Statement of Contemporary Adoption Practice
STATEMENT OF CONTEMPORARY ADOPTION PRACTICE
CONTENT
1. Policy statement
2. Definitions
1
POLICY STATEMENT
Children are entitled to grow up in a permanent, secure and loving family. If they
cannot be brought up within their family, they are entitled to an alternative family.
Permanency planning is a principle that underpins all out-of-home care arrangements
for children. It aims to ensure that children are provided with a stable and emotionally
secure home that provides continuity of committed relationships and where the child
is connected to the family by a clear legal status.1
Options in the continuum of permanent care range from care within their family to
adoption, depending on the individual circumstances of the child and the family.2
Adoption is the most permanent legal option in the spectrum of out-of home care
services.
Definition of adoption
Adoption is a legal process whereby all parental rights and responsibilities for a child
are transferred from the parents to the adoptive parents. Although adoption ends a
child’s legal relationship with birth parents, the emotional and genetic connections
remain.
Conventions and legislation
There are a number of international conventions and laws that should underpin
contemporary adoption practice in NSW:
•
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.3
Article 20 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child requires that
children unable to live within their family environment receive special protection and
assistance from the State. Therefore the responsibility for the provision of care and
protection and out-of-home care services is grounded in international convention.
•
The Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in Respect of
Intercountry Adoption (‘The Hague Convention’).4
The Hague Convention was ratified by Australia on 25 August 1998 and it came into
force on 1 December 1998. Since ratification, Australia is bound by the requirements
of the Hague Convention which places obligations in an intercounty adoption on both
the child’s country of origin and on Australia as the receiving country.
•
The Adoption Act (NSW) 2000, and
•
The Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act (NSW) 1998.
1
Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Amendment (Permanency Planning) Bill
2000 Issues paper, Feb. 2001.
2
Wise, S 2000, ‘Introducing a Symposium on Permanency Planning’, Children Australia, vol.
25, No4.
3
www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/treaties/1991/4.html
4
Schedule 1 of the Adoption Act 2000.
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The Adoption Act 2000, the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act
1998 and the associated regulations govern the provision of adoption services and
permanency planning in New South Wales.
Adoption service providers
Any organisation seeking accreditation as an adoption service provider in NSW must
provide a statement on their contemporary adoption practice, as part of the
requirements for accreditation.
All adoption service providers should make certain that their services reflect the
objects and principles outlined in the Adoption Act 2000 (AA 2000) and, in addition,
for those providing intercountry adoption services, address the principles outlined in
the Hague Convention. Adoption principles should be applied equally to both
domestic and intercountry adoption arrangements.
Adoption principles
The adequacy of any adoption service provider’s statement will therefore be
determined by assessing it against the following principles:
1
Promoting the best interests of the child both in childhood and later life
(s.7(a) Adoption Act 2000)
There are three main parties in adoption; the birth parents, the child and the adoptive
parents, with each having distinct needs and interests. However, the best interests of
the child must be the paramount consideration in all decisions related to the adoption
of a child. This means an adoption service provider should be able to demonstrate
how the adoption services they provide promote the child’s best interests over the
interests of the other parties in the adoption process.
Research into child development has confirmed a child’s best interests are promoted
by continuity of care enabling secure attachments and a sense of belonging. Options
such as long term foster care, the placement with the child’s extended family or a
suitable adoptive family, can provide this continuity and stability. A careful
assessment of each child’s needs is required to enable decisions about how adoption
rather than other options may be in his or her best interests.
An adopted child has two groups of needs to be met in his or her adoptive family:
•
the needs of every child to be nurtured through his or her developing years up
to adulthood, and
•
the additional needs relating to their adoption.
The additional adoption needs include:
•
attaching to adoptive parents after separation from parents
•
understanding the adoption
•
dealing with having two families
•
a sense of loss and rejection, and
•
forming an identity.
In order to assist a child to deal with these and other adoption issues, adoptive
parents should first acknowledge the difference between biological and adoptive
parenting. The extent to which adoptive parents are committed to and are competent
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with the additional tasks of adoptive parenting, will then determine whether the child’s
needs are met. Adoption service providers should demonstrate this focus on meeting
the child’s adoption related needs in their support or services to adoptive parents.
