Agenda item

To receive information in relation to adoption performance, progress and activity of Adopt London West, and good outcomes being achieved for children.

Mandy Wilkins (Adopt London West) introduced the report which provided information relating to adoption performance data for the reporting period, the progress and activity of Adopt London West (ALW) and the outcomes being achieved for children. In introducing the report, she highlighted the good practice she had seen in Brent around life story work with good partnership working. She had recently run life story training sessions with good attendance from Brent staff, and she offered consultation for social workers which was being well utilised in Brent.

In highlighting the main points in the report, Mandy Wilkins drew the Committee’s attention to adopter recruitment, which was not on target due to issues with capacity in the team. Interviews for an additional post agreed by the Partnership Board would take place during the week and it was hoped there would be success in appointing a candidate. She highlighted the difference it made when ALW adopters were placed with Brent children as the adopters were trained by ALW and ALW knew the children well.

It was highlighted that ALW had introduced an early support service two years previously which was available to special guardians, of which 26 special guardians were making use of. This was where special guardians did not need an allocated worker so ALW would provide an early support offer and check in with them every 2 months. This had helped to reinforce the message for special guardians to call the service if they needed any support and there had now been good engagement there.

Aligned with the modernised adoption agenda, Mandy Wilkins advised members that ALW was encouraging adopters and families to think more openly about engagement and keeping in touch with each other. There had been huge growth in that area with 113 letter exchanges and 42 direct contacts of adopted children and adopters with the child’s birth families, and in surveys it had been found that the vast majority said they wanted more contact, information or meaningful relationships with their family, particularly siblings. 

The Chair thanked Mandy Wilkins for her introduction and invited contributions from the Committee, with the following points raised:

The Committee asked for further information about the contact children were having were birth families and the benefits that provided. They heard that Adoption England were currently running webinars about this particular point, due to a statistic demonstrating that over half of adopted children thought about why they were adopted at least once a week. Nationally, officers were seeing a shifting culture in adoption in relation to maintaining contact with birth families and there was also new research to encourage maintaining a relationship with foster carers who supported transitions into adoption.

The Committee asked whether there was any research and learning from international models of adoption. Mandy Wilkins advised the Committee that the Adoption England resources available had been adapted from Australian models of adoption.

The Committee asked for reassurance that those children who were good candidates for adoption were able to move through the process as easily as possible. Nigel Chapman (Corporate Director Children and Young People, Brent Council) advised the Committee that the numbers of children adopted in Brent were low and the number of children in care was relatively low. He reassured the Committee that the Council looked at all forms of permanency for children, with adoption included as an option, but the majority of children returned home or stayed with a family member. The Council’s approach was that the child was best placed with their parents or family where possible. Where children had been matched but were still waiting to be placed, this was usually due to delayed court processes which skewed the average figures due to the low number of children.

The Committee requested an update on the Black Adopters Project, noting the lack of attendance by staff at a recent safer space session outlined in the report, which was attributed to work pressure and caseloads. Mandy Wilkins explained that the Safer Space sessions were one aspect of the project and ALW was doing everything it could to encourage staff to make protected time for these. Now when those sessions were scheduled officers ensured they did not clash with meetings or staff leave. A Programme Lead had been recently appointed, who she felt was very dynamic and would help the project to move forward at pace now there was a dedicated lead. The upcoming focus of that project would be to look at data where families had barriers in accessing adoption support.

As no further issues were raised, the Committee RESOLVED to note the report.