The Adoption Process
Adoption must be in the child’s best interests
The number of children waiting for adoption, and the number of families who want to adopt, varies from across the province. A provincial adoption resource exchange helps bring children and prospective families together. Not all children in the care of CAS are available for adoption. Many are living temporarily with foster families while efforts are being made to help their own families’ function better so they can live at home again. Others stay in long-term foster care as a matter of choice. Recent changes to legislation mean that even children who still have some access to their natural family can move on to adoption. Since CAS workers have the opportunity to really know and understand the children in their care, they help determine if adoption or long-term foster care is in a child’s best interests. If a child is old enough, he or she also takes part in this decision.
How long does it take to complete an adoption?
Adoption placements are based on the child’s need, so the waiting time depends on an appropriate match between a child needing adoption, and a family approved for adoption. Therefore, there is no set waiting time or waiting list. Once the match is made, there may be several visits to allow the child to get to know the new family and surroundings before moving into the new home. By law, there is a minimum six-month adjustment period from the time a child moves into the new home until the adoption is completed. A longer adjustment period may be necessary depending on the needs of the child and the adoptive family. This is the time when any problems that might arise in the relationship can be worked out. When everyone is ready to complete the adoption, the CAS applies to the court for an adoption order. This makes the adoption parents the child’s legal parents, and the child a legal member of their family.
There are many steps in the adoption process. Some are very fast, while other steps require more time and careful consideration.
Step 1
If you are interested in adoption please call us. We will do our best to answer all of your questions and we will send you an information package, as well as an application form.
Step 2
If you decide to apply you must return the completed application form to us. We will place you on a list to attend our Orientation Training Program. This program is offered by the agency 2 times a year. Currently, the waiting list is approximately one year or less.
Step 3
Once you are invited to a training program, you and your partner (if applicable) must attend if you wish to continue in the adoption process. You are also required to attend all sessions. The Orientation Training Program occurs one evening a week, for ten weeks. It is our job to educate prospective adoptive and foster families about all aspects of fostering, adoption, and the children in our care. It is your job to listen, learn, ask questions, and to decide if adoption is right for you.
Step 4
During the training process, we will ask you to provide additional information in preparation for the Home Study phase. We will ask you to provide the names of three references, complete medical reports, police checks, as well as an autobiography.
Step 5
Once you have successfully completed the orientation process and we have received your completed documentation, your file will be reviewed and assigned to an adoption worker to complete your Home Study. The Home Study is a series of interviews with applicants. A variety of topics are addressed, including family background, finances, religion, discipline and child rearing practices, and your motivation to adopt. It is a chance for the adoption worker to get to know the applicants and decide on their suitability as adoptive parents. In addition, it is an opportunity for the applicants to learn as much as they can about adopting, and decide if they would like to continue.
Step 6
At the completion of the interviews, the adoption worker either recommends or not, the approval of the applicants to adopt. If you are not approved, your adoption worker will discuss with you the reasons why you were not approved. If you are approved, you are then in a position to wait for a placement of an appropriate child.
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Support for adoptive parents and adopted children
After completing the adoption process, there may be times when parents will want to consult the CAS. For example, older children may need to talk about their birth parents, or earlier experiences in their lives. Even though they may be able to talk freely with their new parents, the CAS can offer additional support to help them deal with their feelings and adjust to their new life. When adopted children grow up, the CAS, can assist them in meeting their birth parent(s), if both parties agree.
Are birth parents involved in the adoption process?
Prior to the adoption process, the birth parent(s) may provide input about the kind of family they would like for their child. The values, lifestyle, education, cultural heritage and other characteristics that are important to the birth parent(s) are considered carefully when choosing the child's adoptive parents. Recently there has been a move to create more openness between adoption families and birth families. The degree of openness a child needs, a birth parent wants, or an adopting family can accept, is carefully examined early in the adoption process. It could range from a photo and/or letter to go with the child upon adoption, to yearly non-identifying updates, which are exchanged through the CAS.
How can I find out more about adoption?
Call Family and Children's Services of Leeds and Grenville for answers to your preliminary questions about adoption. An information package will be mailed to you and you will be invited to a group information meeting. Once you have attended the meeting, you will have the opportunity to complete an Adoption Information Form. After the form is received by the agency, an adoption worker will meet with you to discuss adoption in more detail. At that time you will be invited to attend training for adoptive applicants, which is mandatory for all adoptive applicants. This training of ten weekly sessions, gives you the opportunity to meet other families who are interested in adoption, and to discuss ideas and experiences with them. At the final session, you may meet families who have already adopted children, as well as adult adoptees.Once you have attended the training, you might wish to have a home study completed. During the home study you will be encouraged to assess your own attitudes and abilities. You will be asked to provide the names of character references, have an adoption medical completed by your family physician and authorize a criminal record check.By working together through the process, a decision can be made about whether adoption through the Children’s aid Society is right for you.