There is a body of literature about the effect of adoption on the lives of adopted
children and adults (see Useful References on page 10). Although adoption has been
found overall to be beneficial for children, there can be negative and lasting effects
through adolescence and into adulthood. Ongoing grief can result from the loss of
family members, identity and connections. Poor self-esteem and difficulties in
relationships can result. The NSW Legislative Council’s Standing Committee on
Social Issues Inquiry into past adoption practices, reported some people suffered as
a result of their adoption.
The Adoption Act 2000 in section 8(2) also outlines what needs to be considered
when determining what is in the best interests of the child in relation to adoption
decisions.
After children turn 18, they have a right to identifying information about their parents
and services should be provided to assist them to access these rights.
2
Promoting identity: knowledge of and access to birth family and
cultural heritage (s.7(c) Adoption Act 2000)
Identity is made up of a number of components and identity formation is a complex
task for an adopted child, especially for those who look different from other family
members. It is now known that it is not enough for adopted children simply to be told
of their adoption. Integrating an identity can involve answering questions as they
develop about where he or she was born, the circumstances leading to adoption, his
or her cultural/racial heritage and his or her place in his or her birth and adoptive
families. All this information and the way it is made available to the child are closely
linked with the formation of identity or a sense of self.
A full grasp of the meaning of adoption can lead to a sense of loss and implied
rejection which can affect self-esteem. Adopted children and adults can grieve the
loss of family, culture and country. The resolution of identity issues relies, amongst
other things, on the acknowledgement, rather than denial, of the child’s biological
roots and heritage, including race and culture. To assist the child, the adoption
service provider should collect accurate information, including social and medical
background information, photos, letters and mementos. This information needs to be
given to the adoptive parents and passed on to the child.
The family of origin is important to an adopted child and ongoing contact in childhood
can facilitate the handling of identity issues. Other adopted children wait until
adulthood to try to establish contact with family members. Post adoption services are
important to assist children and adults with identity issues and contact. Where there
has been an intercountry adoption, establishing proper channels of communication
with intercountry programs overseas, promotes exchanges of updated information
and setting up contact with birth family members in an intercountry adoption. (For
further discussion of contact issues, including adoption plans, refer to the section on
Openness.)
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Retention of a child’s name
A child’s name is a significant part of his or her identity. The child’s given or first
name is a profound link to his or her birth family. For a child adopted through an
intercountry adoption program, it also usually reflects his or her race and cultural
identity, as well as being a link with his or her birth country. Sections 8(1)(e) and
101(5) of the Adoption Act 2000 and Article 8 of the United Nations Convention on
the Rights of the Child establish the obligation for the adoption service provider to
retain a child’s given name or names. Under section 101(5) of the Adoption Act 2000,
the Supreme Court must not approve a change in the given name or names of a child
who is more than one year old, or a non-citizen child, unless the Court is satisfied
that the name change is in the best interests of the child.
Other reasons for keeping a child’s name include:
•
most children placed for adoption already know their name, even young
babies respond to their name by about six months.
•
as a sign of respect to the child’s parents or for a child adopted through an
intercountry program, the overseas country.
•
for simplicity and continuity in information exchange, or in sending progress
reports to an overseas program.
•
by taking on their adoptive family’s surname, children become an identified
part of that family, so they do not need to be given a different first name to
achieve membership of a family.
An adoption service provider must make it clear in relevant communications,
publications and training material that it supports maintaining a child’s identity
through the preservation of the child’s name.
Amendments to the Adoption Act in 2008 now mean that in the case of adoptions on
or after 1 January 2010, adopted children under 18 years and their birth parents and
adoptive parents will have access to both the child’s original and amended birth
certificate and to adoption orders (ss.133C, 133D, 133E). In addition, for adoptions
on or after 1 January 2010, non-adopted children of either birth parent will have
greater access to adoption information about their siblings who have been adopted
(s.133G).
In both cases, the requirements will facilitate maintaining a child’s identity.
