All we want for our children is to grow up in loving, happy homes and to never want for anything, but for children looking to be adopted, this is not the world they live in. Sadly, in the UK, the average wait for a child to be adopted is 17 months, something that David Cameron wants to change.
The Prime Minister is calling on councils to double the number of children they house with families at the earliest opportunity, before the legal work is complete.
As it stands, only 10% of adoptions are placed with families before the paperwork is completed, and while the situation has definitely improved in recent years, Mr. Cameron wants more done.
"It is a tragedy that there are still too many children waiting to be placed with a loving family. We have made real progress but it remains a problem.”
Changes to the current adoption law are being considered and, as part of the plan, councils will have to outline how they will make it quicker to place children in homes.
"I want to make sure that we do everything we can so children are placed in a loving home as soon as possible," the PM explained.
But critics think more should and can be done.
"I think the system needs redesigning from scratch because it's letting down thousands of children every month really. It's the delays in the system that mean children spend too much time in care,” Francesca Polini, who tried to adopt in the UK for years before looking to Mexico, told Sky News.
There are also plans to boost regional adoption agencies over the next five years.
Mr. Cameron met with a number of people who had been through adoption, including 19-year-old Gemma Okoosilewis, who he asked to share tips for adoptive parents.
Children’s charity Coram, has said there’s been a significant fall in adoption orders and that inconsistency is a major issue.
