Children who need adopting
Unfortunately, some groups of children tend to have to wait longer than others to find their adoptive families.
We need our adopters to be as diverse as the children needing adoption, and strive to ensure that every child is matched with a family and a suitable home.
Children from minority ethnic groups
Sadly, children from minority ethnic groups wait the longest to be adopted.
It is important that our adopters can nurture and promote a child’s ethnic and cultural heritage as they grow up. This is so the child can learn more about their identity and where they have come from.
We have placed many children with adoptive families who represent the diversity of Buckinghamshire. However, we need more adopters from minority ethnic groups who can encourage and reinforce a child's identity, culture and heritage.
Brothers and sisters
Nearly half of the children currently needing adopting are part of a sibling group, meaning they are in care with their brother and/or sister.
Many of the children who have been adopted have been through difficult experiences and all have considered loss. For some, their brother or sister will have been the only constant in their lives.
We need more adopters to consider adopting more than one child to enable brothers and sisters to continue living together.
Adopting brothers and sisters together is rewarding and offers a lot of advantages including that:
- they stay together
- their shared experience can act as a comfort to each other
- it helps them maintain a strong sense of identity
Children with more complex needs
We are looking for adoptive parents for children with more complex needs, including physical and learning disabilities.
All children deserve a settled living environment. We need adopters who can see children for the innocent, loving children they are, rather than a list of additional needs. These children especially need someone with the time and patience to help them reach their full potential.
Older children
Adopting an older child (usually 4 to 8 years old ) means you will have more information on any health and developmental issues.
We need more adopters to consider adopting older children, and as a result, time matching families for these children will often be shorter.
About the children
The profiles below give an example of the needs of the children who we are family-finding for in Buckinghamshire. We are not actively family finding for any of the children mentioned in these examples.
Ryan is a 2 year old boy who has lived with his foster carer’s since he came into care, shortly after his birth.
Ryan seeks out his carer when he is upset and reciprocates smiles and cuddles. Ryan is an active child who enjoys playing at the local park, climbing, going down the slide and playing on the swings. At home Ryan loves to spend time with his carer drawing, singing rhymes and clapping along. Ryan also finds it great fun to build towers and then will happily knock them over.
Ryan has a diagnosis of developmental delay. Ryan is non-verbal at this time; however, he can communicate his needs well to his carer, albeit becoming frustrated at times.
Ryan needs adopters who can provide him with the predictable routine that he requires. Ryan’s adopters will need to be confident and provide Ryan with the opportunities to continue to develop to ensure that he can grow up to fulfil his potential.
James is a calm and content 9 month old baby who is starting to explore his world around him. James is very vocal in his play and is starting to form words. James is described as a child who is thriving from the interaction with his carers and the other children around him. James loves sensory books and touching the different textures. James enjoys going to playgroups and loves bath time and swimming.
Adopters will need to work closely alongside James’ foster carers to ensure that a good transition happens. James is described by them as ‘a happy content and loveable’ little boy. James has experienced inconsistency prior to moving to live with his foster carers, and so adopters will need to understand the impact of early life trauma.
We are looking for a family for sisters Lola and Mia.
Lola is 6 years old; she loves learning and is always observing and copying others around her. Lola has enjoyed new experiences since living with her foster carers and we have seen her love of sparkles, unicorns and glitter emerge.
Mia is four years old and is described as a child who always has a big smile on her face. Mia is talkative and loves the attention of adults. Mia enjoys singing and this is how she will express herself.
The siblings do sometimes have squabbles over toys, but this is typical sibling behaviour. Lola has support with her speech delay and is currently under the paediatric team for a potential diagnosis of autism.
Adopters who may consider Lola and Mia will need to be able to offer the children a safe, nurturing, and engaging environment. The children have missed out on early years and educational opportunities. The children are of an age where they will need adopters who are able to support them with their life story and helping them to understand their journey.
Contact us
If you would like to know more about becoming an adopter, contact us using our enquiry form.
Alternatively, you can contact the adoption team on:
You can also follow us on social media: