Adoption Agencies are obliged to provide an adoption allowance scheme to help with the financial aspects of bringing up a child or young person. The schemes developed by agencies vary from agency to agency but all are subject to regulations (The Adoption Allowance Regulations 1991).
When considering adoption a number of questions could arise. They could fall into the following:
I think I have what it takes to care for a child and I should like to adopt, but I cannot afford to provide everything he/she will need. Can the agency help me?
Yes. Adoption Allowance Schemes were set up to help children to be adopted. If finance obstacle to the adoption then assistance could be looked at. The schemes are means-tested and are dependent on the needs of the child.
What is an adoption allowance?
An adoption allowance is a contribution towards meeting the extra cost of caring for a child who would not be adopted without an adoption allowance. It is a means tested benefit and is paid by the council who is placing the child for adoption. Whether the allowance is paid depends on the needs of the child, your earnings and savings and the savings of the child.
[Source: The Children Act 1989: Guidance and Regulations, Volume 9 Adoption Issues]
In what situation would an allowance may be paid?
An allowance could be paid where:
How is it decided that an allowance is to be paid?
The adoption panel considers whether the adoption:
How much is the allowance?
The amount varies from agency to agency. The law does not allow for an adoption allowance to be higher than the fostering allowance paid by the council.
[Source: regulation 3 of the Adoption Allowance Regulations 1991; The Children Act 1989: Guidance and Regulations, Volume 9 Adoption Issues]
From when is the allowance paid?
This will be decided by the agency but it cannot be paid before the child is placed with you for the purposes of adoption. If you are already fostering the child a specific date will be agreed with you.
[Source: regulation 2 of the Adoption Allowance Regulations 1991; The Children Act 1989: Guidance and Regulations, Volume 9 Adoption Issues]
For how long is the allowance paid?
This depends on the needs of the child, but the allowance will stop when the child:
Will I be able to take time off work to look after my adopted child? (The following response was drawn from the DTI’s website)
If you have completed one year's service with your employer you will be able to take parental leave. Once the child is placed with you, each adopter will be entitled to a total of 13 weeks unpaid parental leave for each child during the first five years after date of placement, or until the child's eighteenth birthday if this is sooner. If your child is disabled, you will be able to use your leave over a longer period up to the child's 18th birthday. For more information check the Department of Trade & Industry's website.
From 2003 new rights to adoption leave and paternity leave are being introduced. This follows the consultation on the Green Paper, Work and Parents: Competitiveness and Choice. One parent adopting a child will be able to take adoption leave – 26 weeks paid leave and 26 weeks unpaid leave. The other adoptive parent will be able to take paternity leave. Paternity leave will be for two weeks. Both adoption leave and paternity leave will be paid at the lesser of £100 per week or 90% of average earnings.
These new rights will be in addition to your existing right to parental leave.
On 8 November 2001 the Government published its Government Response on Simplification of Maternity Leave, Paternity Leave and Adoption Leave. This sets out how adoption leave and paternity leave will work. The new rights are included in the Employment Bill which was introduced on 7 November 2001. For further information see the Department of Trade and Industry's website.
Will I be entitled to social security benefits?
There are different rules for each of the benefits; some benefits will not be paid if the child is not adopted whereas some benefits can be paid for the child during the period up to the making of the adoption order. You can claim Child Benefit as soon as the child has been placed with you but you cannot get Child Benefit if a local authority are paying you an allowance which includes an amount for the child's accommodation and maintenance. Contact your benefit office for more information or, for general information check the website for the Department of Work and Pensions (formerly the Department of Social Security). The Inland Revenue now operates the Working Families Tax Credit which replaced Family Credit. The Children's Tax Credit is being introduced from 6 April 2001. The Credit is for one child even if you have more than one child. You can claim this credit if the child is adopted, under 16 years of age and lives with you all or part of the time. For more information check the Inland Revenue's website.
If you think you meet the criteria to adopt, go ahead and contact your council or voluntary adoption agency. The children who need new parents, need people like you to come forward to offer them a new life, hope, love and a family.
Can leave be postponed under the fallback scheme if an employee wants to take leave immediately after the birth or adoption of a child?
When an employee applies to take parental leave immediately after the birth or adoption of a child, then the employer cannot postpone the leave. The employee needs to give 21 days’ notice before the beginning of the expected week of childbirth (expectant mothers will be able to provide this information to their partners). In the case of adoption, the employee needs to give 21 days’ notice of the expected week of placement. In rare cases where this is not possible, an adoptive parent should give the notice as soon as is reasonably practicable.
Recent News:
The government have released a new consultation document called Providing Effective Adoption Support. Throughout the document are references to ”financial support” and how best to deliver it. It provides an interest glimpse of the direction in which the government wishes to go in terms of providing support for adopters and in particular financial support.
Follow this link to the web page:
http://www.doh.gov.uk/adoption/effectivesupport.htm