Who can adopt?
Last updated: 04 June 2009 15:38 UKYou must be over 21 to adopt but we don’t have an upper age limit. Realistically, you need to have enough energy to parent lively children.
Consideration of your health is part of the adoption assessment report. If you smoke we wouldn’t normally match you with a child under the age of 5, or children with breathing difficulties. A healthy lifestyle is essential for helping children understand the need for a good diet and exercise.
Adopters can be single, married, in a civil partnership or living with a partner. You can adopt jointly without being married.
If you already have children, we’ll need to be sure that you have considered how you will meet the needs of all the children in your household. We would also want to know that your existing children want to adopt as much as you do.
We require that you’ve stopped any infertility treatment before you approach us so that we can be sure that you are fully committed to parenting through adoption.
You don’t need to own your own home but we do need to know that your home is secure, whether it be on a mortgage or rented. We welcome your interest no matter what your income is or whether you are on benefit. However, we need to be sure that you are in a financial position to support children.
Children need to grow up feeling good about their culture, language and religion. We welcome applicants who can reflect the diverse backgrounds of children needing adoptive families.
Some criminal offences automatically stop someone from adopting. These are usually offences against children and young people. Most other crimes are considered in the wider context of your past and present lifestyle. All applicants will undergo a check with the Criminal Records Bureau. You can’t consider any convictions as spent and you must declare all cautions, convictions or pending court appearances in your application and when discussing your background with a social worker.
To find out more about adopting you’ll need to contact our adoption team on 023 9287 5294 or email adoptioncentre@portsmouthcc.gov.uk. You’ll have the opportunity to talk to one of the experienced members of the team who will ask you for some basic details and also give you information about adoption in Portsmouth.