Preserving identity in transracial adoption
The NSW Post Adoption Resource Centre conducted a study in 2001, into the
experience of 27 transracially adopted people in ‘The Colour of Difference’. The
study identified a number of difficulties associated with some transracial adoptions,
however in terms of positive indicators in transracial adoptions it concluded:
•
the adoptive family’s attitude to the child’s race and its commitment to
maintaining a positive sense of the child’s racial identity was an indicator of
success. This included ‘adopting’ the child’s culture and making continuous
efforts to develop the child’s pride in his or her race and appearance.
•
being open about the adoption was an indicator of success. This included
talking about members of the birth family, their place in the child’s past and
present life, and the possibility of contact.
•
geographical location of the adoptive family in a multicultural area was a
benefit due to less racism and feelings of isolation.
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•
growing up with same race adopted siblings was a benefit. When siblings
reflected the child’s appearance it reduced feelings of aloneness from being
the only person of colour in a family.
Preserving cultural heritage
A child’s cultural heritage is valuable and should be preserved where possible. In
addition, despite research to show transracial placements can be successful, there
are additional burdens of adjustment for the child in these situations with some
children experiencing marginalisation and racism. Children who are able to be placed
with parents of the same culture avoid these difficulties and have their culture as well
as possibly their language and religion preserved.
Section 32 of the Adoption Act 2000 outlines the issues to be considered when a
prospective adoptive parent has a different cultural heritage from the child. The
adoption service provider should determine whether the prospective adoptive parents
have demonstrated:
•
the capacity to assist the child to develop a healthy and positive cultural
identity,
•
knowledge of or a willingness to learn about and teach the child about the
child’s cultural heritage,
•
a willingness to foster links with that heritage in the child’s upbringing, and
•
the capacity to help the child if they encounter racism or discrimination in
school or in the wider community.
Aboriginal children
The legacy of the ‘Stolen Generations’ demonstrates the effects of bad policy and illinformed decision making. It illustrates how decisions that are made about one
Aboriginal child can impact on future generations of Aboriginal people. Australian
society has seen the devastating consequences of this through government inquiries.
Growing up with people of their own culture enables Aboriginal children to:
•
be proud of their Aboriginality
•
know who they are and where they come from
•
pass on culture to their own children so that their own heritage will not be lost,
and
•
have connections within the Aboriginal community.
Sections 33–36 of the Adoption Act 2000 outline the principles to be followed when
making decisions about placement of an Aboriginal child. These include adoption
being a concept which is absent in customary Aboriginal child care arrangements.
Adoption should not be considered for an Aboriginal child unless it is clearly in the
best interests of the child. It should also be preferable to any other type of care
placement.
Aboriginal Placement Principles
If an Aboriginal child is to be placed for adoption, the Aboriginal child placement
principles must be followed:
•
first preference is for placement with adoptive parents belonging to the same
Aboriginal community as one or both of the parents,
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•
if this is not possible or in the best interests of the child, placement should be
with adoptive parents from another Aboriginal community,
•
if these are not possible or in the best interests of the child, placement should
be with non-Aboriginal adoptive parents, and
•
placement of the child must be made in consultation with a local, communitybased and relevant Aboriginal organisation.5
If a child is placed with non-Aboriginal parents, there is a requirement for an adoption
plan to be developed that provides the child with the opportunity to develop an
identity with the Aboriginal community to which the child belongs.6 This plan should
be approved by the Director-General of the NSW Department of Community Services
and before the child is placed with non-Aboriginal adoptive parents, a preliminary
hearing must be held in the Supreme Court to consider the placement. The approval
of the Minister for Community Services and the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs is
required for the adoption of an Aboriginal child by a non-Aboriginal family. The
capacity of the adoptive parents to foster links with this community and to assist an
Aboriginal child to develop a positive racial identity, should be a criteria for the
selection of parents for the adoption of an Aboriginal child.
Self-determination
A general principle in making decisions about the care or adoption of an Aboriginal
child is that Aboriginal people should be given the opportunity for self-determination
and to participate. Self-determination for Aboriginal people enables Aboriginal
communities to take charge of their own lives and make important decisions about
their futures. Participation should occur at all stages of the adoption process. These
include involvement in the case planning process, counselling by an Aboriginal
person before consent to an adoption is given and the involvement of an Aboriginal
person in the assessment of a prospective adoptive parent for an Aboriginal child.
