"Mental Health Emergency" facing UK's adopted young people

A new report from Adoption UK has laid bare the mental health crisis facing adopted young people.

Their new "Barometer" report reveals:

• 64% of adopted people aged 16+ have sought help with their mental health
• 46% of adopted people aged 16-25 were involved with mental health services in 2020
• 71% of respondents said they face a continual struggle for support.

• The report says most adopted young people suffered abuse, neglect or violence in their early years, with lasting impacts on relationships, learning and health, leaving their adoptive families to pick up the pieces when professional support is not provided.

• Hear from the report author on this week's Mental Health Monday Podcast

Barometer report findings

Adoption UK says the survey results highlight "the consequences of failure to provide early and consistent support for adopted young people."

• More than a quarter of 16-25-year-olds were not in education, employment or training at the end of 2020 - more than twice as high as UK averages.
• Involvement in high-risk and criminal activities has steadily increased since the first Adoption Barometer in 2019.
• Problems are often compounded by children falling through the cracks between child and adult services.
• Almost three quarters of parents said their child’s support reduced or ceased when they aged out of services for adolescents.

WATCH: Mimi, who was adopted age 3, speaks to the #MentalHealthMonday Podcast about her experience of poor mental health during her teens

Adopted young people "failed by a system..."

Adoption UK’s CEO Sue Armstrong Brown said: “For the third year running, 71% of Barometer respondents said they face a continual struggle for support.

"All too often these families are being failed by a system which invests heavily in the placement of children for adoption, then fades into the background, often with terrible consequences for the mental health of the children and their adoptive families."

Adoption UK is setting out a six-point plan to improve the life chances of adopted young people. It includes multi-disciplinary assessments and support plans for every child placed for adoption and the extension of adoption services to at least age 26.

Listen to the full conversation with Mimi, and report author Becky Brooks on this week's Mental Health Monday Podcast

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