How to Adopt a Child and Change a Life

Part of: Child Custody Specialists

Adopt a child and change a life by giving a permanent, loving home to a child who cannot be safely brought up within their birth family. Adoption is the legal process that makes a child a full and permanent member of a new family, transferring parental responsibility to the adopters and ending the legal ties with the birth parents.

This guide explains how you can adopt a child and change a life in England and Wales, who can adopt, the approval stages and how our family lawyers support you from first enquiry through to the final adoption order.

We regularly advise and assist clients who are adopting a stepchild or a child they already foster. The decisions that matter come early. Whose consent does the court need? Would a less permanent order be better for the child than adoption? Answer them before you apply. An adoption order ends a birth parent’s parental responsibility for good (section 46 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002). In law, the child stops being their child (section 67).

Why should you consider adopting a child?

What “adopt a child and change a life” really means

For children, adopt a child and change a life means growing up in a secure family where they are loved, protected and supported into adulthood, rather than remaining in temporary care. For adopters, it means a long‑term commitment to parenting a child who may have experienced loss or trauma, with the right preparation, support and legal advice along the way.

What adoption gives a child

There are numerous advantages for children who are adopted, and adoption can truly change a life by providing safety, stability and long‑term belonging. Adopted children grow up in a family that will lovingly and selflessly care for them. Other advantages of adopting a child include:

• They have committed parents and a stable home
• They have opportunities and resources that you may not have been able to provide for them at your stage in life

When you adopt a child, your family changes too

As well as changing a child’s life, deciding to adopt a child can transform your own family, especially where you have been unable to have children or wish to grow your family through adoption. Adopting parents benefit from the joy and blessing of adding a child to their family, which gives them an opportunity to raise a child and provide a loving home to a deprived child. Often adopting parents may not be able to have their own children so they adopt a child to change the life of not only the child but their own.

Who can consider adopting a child?

In order for you to meet the eligibility criteria for adopting a child, you must be aged 21 or over. There is no upper age limit for adoption. There is no restriction on whether you are single, married, in a civil partnership or in a same sex relationship. People adopting a child can also be from any ethnic or religious background, and under the legal requirements your sexual orientation does not affect whether you can apply. Parents who already have children or have previously adopted can still consider and apply for adopting a child. Furthermore, for adopting a child you do not need to own a home and could even be living in rented accommodation, although you will generally need to have lived in the UK for at least one year before starting the application process.

Who cannot be considered when adopting a child?

Although the rules on adopting a child are quite flexible, restrictions are placed on certain individuals and characteristics. People who are unable to adopt a child are:

• If you are under the age of 21, you cannot adopt legally in the UK.
• You must be legally resident in the UK, Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, and have been resident there for at least 12 months before starting the application process. If you live abroad, you will not usually meet these requirements. A court here can still hear an application from someone who remains domiciled in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man (section 49 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002), so take advice before you rule yourself out.
• If you or a member of your household have a criminal conviction or caution in relation to offences against children or sexual offences, then you will not be taken into consideration for adopting a child.

First steps when you want to adopt a child and change a life

Preparation Training

The first stage of the adoption process is known as preparation training. This usually lasts 2 months and involves learning about what is involved in adopting a child and references and checks are obtained for each applicant. These are the first of the two key stages before approval, and applicants who complete this stage and the next successfully can become approved adopters.

Adopters will be expected to undertake preparation training, spend time researching adoption and complete an adoption journey log.

Adoption Assessment to adopt a child

When adopting a child the adoption assessment is the second stage of the adoption process. This usually lasts for a period of 4 months. The adoption assessment involves intensive assessment and preparation as well as further training to ensure the adopting parent or parents are ready to be recommended for approval for adopting a child.

During this stage the adopting parents are allocated an assessing social worker who will visit them around six to eight times and prepare a Prospective Adopters Report. Adopting parents will also be expected to attend an adoption preparation course. 

The adoption assessment stage also involves:

• Police checks
• Reference checks
• Medical examinations
• Any other assessments deemed appropriate to the case, including investigations of other immediate family members

Once completed the report is presented to an independent adoption panel.

The Adoption Panel

The panel consists of professionals which include social workers, medical and educational professionals, adoptive parents, adopted people, a chairperson and an independent panel advisor.

Adopting parents will be invited to attend. The panel will have reviewed and considered the Prospective Adopters Report and will ask you any questions they have and allow you to ask them any questions with regards to adopting a child.

The panel will subsequently make a recommendation, and your chosen agency’s decision-maker will decide whether the applicants are suitable to adopt.

Finding a family

Can you adopt a baby or a newborn in the UK?

Yes, and if you hope to adopt a baby, early permanence is the route designed for babies and toddlers. Your agency approves you as both an adopter and a foster carer. The baby then lives with you while the family court decides whether adoption is the plan. The Department for Education says these placements are for a child “usually under the age of two” (Adoption strategy).

