Birth Family Matters

An independent, confidential support service for birth relatives affected by adoption

Our Birth Family Matters service offers birth relatives a chance to talk. The service was previously provided by Families for Children, a voluntary adoption agency which ceased trading in August 2022.

The service is now run by PACT and is available to families in the Dorset, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole local authority areas who have a child that has a plan for adoption, or who has already been adopted.

What we can do

  • Offer an opportunity to talk about the things that may concern you about adoption – either on the telephone or face to face
  • Explain things you may want or need to know, but have not been able to ask
  • Advise you on managing difficult feelings or an event you are worried about
  • Support you to meet prospective adopters, or at goodbye visits with children or similar
  • Make links with other people who can support you or who have had a similar experience
  • Find services and support for other difficulties you may have

What we cannot do

We cannot stop the adoption. If you are intending to oppose the Local Authority plan for your child, you will need to seek legal advice.

We do not offer an out of hours service.

How to access the service

You can ask a social worker from your local authority to refer you to Birth Family Matters.

Alternatively you can contact Ally at BirthFamilyMatters@pactcharity.org or call 07398 477457.

Once we have received your referral, we will contact you to discuss your situation and what you require, and make suitable arrangements to meet you if you wish.

Your information is highly confidential and stored on a secure database with limited access to named staff only. For more information, view our privacy policy here.