Family Finding

Children are referred to the Adoption Team for family finding when a SHOBPA (Should Be Placed for Adoption decision) has been made by the Agency Decision Maker (ADM). A plan for adoption should be made at the child’s second Statutory Review (4th month). If the plan is Adoption, the social worker will complete a CPR and should present it to the ADM within 2 months of the Statutory Review.

The Adoption Team Manager will be notified of the children being presented at panel and a family finder will write a brief family finding plan to be presented to the ADM alongside the CPR.

Social workers can have informal discussions with workers on the team about children needing adoptive families prior to this and this is encouraged particularly in the case of Relinquished Babies and large sibling groups. However a child cannot be referred to the Adoption Team without a CPR.

The Adoption Team Manager will then allocate child/ren for family finding to a Family Finder on the Adoption Team and records this on Liquidlogic.

The Family Finder reads the CPR and arranges a Family Finding Planning Meeting. The Family Finder will invite the child’s social worker, foster carer and any other professional involved with the child.

The information gained at the meeting will include:

• Date of final hearing;
• Further details of family background, mental health issues, drug and alcohol misuse in pregnancy;
• Up to date, day to day presentation of the child;
• Geography – whereabouts of birth parents or significant extended family;
• Child’s health issues – outstanding appointments, test results awaited e.g. blood borne viruses;
• Any concerns medically or developmentally the child may have;
• Clarification of ethnicity;
• Contact issues (particularly once a placement is made).

The foster carer will also be asked for a good quality photograph of the child for the purposes of profiling.

From the above information the Family Finder will then create a profile of the child for family finding purposes.

The Family Finder will then complete an in-house search and have informal discussions with colleagues regarding available families, who could potentially meet the needs of the child. The in-house search may also include families who are due to come to panel for approval in the near future.

If families are identified the Family Finder should discuss them with the prospective adopters Supervising social worker who will read the child’s CPR and then confirm that they want their family put forward. Supervising social workers should record on the family’s Liquidlogic record that they have put them forward for a child and reasons for not being chosen (if this is the case).

If the Final Hearing is coming up or has taken place the Family Finder contacts the child’s SW to arrange for them to come in to the Adoption Team office and read the PARs of those families who are being put forward

PARs cannot be taken out of the Adoption team office or e-mailed to workers.

Social worker reads the PARs and in discussion with the Family Finder decides which families to take to a Linking Meeting (up to 4).

Linking Meeting Arranged - follow procedures

N.B. A Linking Meeting can only be held if the child is subject to a Placement Order or Parental Consent has been given except:

• Where a child has a half or a full sibling already in an adoptive placement and it is proposed that the siblings are placed together;
• Where the plan for the child is adoption by the current foster carer.

If suitable families are not immediately available the Family Finder will:

• Continue to liaise with child’s social worker and foster carer and attend Statutory Reviews/professionals meetings;
• A review of the Family Finding Planning Meeting will take place 3 months following the Initial Family Finding Meeting.

Should there be no in-house adopters available or if the child is deemed harder to place, funding for an inter-agency placement will be sought and the children will be referred to Adoption 22, the Adoption Register, Adopt North West.

Also on a regular basis the following will happen:

• Discuss family finding for child in supervision with Manager;
• Discuss child in regular family finding meetings;
• Discuss child at Children Waiting Meetings;
• Carry out regular Adoption 22 searches and Adoption Register searches.

If no suitable families the search will be extended to include the following. In reality the need to do this will be identified at the child’s Family Finding Meeting and to prevent delay will take place concurrently with the above.

• Profiles to be sent directly to other agencies;
• The child could be featured in publications such as Be My Parent and Children Who Wait;
• Exchange Days;
• Activity Day.

If a child is referred with an unusual background, it is possible for the Family Finder to contact the NAR (by phone or e-mail) and have a general discussion with the workers about numbers of families available. They are also able to do a general search to give an idea of if there are any families available for Court reports. However a specific search cannot be made without going through the above procedure.

Liaise with their worker, discuss the child and family.

If there may be a possible match agree to swap forms PAR/CPR (make sure that the information sent is as up to date as possible).

During this time searches will continue to be made in-house and should an in-house family be subsequently found, contact should be made with the social worker to read forms and arrange Linking Meeting.

If outside families found contact the child’s social worker to read forms and prioritise which family will best meet the child’s needs and arrange to visit (Hopefully only one visit will need to be made).

NB make sure you have got inter-agency agreement prior to going on the visit.

Following the visit, if both sides want to proceed, arrange a Linking Meeting. With ‘harder to place’ children it may be appropriate for the prospective family to meet with the child’s foster carers and or other relevant professionals before the Linking Meeting is arranged.

All of above should be recorded on Liquidlogic in the progress section for the child and a summary of family finding should be presented to the Linking Meeting for inclusion in the minutes.