There’s no such thing as a ‘normal’ family, according to 66% of people in North West England – this comes as National Adoption Week (21-27 October) has launched today to increase understanding of modern adoption and show that ‘the journey to a family is not always a traditional one’.

The survey by You Can Adopt has also revealed that the vast majority of the public (88%) feel it’s important to teach children that families come in all shapes and sizes, and that this promotes acceptance of children from non-traditional family units (52%). However, (51%) of the public surveyed were not taught this themselves when growing up.

Adoption in Merseyside (AiM) is the Regional Adoption Agency for Sefton, supporting a range of people through the adoption process as they grow their families.

Over 25% of approved adopters in 2023/2024 were part of the LGBTQ+ community which reflects the You Can Adopt message that families come in many shapes and sizes.

Craig and Daniel had their daughter placed for adoption when she was just 9 weeks old. Daniel said

“Honestly, we were a little worried about how we would be perceived being a gay couple. But the second we met our social worker all those worries disappeared.

The best part of the process was when we saw our daughter's profile. We knew straight away that she was going to be our daughter. We went to the matching panel very quickly and before we knew it, she had moved in. It was quick but felt so right.

We left our old life for a new one and being a parent is the most rewarding thing – we wouldn’t change it for anything else”.

Interim Head of Service for Adoption in Merseyside, Kath Drescher said:

“Our children are currently waiting longer to be adopted due to the lack of approved adopters.

"In modern adoption, we hope that potential parents realise that there is support available. Some of that support will be there for the whole journey, others just for one small part, and of course, birth families remain an important part of a child’s identity throughout their life. But each of these people plays an important part in the lifelong nature of the adoption journey that makes each family’s experience unique.”

If you want more information about adoption, please visit www.adoptioninmerseyside.co.uk