Adoption, fostering and surrogacy
Becoming a foster carer, adopting a child from the UK or abroad, looking after someone else's child.
Services
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Maternity pay and leave
Your Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) and Leave - what you get, how to claim, maternity rights and extra help
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Paternity pay and leave
Your Statutory Paternity Pay and Leave - what you get, how to claim, eligibility
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Shared Parental Leave and Pay
You can start Shared Parental Leave (SPL) and Statutory Shared Parental Pay (ShPP) if you're eligible and you or your partner ends your maternity or adoption leave early - eligibility, entitlement, starting SPL and splitting blocks of leave
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Child adoption
The adoption process - eligibility, assessment, adoption agencies, overseas adoptions and the rights of birth parents.
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Looking after someone else's child
Support and benefits you can get if you're looking after someone else's child, court orders - kinship care, private fostering, friends and family care
Guidance and regulation
- Adoption support fund (ASF)
- Fostering services: national minimum standards
- Special guardianship guidance
- Fostering services: assessment and approval of foster carers
- Young person’s guide to the Children and Families Act 2014
News and communications
- Government bans unregulated accommodation for young people in care
- Staying Put grant: determination letter
- Multi-million pound boost for new families as adoptions increase
- Children and Families Minister speech at NCASC conference
- Ofsted: Lack of foster carers mean children missing out on support
Research and statistics
- Applying behavioural insights to fostering and adoption in England
- Adoption support fund: local authority, regional adoption agencies and provider experiences
- Adoption support fund: study of family experiences
- Adoption support fund: second follow up survey of parents and carers
- Evaluation of the adoption support fund 2018 to 2022
Policy papers and consultations
- Adoption support agencies: proposed regulation changes
- Future inspection of Cafcass from 2021
- Changes to the Adoption and Children (Coronavirus) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2020
- Children and Families Act 2014: government response to the Lords Select Committee report
- Adoption strategy: achieving excellence everywhere
Transparency and freedom of information releases
- Intercountry adoption: list of restricted countries
- Adoption scorecards
- Adoption Leadership Board quarterly data reports: 2016 to 2017
- Adoption Leadership Board quarterly data reports: 2015 to 2016
- Adoption Leadership Board quarterly data reports: 2014 to 2015