Torres Strait Islander children
Sections 37-39 of the Adoption Act 2000 outline the principles to be followed when
making decisions about placement of a Torres Strait Islander child. The principles
encourage participation and consultation with the Torres Strait Islander community.
The placement principles state the first preference for placement is adoption by the
child’s extended family. The Torres Strait Islander people are from a distinctive
culture in their own right and have different views on adoption from Aboriginal people.
If a child is placed with non-Torres Strait Islander parents, there is a requirement for
an adoption plan to be developed that provides the child with the opportunity to
develop an identity with the Torres Strait Islander community to which the child
belongs.7 This plan should be approved by the Director-General of the NSW
Department of Community Services and before the child is placed with non-Torres
Strait Islander adoptive parents, a preliminary hearing must be held in the Supreme
Court to consider the placement. The approval of the Minister for Community
Services and the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs is required for the adoption of a
Torres Strait Islander child by a non-Torres Strait Islander family. Again if a Torres
Strait Islander child is placed with a non-Torres Strait Islander family, they are to
have the capacity to assist the child to develop a positive cultural identity. Placement
of the child must be made in consultation with a local, community-based and relevant
Torres Strait Islander organisation.8
5
Section 33(2) of the Adoption Act 2000.
Section 35(5)(a) of the Adoption Act 2000.
7
Section 35(5)(a) of the Adoption Act 2000.
8
Section 37(2) of the Adoption Act 2000.
6
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3
Promoting openness (s.7 (g) Adoption Act 2000)
Openness9 in adoption refers to two main areas:
•
The building of relationships between the birth and adoptive families of a child
through contact with each other, and
•
The degree of openness with which adoption is discussed in the adoptive
family.
Whilst not all adoptions involve contact between the birth and adoptive families, it is
essential that there is openness within all adoptive families to discuss adoption
issues.
Openness is as important for children who have been adopted through intercountry
adoption programs, as it is for children adopted through domestic adoption programs.
The challenges to openness faced in intercountry adoption may include geography,
incomplete records, limited support for openness in the overseas country and
language barriers. Some of the challenges to openness facing domestic adoptions
for the child are inconsistent or no contact with their birth family and concerns of the
adoptive family in appropriately managing the contact.
The way in which openness is promoted by the adoption service provider influences
the attitudes of birth families and adoptive families. Adoptive families have to see the
value in discussing adoption and in building a relationship with their child’s birth
family or country. An intercountry adoptee may only know few if any details of his or
her birth family. Also the birth family needs to see the value in being available to their
child.
All adopted children have a right to know they are adopted and to have age
appropriate information about their parents, other family members such as siblings
and their background from the time of placement. A major benefit of openness for
children is that it provides them with ongoing opportunities to understand their
background, to maintain or develop relationships with their birth families and to assist
them in identity formation.
Openness also decreases the reasons for an adopted child to fantasise about who
his or her parents are, why he or she has particular physical characteristics and
talents, and most importantly why he or she was placed for adoption. This can give
the child a sense of wholeness and help the child grow up with added certainty about
themself and his or her background.
Contact
Contact between the adoptive family and the birth family allows a relationship to
develop between the two families. The relationship is sustained by spending time
together and keeping in contact in whatever way suits the two families. This may be
by letter, telephone, email or in face-to-face meetings.
It is important that contact is mutually agreed by the parties. It is the role of the
adoption service provider to support all parties in working out how they want their
relationship to develop. It is also recognised that there may be changes in this
relationship over time that may require the involvement of the adoption service
provider in negotiation and support. For instance, the child’s needs and wishes about
9
Section 7(g) of the Adoption Act 2000.
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contact may change. Even when a birth family has not previously sought contact, this
may change at any time with the birth family’s need to know about the well-being of
their child. Adoptive families should be responsive to these changes for their child’s
sake.
Adoption plans
Adoption plans10 can assist with openness. They can clarify the type and frequency
of contact the parties wish to have with each other to develop and sustain their
relationship. Contact can be direct if both parties agree, or through the adoption
service provider. As a party to an adoption plan, the adoption service provider has an
obligation to provide services to support the arrangements and to renegotiate the
adoption plan should this be required.
