Outcomes of DCSF meeting with China Center of Adoption Affairs
20 May 2009 – Outcomes of DCSF meeting with China Center of Adoption Affairs
DCSF officials met with the China Center of Adoption Affairs (CCAA) on 2 April 2009.
The meeting was positive, and valued by both the Department and the CCAA. As a result, we believe we are making progress in reaching agreement with the CCAA in a number of areas on the process of adopting from China for UK prospective adopters. These are set out below.
Waiting times for referrals and access to CCAA system on case progression
The CCAA confirmed the information held on their database that the waiting time for an application to be matched with a child is currently 36 months. The CCAA is aware that waiting times are a concern for prospective adopters in the UK but cannot predict whether or not this will change as the waiting time will depend on the numbers of prospective adopter applications in the system and the numbers of children available for adoption. The CCAA also confirmed that the number of domestic adoptions within China is rising.
However, the Department has negotiated access to the CCAA database and will be able to provide updates on the timescale for UK prospective adopters on this website.
In addition, full access to the CCAA database has been negotiated. This will enable the Department to notify prospective adopters on an individual basis of their login dates. We will contact prospective adopters individually as soon as this facility is operational.
Children with special needs – CCAA online system
The CCAA has introduced a new online system for matching children with special needs, having completed a pilot of the system with selected overseas agencies in March 2009.
The CCAA confirmed that the previous system, whereby prospective adopters could directly specify a wish to adopt a child with special needs, ceased in March 2009.
The CCAA explained that, under the new programme, children are identified that may be ‘older than 6 years and/or have mild or severe health difficulties’. Information is given to adoption agencies who propose families for matching to take place.
The CCAA indicated that, as a result of the March pilot, there are currently no children with ‘mild disabilities’ available for adoption.
DCSF is currently exploring the feasibility of negotiating access to this system (for which there is a fee) and how it can be made to work in practice, as the process is different. We expect to consult shortly with adoption agencies for prospective adopters who have been approved as suitable to adopt a child with special needs from China by their agency.
We are also seeking clarification about what this means for those applications already registered before March 2009, and will contact those prospective adopters who are affected by the change.
Tainted milk
The CCAA confirmed that in 2008 they conducted research with the orphanages they work with and found that very few of the orphanages had used the affected milk products. The Chinese government had also provided free medical checks for all children. As a result of these checks, the CCAA is able to give assurance that children available for adoption have not been affected by tainted milk.
Post placement reports
The CCAA attaches great importance to the provision of post-adoption reports, and asked us to clarify for prospective adopters and agencies the format and order of the reports as set out in the post placement report template and on the CCAA website. The CCAA noted that the final report is often not sent, or sent late, and asked us to remind adopters and agencies to submit these promptly.
Bridge of Love Adoption Service (BLAS)
The Department also met with representatives of BLAS, who asked us to inform prospective UK adopters of the services they offer, including the provision of the ‘root-seeking groups’ of events for Chinese children adopted overseas. More information is available on the BLAS website.