Adoption target met

by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
10/03/2008

101 children adopted in the last three years

More than 100 children have been adopted in the borough during the last three years, after the Council met a target from central Government target that many experts thought would be unachievable.

The Government target, known as a Local Public Service Agreement (LPSA), challenged the Council to successfully achieve 101 adoptions or secure placements during the last three year period in return for £500,000 of funding.

At the time, the Council felt that the bar was set too high, as in the previous three year period only 71 children had been adopted - a figure that was then considered to be very high.

However, H&F’s adoption team swung into action and pulled out all of the stops in order to meet the target. In part, this was made possible by the adoption team linking up with the Council’s legal department and cutting down on the amount of bureaucracy that prospective adopters had to deal with. All of the 101 children in question were already in care and may have remained so had it not been for the Council’s adoption team. 

Cllr Antony Lillis, Cabinet Member for Community and Children’s Services, said: "It really is fantastic that we have been able to secure permanent placements for so many children, greatly increasing the chance that they will form secure attachments, and thereby go on to achieve economic well being, and enjoy a happy and fulfilling life.

"The Council's objective is to make H&F a borough of opportunity for all. This excellent news means that we have created opportunities for 101 children whose start in life was the least promising."

For details about adoption in Hammersmith & Fulham, call 0800 169 3497.