Adopting brothers and sisters

There are currently 2,030 children waiting to be adopted in England, of those – 890 are part of a family group
520 children who are part of a sibling group have been waiting for 18 months or more to find a home
Those adopting brothers and sisters only need to go through the process once, rather than per child

61% of adopters said that adopting children with their brothers and sisters has been the most beneficial factor in their children’s adoption journey
88% of parents that adopted brothers and sisters say the positives outweigh any challenges
As it’s a priority to keep brothers and sisters together the matching process is often quicker

Having a brother or sister who has been there all along can help adopted children to feel safe, settle quickly into their new home and provides them with ongoing companionship, mutual leaning and emotional support throughout their lives.

New Family

We need adoptive parents who can offer permanent, loving homes for groups of brothers and sisters of varying sizes and ages, many of which have been waiting 18 months or longer to find a home.

Many of these children have been through difficult experiences and for some, have been the only constants in each other’s lives. Separating brothers and sisters because an adoptive family cannot be found, can cause further anxiety and loss for children who have already had a very difficult start in life.

Our priority will always be to find homes for children together, however for some children, finding homes separately may give them the best opportunity to form a relationship with their adoptive parents and recover from the impact of early maltreatment. In these circumstances, the building of brother and sister relationships will still remain a priority.

Support for those adopting a family group

Adopted children can sometimes bring their own challenges so adopting a family group could feel daunting but there is support available. There is a range of adoption support services available including; support groups, training, workshops and more specialized therapy.

For many potential parents, the biggest worry about adopting more than one child together is that they don’t have a big enough house or enough money. You do have to seriously consider what this will mean for you as a family, but there is practical and possibly financial support available. Financial support may include: