Black communities in Greater Manchester encouraged to consider adoption
A campaign for Black parents to adopt local Black children has been relaunched.
The #YouCanAdopt campaign, which was re-launched in Greater Manchester, aims to assist both populations that are overrepresented in Manchester's care system and across England more broadly.
Black children make about 8% of those looking for permanent homes nationwide, and this proportion is significantly higher in specific Manchester neighborhoods. They also have to wait longer than white youngsters to be adopted.
The national campaign tries to solve this problem by dispelling myths and impediments that may be limiting Black people from adopting, and educating them on what they can adopt, such as:
If you're single or in a relationship but not yet married,
If you are over the age of 45, (there is no upper age limit)
If you work full-time or are unemployed,
While it is not required that children be matched with adoptive parents of the same ethnicity, many adoptive parents prefer children who have a similar history and heritage, hence the scarcity of Black adopters is one reason why more Black children remain in the system.
Many adoption agencies in Manchester and across England are struggling to locate permanent families for children of Black and mixed-heritage origins due to a dearth of Black adopters.
“We are very aware that 32 percent of our children are from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic backgrounds, whereas only 12 percent of our adopters match these ethnicities,” says Gail Spray, head of service at Adoption Counts, a Regional Adoption Agency covering five local authorities, Manchester, Stockport, Cheshire East, Trafford, and Salford. "We don't currently have enough adopters to place our Black children with families whose background and identity reflect their own - and this is something we need to address,” Spray says. “Of those 32 percent of children, 19 percent are categorized as Black or mixed heritage.”
“In the Black community, there is frequently a stigma around not being able to have birth-children, which has a knock-on effect on those who are prepared to step forward to adopt,” Jennifer, who is from Manchester and of Black Caribbean background, has two adopted boys who are not related by birth.
“When you put things in perspective and consider the large number of children who need loving and nurturing parents, you quickly realize that other people's concerns and thoughts about you and your family pale into insignificance,” Jennifer continues. “Being a mother to my sons is the greatest thing I have ever done, and I encourage Black people who want to be parents to consider becoming parents,” Jennifer concludes.
“Children of Black Caribbean, African, or dual heritage ethnicity wait on average 20 months for a family,” Norman G Goodwin CBE, Chief Executive Officer of Adoption Matters, an independent specialist voluntary adoption agency (VAA) that operates in the North West and North East of England, North East Wales, Yorkshire/Humberside, Staffordshire and Shropshire, says.
“Part of the reason for the longer wait is that agencies will try to ‘match' a kid with parents who have similar racial and cultural backgrounds, which can cause delays because there aren't enough Black adopters available to adopt Black children.”
“Generally, some people believe the adoption process takes a long time,” Goodwin says, “but this is no longer the true, as a high number of our adopters complete the process within the national minimum guidelines of 6 months - 2 stages.”
Spray agrees, adding, "There is a lot of support available to help potential adopters understand and manage the process, which is faster than it used to be." If people are thinking about adopting a kid, I encourage them to think about the children and what they might be able to offer them, and to do their own research or seek help from a local adoption agency.
A number of street ambassadors spoke with over 1,000 Black community members and businesses across Greater Manchester as part of the #YouCanAdopt Black Adopter campaign, including Moss Side, Old Trafford, Gorton North, Fallowfield, Ardwick Piccadilly, and Moston.
Their goal was to increase awareness about the need for more Black adopters, dispel stereotypes about who is eligible to adopt, and direct them to where they might get more information if they wanted it.
Please click here to learn more about adoption.
A cross-sector of regional adoption agencies, volunteer adoption agencies, and other important adoption partners in Englan are delivering the #YouCanAdopt recruiting campaign.
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