AROUND 2,000 children are currently waiting to be adopted and nearly half of those are brothers and sisters who need to stay together.
Parents and Children Together (PACT) is an independent adoption charity that finds loving and permanent families for children waiting in care. PACT is rated outstanding by Ofsted and offers specialist support to its families for life.
PACT is looking for people of all ages, backgrounds, sexualities and ethnicities who would consider becoming adoptive parents for the children who wait the longest for adoption. These include:
- Single children aged three years old or older
- Brothers and sisters of all ages who need to stay together
- Black and mixed ethnicity children
- Children with additional needs or disabilities
PACT would like to hear from people thinking about adoption who live in Oxfordshire and Warwickshire, particularly those living in and around Witney, Banbury, Bicester, Chipping Norton, Stratford-upon-Avon and Leamington Spa.
Meet two couples who adopted through PACT.
Jill* and Sean* adopted William* when he was 16 months old and Mary* and Paul* adopted a brother and sister pair aged five and six years old.
Jill and Sean had two older birth children following IVF treatment but really wanted another child. They decided to adopt, and given Jill’s experience as a special needs teacher of many years, they were keen to adopt a child with additional needs.
The couple said they chose to adopt through PACT because of the post-placement support the agency offered, as they knew they would likely need this if they did adopt a child with special needs. They attended an adoption information event and really liked PACT’s approach.
Jill said: “We just loved how positive PACT were. They were realistic as well and said it would be tough but they also talked about the wonderful things about adoption too.”
Jill went on to say: “Being a parent to a child with special needs is completely different to teaching a child with special needs. Some of it has been really daunting. But he is an absolute joy, he really is. He gives us so much, and the rewards are wonderful.”
Mary and Paul adopted Luke* and Chloe* in the summer of 2020. Mary said: “Adoption was the something that was always in my heart and was our first choice to become a family. For us it was really important that the children we adopted knew that they were our first pathway to becoming a family.”
Speaking on the process Mary said: “We found the process tricky at times but our social worker was on hand to guide us through it.
“Becoming a family of four has been challenging but rewarding. Our son told us: ‘Mummy this is a dream come true, living in this house and you as my mummy’.”
If you are considering adopting please do download an information guide or contact our friendly enquiries team to find out more. Call 0300 456 4800 or complete this form to request we contact you.
*Names changed for confidentiality purposes