The adoption plan can reflect how the contact may develop over time according to
the needs of the child and each of the other parties to the adoption. When birth
parents do not feel able to have contact with the adoptive family, an adoption plan
can demonstrate the adoptive parents’ commitment to openness and willingness to
accept future requests for contact. If the parties agree to an adoption plan, it must be
filed at the Supreme Court as part of an adoption application or it may be registered,
giving it the effect of an order of the Supreme Court.11
4
Promoting participation of the child in adoption (s.9 Adoption Act 2000)
Children should participate in the adoption process in ways consistent with their age
and developmental capacity.
Three key factors are important to enable participation of children:
5
•
Providing clear information about adoption
•
Providing them with opportunities to participate throughout
the process, and
•
Providing them with support to allow their participation.12
Other types of adoption placements
The types of adoptions below require specific policies and practice directions.
Older child adoption
Older child adoption requires specialist knowledge in child development, as well as
knowledge around matching and support of such placements.
Specific needs adoption
Specific needs adoption requires specialist knowledge about disability and the types
of families best suited to parent children with disabilities and the type of support they
require to do so successfully.
Adoption of children in care
Adoption of children in care requires specialist knowledge and skills in assessing
whether adoption is appropriate for a particular child who has been with carers for a
significant period. It also requires knowledge and skills in locating birth families and
10
Sections 46-51 & 90(1) of the Adoption Act 2000 & clauses 29 & 30 of the Adoption
Regulation 2003.
11
Sections 48 & 50 of the Adoption Act 2000.
12
Section 9 of the Adoption Act 2000.
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establishing and sustaining relationships between birth and adoptive families for the
best interests of the child.
Intrafamily adoption
Intrafamily adoption is not supported unless it is clearly in the child’s best interests to
do so. Generally orders through the Family Court can provide for the needs of these
children.
6
Managing disruptions: if an adoption placement does not work out for a
child
The reasons for the failure of an adoption placement are complex and individual
depending on the family and the child concerned. They can vary from the adoptive
parents’ inability to cope, to the child’s inability to live in the adoptive family due to
past abuse.
Although most studies overseas have found that adoption disruption rates are low
(range between 1.9% and 20%), disruption can result in enormous emotional
upheaval for both the child and the adoptive parents. The crisis comes on top of the
considerable pre-existing adoption losses for each party and results in additional
trauma.
Higher rates of disruption are usually associated with children placed at older ages or
who have experienced abuse or had a number of previous placements. The ability of
these children to attach, trust and feel safe has already been seriously compromised.
Service providers need to give priority to these children’s needs in placement
decisions.
Juliet Harper’s 1997 research into disruption in NSW indicated service providers
could reduce the risk of disruption by:
•
a careful assessment of the family that includes the family’s capacity to cope
with stress, communication skills, the strength of their commitment to
children, their community supports and, in transracial adoption, having a
positive attitude to other cultures,
•
providing follow-up casework supervision and support by a trusted
caseworker, and
•
providing longer-term post-adoption counselling services focussed on
particular issues and at particular stages of development.
This is confirmed by Triseliotis13 who states ‘variations in breakdown rates between
adoption service providers cannot be explained solely by the type of child placed, but
also depend on the quality of services offered.’ His review of research indicates
adoption service providers should engage staff who are skilled in child placement
work. Staff should actively involve older children in the placement and prepare both
children and the adoptive parents in a comprehensive way that includes providing full
information and reviewing expectations. In placement decisions, an adoption service
provider should carefully match children’s needs with parents’ skills. Adoption service
providers should provide comprehensive post-placement support that includes
children maintaining contact with family members and assisting adoptive families to
access adoption allowances and specialist services.
13
Triseliotis, J, Shireman, J & Hundleby, M 1997, Adoption: Theory, Policy and Practice,
Cassell, London, p.33.
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Both the information and the adoption preparation programs provided by the adoption
service provider will assist prospective adoptive parents in self-selection, sustaining
placements and reducing placement breakdowns. This assists adoptive parents to be
realistic from the start about possible difficulties and to be open to seeking and
receiving help. The adoption service provider should support and monitor placements
during the post-placement stage to identify any difficulties. Also they should facilitate
early referral to adoptive parent support organisations and therapeutic services,
which have been found to be beneficial.
