for the adoptive family and whether there should be any re-assessment of the need for those services In consultation with the appropriate agencies, the arrangements for assessing and meeting the child’s health care and educational needs Any concerns Outstanding Court proceedings Where the child is placed for adoption, the timing of the adoption application The timing of the ‘Later in Life Letter’ from the social worker being given to the child (prior to the Adoption Order), whether life story work with the child has been completed and whether the child’s Life Story Book has been passed to the prospective adopters The responsibility for providing Court reports The frequency of future reviews and the date for the next review.
5.2	Where the child is the subject of a Placement Order and has not been placed for adoption by the time of the first six month review, the review must also: Establish why the child has not been placed for adoption and consider  what further steps it should take to arrange for the child to be placed for adoption; and Consider whether it remains satisfied that the child should be placed for adoption.
5.3	The Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO) must ensure that the views of the child are properly understood by the review and taken into account.  Where the child wishes to take proceedings on their own account, for example to apply for the revocation of a Placement Order, the Independent Reviewing Officer must assist the child to obtain legal advice or establish whether an appropriate adult is able and willing to provide legal advice and/or bring the proceedings on the child’s behalf. The IRO should also advise the child about his or her right to appoint an advocate where they have problems or concerns.
5.4	The Independent Reviewing Officer must also ensure that anyone responsible for implementing a decision taken at the review is identified, and that any failure to review the case or implement decisions made at a Review is brought to the attention of senior managers within the agency. In this context the Dispute Resolution Process set out in Section 9, Local Dispute Resolution of the Child Care Review Procedure will apply.
5.5	Any decisions made at the review should be notified in writing to the child (depending on age and understanding), the prospective adopters (where the child has been placed for adoption) and any other person considered relevant by the child’s social worker and the Independent Reviewing Officer, such as the birth parents.
5.6	The information obtained during an Adoption Review, any decisions made at the review and the minutes of any meeting arranged to consider any aspect of the review must be placed on the child’s Adoption Case Record.
5.7	Where a child has been placed for adoption but not adopted within 12 months, the child’s social worker must present a further report to the Adoption Panel identifying the length of the delay, the reasons and the steps being taken to address any difficulties.
5.8	Where a decision has been made to place a child for adoption but the child has not been placed within 6 months, the child’s social worker must present a further report to the Adoption Panel identifying the length of the delay, the reasons and the steps being taken to address any difficulties, including consideration of a review of the adoption plan and/or a possible change to long-term fostering/separation of siblings.

6. After an Adoption Order is made

Once an Adoption Order is made, the child’s social worker should complete the Adoption Case Record and ensure that the necessary work has been undertaken to complete the adoption process. The Adoption Case Record should then be closed and sent to the Adoption Team for safe storage within 2 months of the Adoption Order being granted.

The child’s social worker should also record on RAISE the Adoption Order immediately after the making of the Order.

End