Adopting a newborn is never immediate. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own adoption rules, so this section covers England and Wales. Under the Adoption and Children Act 2002, the baby must live with you for ten weeks before you apply. A mother cannot give valid consent to an adoption order until six weeks after the birth (section 52(3)).

How hard is it to adopt a baby?

Most children adopted in England came into care as babies. Of the 3,040 children adopted from care in the year to 31 March 2025, 72% started their final period in care before their first birthday. Their average age at adoption was 3 years and 2 months (Department for Education figures). Early permanence lets a baby live with the family who may adopt them during that wait.

In England, foster to adopt lets a baby move in before the council has authority to place them for adoption. A council considering adoption for a baby it looks after must first consider relatives or friends who foster. It must then consider a foster carer who already has approval to adopt (Children Act 1989, section 22C). Our guide to foster to adopt explains what the placement does and does not decide.

The hard part is the uncertainty. The court may decide the baby should go home or live with relatives. The baby would then leave your care. Ask your agency how often that happens locally before you agree to a placement.

The eligibility rules are the same as for an older child. You can tell your agency that you hope to adopt a baby. Its matching decisions put the child’s lifelong welfare first, as section 1 of the 2002 Act requires.

Is adopting a child from abroad possible?

Quite often people may consider adopting a child from abroad. Whilst in the UK you can legally consider adopting a child from abroad if:

• The child cannot be cared for in a safe environment in their own country,
• The adoption is in the best interests of the child and
• The adopter has been assessed as eligible and suitable to adopt from abroad by an adoption agency in the UK.

When adopting a child from abroad you must contact either your local council or an adoption agency which deals with overseas adoption.

The process for adopting a child from abroad is similar to a UK adoption process. In addition to the UK process when adopting a child from abroad the assessment will be sent to the overseas adoption authority. You will also need to visit the child in their country and your application will be sent to the child’s country.

When adopting a child from abroad the Department for Education (DfE) charges a non-refundable fee of £2,500 for processing the application. Whilst adopting a baby from abroad is possible, the UK has restricted adoption from Cambodia, Guatemala, Nepal, Haiti, Ethiopia and Nigeria.

Following a successful application for adopting a child from abroad, you can apply to register an overseas adoption in the Adopted Child Register. In order to register the adoption the adoptive parents must be habitually resident in England and Wales at the time of the adoption and must be able to provide all supporting documents which are requested in the Form ACR 52.

Our guide to intercountry adoption explains each step in more detail. If you would like to discuss adopting a child from abroad, or adopting a child generally, contact our family specialists.

Can you only adopt a child who is without a family?

The most common form of adoption is where a family adopt a child who does not have a family or whose birth parents are unable to adequately look after and raise them. In such circumstances the local authority may have placed the child for adoption, subject to approval by the family court.

However other forms of adoption are also possible. A step parent may want to legalise and formalise their relation with their step child. In such instances step parents may also want to know whether they can adopt their step child. Our family specialists consider below the different forms and ways in which child adoption could take place.

Can a step parent consider adopting a child?

A step parent who wants to adopt a child is asking to become the child’s legal parent. The adoption order gives them parental responsibility, which they share with the parent they live with (section 46 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002).

The step parent will become fully responsible for the child just as if the child was their own biological child. The order ends the other birth parent’s parental responsibility, and in law the child is no longer their child (section 67). Adopting a child who you consider as a stepchild is a way of consolidating the existing relationship you share with them.

Because the step is so final, the court must consider every other order open to it. It can only make an adoption order if that would be better for the child than not making one (section 1(6)). If you have married the child’s parent or formed a civil partnership with them, an agreement or order under section 4A of the Children Act 1989 can give you parental responsibility without ending the other parent’s. Our guide to step-parent adoption vs special guardianship compares the options.

How can a step parent be eligible to apply for step-parent adoption?

To apply for step-parent adoption you must be aged 21 or over. The child must be under 18 when you apply. A step parent does not need to be a British citizen, but must either be domiciled in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, or have been habitually resident there for at least a year before applying (section 49). Finally to be considered for step parent adoption the child must have lived with you for at least six months before the application.

Who needs to consent to a step parent adoption?

Step parent adoption will require the consent of the child’s birth parents where they have parental responsibility. As mothers have automatic parental responsibility of their biological child a step parent will need to obtain their consent. The court will also need the father’s consent if he has parental responsibility (section 52), which he usually has if he was married to the mother or is named on the child’s birth certificate. If nobody can trace a father who has parental responsibility, the court can dispense with his consent. The court may still make enquiries during the legal process to see if he has any views on permanently losing his status as a parent.

If, however a father is not named on the birth certificate and does not have parental responsibility over their biological child then a formal consent from the father is not needed. Even though the child’s parent does not have parental responsibility the courts may investigate the individual circumstances and may seek the father’s opinion and feelings about the adoption.

What is the step parent adoption process?