7
Support and provision of information to birth parents
Although the interests of the child are paramount, adoption services should also
reflect a responsiveness to the needs and interests of the child’s birth parents. There
is a body of literature describing the effect of adoption on the lives of mothers, and to
a lesser extent on fathers, whose child has been adopted. The effects of placing a
child for adoption on the mother can be negative and long-lasting. The sense of loss
is profound and a number of women experience ongoing problems of psychological
adjustment.
Adoption service providers can promote the interests of parents by:
•
providing information about alternatives to adoption and the emotional
consequences of adoption
•
promoting practices that ensure consent to adoption is fully informed14
•
promoting practices that ensure parents participate in the adoption process,
for example in the selection of adoptive parents for their child
•
providing services that support a parent after the adoption
•
promoting practices that enable ongoing relationships with the child and
adoptive parents through an adoption plan
•
facilitating access to identifying information and a reunion if requested or
wanted, and
•
providing full and clear information about the complaints, review and appeal
mechanisms open to them.
8
Selection of adoptive parents and provision of support
Adoption services should also reflect a responsiveness to the needs and interests of
adoptive parents. Adoptive applicants are an important resource for providing
families for children who need them, and in so doing, are also able to realise their
own parenting aspirations. Nevertheless, the Adoption Act 2000 is clear in section
8(1) that no adult has the right to adopt a child and that adoption is to be regarded as
a service for the child and not for adults wishing to acquire the care of the child.
An adoption service provider can promote the needs and interests of adoptive
applicants and adoptive parents by:
14
•
providing clear information about the adoption process
•
promoting practices that ensure timely and effective preparation and
assessment in relation to the issues in adoptive parenthood, and which also
assist with self-selection
Sections 58, 59, 62 & 63 of the Adoption Act 2000.
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•
providing services that support adoptive parents and the child through the
placement process, and
•
providing ongoing support in parenting the child after the adoption.
After adoption, the best interests of the child are often only effectively served by
supporting the best interests of the adoptive family.
Adoption service providers can also promote the interests of adoptive parents by:
•
involving them in an adoption plan and supporting an ongoing relationship
with the child’s birth family
•
facilitating access to non-identifying information about the child’s background
when the child is under 18, if helpful for the child
•
providing information about lodging advance notice after the child is 18, if the
child would benefit from a delay in the release of identifying information to the
birth family, due to stressful circumstances such as undergoing the HSC, and
•
providing full and clear information about the complaints, review and appeal
mechanisms open to them.
Useful references
Promoting the best interests of the child both in childhood and later life
• Kirk, HD 1964, Shared Fate: A Theory of Adoption and Mental Health, Free
Press, New York.
• Kluger, M, Alexander, G & Curtis, P 2000, What Works in Child Welfare,
CWLA Press, Washington.
• NSW Legislative Council Standing Committee on Social Issues, Releasing
the Past, Adoption Practices 1950-1998, Final Report, Dec 2000.
http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/committee.nsf/V3ListReports
?open&vw=v3allreportsbycttee&vwCat=Social+Issues
• Triseliotis, J, Shireman, J & Hundleby, M 1997, Adoption: Theory, Policy and
Practice, Cassell, London.
• Young, A 2004, Adoption in NSW, Post Adoption Resource Centre.
Preserving cultural heritage
• Armstrong, S & Slaytor, P 2001, The Colour of Difference, Federation Press.
• Child Development Institute 2004, ‘Language Development in Children’
www.childdevelopmentinfo.com/development/language_development.shtml
• Mc Roy, RG 1991, ‘Significance of Ethnic and Racial Identity in Intercountry
Adoption within the United States’, Adoption and Fostering, Vol. 15, no 4.
• NSW Law Reform Commission Report 81, Review of the Adoption of Children
Act 1965 (NSW), 1997.
• Triseliotis, J, Shireman, J & Hundleby, M 1997, Adoption: Theory, Policy and
Practice, Cassell, London.
Aboriginal children
• Aboriginal History Monograph 4, 1997, In the Best Interests of the Child?
Stolen children: Aboriginal pain/White shame, Link-up (NSW) and Tikka Jan
Wilson.
