Specialist support set to benefit 3,000 adopter families
CYPN report that more than 3,000 families that have adopted a child are set to benefit from the government’s £19.3m Adoption Support Fund, latest figures suggest.
The Department for Education has revealed that in the 10 areas piloting the fund – which pays for specialist therapeutic services to help children settle into adoption placements – 160 families have been supported at a total cost of £1m.
This equates to £6,250 for each family and means the total funding pot will be able to support 3,088 adopters and their children.
Across the 10 pilot areas, there were marked differences in the level of spending for each family.
Gloucestershire County Council spent £369,333 to support 27 families, which equates to £13,679 per family.
In contrast, Cornwall County Council spent £3,181 on support for 23 families, while in Lewisham, seven families were helped at a cost of just £1,013 each.
Hampshire County Council supported 20 families at a total cost of £122,440, which equates to £5,622 per family.
The Adoption Support Fund pilots began offering support last summer ahead of a national roll-out this May.
Children’s minister Edward Timpson said: “It’s encouraging that after just eight months, more than 160 adoptive families have been given the help and support they need to bond with their families and settle into their new lives.