The step parent adoption process is very similar to adopting a child for whom you are not a step parent. In order to commence the step parent adoption process you will need to give written notice of your intention of adopting a child to your local authority. The local authority will then appoint a social worker who will investigate your case. This initial part of the step parent adoption process will involve the social worker preparing a report to the court on what is in the best interests of the child (section 44).

Once you have provided notice of your intention of adopting a child to your local authority you must wait at least 3 months before making an application to the court. During this stage of the step parent adoption process you will need to complete the Form A58 and issue this to the court with the relevant documents and the court fee.

The step parent adoption process also involves one or more court hearings for your application to be considered and whether appropriate consents are in place. The courts will consider whether the order will be in your child’s best interests.

Once the courts consider the adoption application, they will provide an adoption order. The next step of the step parent adoption process would be to obtain an adoption certificate which records you and the other parent as the legal parents.

What is the role of foster parents?

Foster parents are people who are open to providing their homes and care to other people’s children. Quite often these children are not able to return home to live with their parents. Foster parents provide a safe and secure home for children. They maintain a close interest in the lives of the children whilst teaching them how to behave and understanding the uniqueness of each child.

Foster parents are likely to maintain contact with the children’s biological parents and family members. As a result, children in foster care do not always forget about their relations.

Can foster parents consider adopting a child?

Not every foster parent or foster carer intends to adopt the children they foster. Despite fostering a child being a temporary arrangement, we often see foster parents grow attached to the children they foster. Some foster parents will therefore consider adopting their foster child. Foster care adoption can give the child a permanent family and provide permanency for the foster parents too.

However not all foster children become available for adoption. Some foster children may end up being reunited with their parents if it is safe to do so or alternatively may be sent to a relative’s house. Many children are also waiting for permanent adoptive families.

When fostering a child the aim is often to reunite the child with their parents. If the council has started care proceedings, the court must aim to decide the case within 26 weeks. It extends that deadline only when it needs more time to decide the case justly. Each extension lasts no more than eight weeks (Children Act 1989, section 32). If the child cannot safely go home and adoption is the plan, the court can make a placement order, which authorises the council to place the child for adoption (section 21 of the 2002 Act). The birth parents’ parental responsibility ends only when the court makes an adoption order.

Moving from fostering to adoption

Once the court makes a placement order, the council looks for an adoptive family. If you already foster the child and want to adopt, the agency still has to assess and approve you as adoptive parents (GOV.UK). If the agency matches you with the child you foster, you can then look to finalise foster care adoption.

Before you apply, the child must have lived with you for long enough. If the council placed the child with you for adoption, that means the ten weeks before you apply. If you apply as their foster carers without that placement, the period is one year, unless the court gives you permission to apply sooner. On that route, you must also tell the council you plan to adopt. Give at least three months’ notice (sections 42 and 44). Once you have filed the paperwork with the court, you wait for a date to finalise your foster care adoption.

Once the foster care adoption has been finalised the adoption of the child can be registered resulting in an adoption certificate confirming your details as the legal parent.

Questions and Answers: Adopt a child and change a life  

Is adoption right for us if we want to adopt a child and change a life?

Some families are ready to adopt a child and change a life, while others may be better suited to fostering or special guardianship, which keep stronger legal links with the birth family. Speaking to a specialist early helps you understand which route suits your circumstances and the child’s needs.

How much does it cost to adopt a child in the UK?

Nobody can lawfully charge you for the adoption of a child itself (section 95 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002). A voluntary adoption agency can ask you to meet expenses it reasonably incurs (section 96), and you may be responsible for other associated costs. These will usually include the court fee, which is £212 for an adoption application (GOV.UK), or the fees associated with any police checks. You will not usually pay for the assessment process itself. Some services also provide post adoption support after the order is made, including adoption support such as therapy for children and families. Adoptive parents may also be able to access parenting workshops and education services. In appropriate cases, the Adoption Support Fund can provide financial assistance for therapy.

Are there any costs associated with adopting a child from abroad?

Adopting a child from abroad can prove to be quite costly as the cost of the process is much higher than the process within the United Kingdom. If you are looking to adopt a child from abroad, you will need to pay for the adoption process. This cost could be in the region of between £10,000.00 and £12,000.00. You will also need to factor in the travel costs for when you will be required to go abroad to complete the adoption process.

Arrange a free consultation to adopt a child and change a life today 

If you are thinking about how to adopt a child, as a first-time adopter, step-parent or foster carer, it helps to get the early decisions right. A missing consent can hold up the application. Choosing adoption when parental responsibility would serve the child better ends the other birth parent’s legal tie to the child. Book a free consultation before you give notice or apply, and we will help you work out which route fits your family. You can also call us on 0330 094 5880.

Our family lawyers in Newcastle, and across England and Wales, can provide legal guidance on the adoption process and any other child law matter, including questions about family history and post-adoption issues.