• D’Souza, N, Secretariat of the National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care,
1993, Aboriginal child welfare: framework for a national policy, Australian
Institute of Family Studies.
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•
•
Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission of Inquiry into the
separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families,
1997, Bringing Them Home - The Report, Failure of the welfare approach:
Systemic Inequalities, Sydney.
Office of the Children’s Guardian, 2003, Aboriginal Policy Statement.
Promoting openness
• Freundlich, M 2002, ‘Adoption Research: An Assessment of Empirical
Contributions to the Advancement of Adoption Practice’, Journal of Social
Distress and the Homeless, Vol. 11, No 2, April.
• Siegel, D 2003, ‘Open adoption of infants: adoptive parents’ feelings seven
years later,’ Social Work, July.
• Wrobel, GM, Grotevant, H, Berge, J, Mendenhall, T & McRoy, R 2003,
‘Contact in Adoption, the experience of adoptive families in the USA’,
Adoption & Fostering, Vol. 27, No 1.
• Young, A 2004, Adoption in NSW, Post Adoption Resource Centre.
Managing disruptions
• Harper, J 1997, Joining and Separating: a Study of Adoption Disruption,
Sydney.
• Kluger, M, Alexander, G & Curtis, P 2000, What Works in Child Welfare,
CWLA Press, Washington.
• O’Neill, C 1993, ‘Do You Mean We are Not the Only Ones?’ Children
Australia, Vol. 18, No 2.
• O’Neill, C 1993, ‘Placement Disruption, a Review of the Literature,’ Children
Australia, Vol. 18, No 3.
• Ormerod, T 2004, Service needs of transracial adoptive families, PARC,
paper presented at the 8th Australian Adoption Conference, Adelaide.
[email protected]
• Rushton, A 2003, ‘Support for Adoptive Families, A review of current
evidence on problems, needs and effectiveness’, Adoption & Fostering, Vol.
27, No 3.
• Triseliotis, J, Shireman, J & Hundleby, M 1997, Adoption: Theory, Policy and
Practice, Cassell, London.
Support and provision of information to birth parents
• Legislative Council Standing Committee on Social Issues, Releasing the Past,
Adoption Practices 1950-1998, Final Report, Dec 2000.
http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/committee.nsf/V3ListReports
?open&vw=v3allreportsbycttee&vwCat=Social+Issues
• Robinson, E 2000, Adoption and Loss: the Hidden Grief, Clove Publications,
South Australia.
• Winkler, R & Van Keppel, M 1984, Relinquishing Mothers in Adoption, their
long-term adjustment, University of Western Australia.
Selection of adoptive parents and provision of support
• Ormerod, T 2004, Service needs of transracial adoptive families, PARC,
paper presented at the 8th Australian Adoption Conference, Adelaide.
[email protected]
2. DEFINITIONS
Aboriginal child
As defined in section 4 of the Adoption Act 2000, a child descended from an
Aboriginal.
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Statement of Contemporary Adoption Practice
Contemporary
Reflects current practice and research.
Culture
The sum total of ways of living built up by a group of human beings, which is
transmitted from one generation to another.15
Out-of-home care
‘The residential care and control of a child or young person by a person other than a
parent or relative.’16
Parties to an adoption
As defined in the dictionary of the Adoption Act 2000.
Permanency planning
Permanency planning is the means by which the outcome of permanent care can be
achieved. Permanent care offers a range of options in a continuum from restoration
to adoption, depending on the individual circumstances of the child.
Permanency planning options include:
•
Support within the birth family
•
Restoration to the birth family
•
Placement with extended family
•
Placement with non-relative carers
•
Permanent placement which provides legally sanctioned care
•
Adoption
•
Independent living
Race
A group of persons connected by common descent. The group is characterised by a
more or less unique combination of physical traits which are transmitted by descent.17
Transracial adoption
An adoption where the child’s adoptive parents are of a different racial background to
the child’s family of origin. Transracial adoption may occur in both domestic and
intercountry adoptions.
15
The Macquarie Dictionary 1997, Third Edition, Macquarie University, Sydney (reprint).
Section 135 of the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998.
17
The Macquarie Dictionary 1997, Third Edition, Macquarie University, Sydney (reprint).
16
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