Plea for more single adopters in Merseyside
55 children in the region are still waiting for a family
There is a big push to try and increase the number of single adopters across Merseyside.
Around two in five approved adopters last year were single - that's the highest rate since 2018.
Adoption in Merseyside have found families for 380 children in the past five years - but there's currently 55 who are still waiting for their adoptive family to arrive.
Steph is a single mum and adopted her daughter a few years ago.
Steph said:
"I always wanted to be a mum, I always thought you had to be in a relationship or married to adopt, but after going to an information session I found out that wasn't the case. I did wonder whether I could cope with the challenges of parenthood while working, however, I have lots of support from friends and family, so I know I’ve got extra help if I need it.
"It took just 12 months to welcome my little girl home and it’s been an amazing journey so far."
Head of Service for Adoption in Merseyside, Kath Dresher, said:
"Adoption has changed a lot over the years and AiM has become more flexible to encourage more people to adopt a child.
"We have changed the catchment area, so people outside of Merseyside can now apply and we have also changed our vaping policy. We take each application on a case-by-case basis and we aren’t expecting perfect people, because nobody is perfect.
"We welcome people from all backgrounds, races, and religions to come forward and think about adopting. The children are the priority, they need a secure and safe base to help them heal through their trauma and loss.
"People going through the process will be supported by our team on how to parent an adopted child through training sessions and therapeutic parenting techniques."