How long does adoption matching take

In the last year or so, a combination of lower numbers of placement orders occurring after adoption agencies successfully took more people through the adoption assessment process, has led to numbers of adopters waiting for considerably longer than usual to be matched. Adoption agencies have taken a number of steps to support their approved adopters, notably by reducing the applications they take from potential adopters wishing to consider younger children.

There is still a great need for adopters able to provide a family for:. If you are waiting more than 12 months, your agency may be able to offer additional support. For instance, if you wish to consider children outside your original range of age or needs, your adoption agency may offer additional preparation and training; similarly if you would like to consider fostering for adoption. Sometimes it is important just to take a break and ease this pressure.

The situation will change and there are lots of positive steps you can take to improve your readiness to be an adoptive parent. Here are some things you might want to consider. All the children listed on the website are available for adoption and have had their parental rights terminated.

Even though it may not be necessary, it is still a good idea to create a parent profile if you are adopting from foster care. This will give the prospective adoptee a chance to learn about you and your family and to see photos of their new home. One of the most difficult things about the adoption process is surviving the wait. From the initial process to waiting for a match to waiting for the child to be born or to travel, adoption waiting is tough. Between your home study approval and matching, there are things you can do to help survive the wait.

Think about preparing yourself, your home, and your family to welcome your new child. Once a child comes into your family, you will take a back seat. Before matching, take the time to get in shape, get your personal finances in order, and create a will. Find time to pamper yourself, and enjoy the time you have. Start a journal, and record your journey to your new child.

Seek out cultural activities, try your hand at cooking a traditional meal, or learn some elementary phrases. Read books on adoption , find a pediatrician, and locate early intervention programs. Keep track of and organize your adoption paperwork. Keep an eye on your home study approval date.

Home studies need to be updated annually, so unless your adoption is completed within the year of your home study approval, you will need to follow-up with your state-licensed social worker.

Apply for grants. It takes a village to raise a child, and that same village can support you in financing your adoption through fundraisers, garage sales, and crowdfunding through sites like AdoptTogether.

And find support. The journey of adoption is unique in many ways. Whether you choose to build your family through domestic or international adoption or from foster care, the path is different.

Online networks are a wonderful place to begin, and Facebook, in particular, has many groups for waiting parents of domestic and country-specific adoption.

It can be very comforting to share your story with those who are walking the same path. And the best part? They will be able to share and offer advice through your travel and your first year home, and for many years to come. This was really well covered in our prep training. For us it was fairly quick. We had a potential match before Panel. However, we sadly had to withdraw from it two weeks later. About a week after that, we were approached about the little one who became our baby.

It took just over a week to meet with the social worker and family finder and have the match formalised. In total it was four weeks from approval panel to a formal match. What age and number of children were you matched with? Was this the same as you expected or did it change when you started looking? We were matched with one little one aged 10 months. We always knew we would only be looking for a single child due to our birth child, but we were surprised that our little one was so young.

What happened once you were linked? Who did you meet to find out about your child? After this we met the foster carer to hear all about little one which meant we could ask our questions and hear more about them. We could have met the medical advisor but opted to do this via telephone. We were linked at the end of July and had matching Panel in the middle of September. There was a lot of annual leave booked by members of the team around the child and ourselves and the foster carer also had holidays booked which meant things were not as quick as they sometimes can be.

The relationship that I am able to build with families during this process becomes quite pivotal because it is the anecdotal information that you might casually or intentionally share that I am then able present to caseworkers on your behalf. This can make all the difference in being selected as a good match for a child.

Our goal is to gather as much information as possible for our families so that you can make the most informed decision about your ability to meet the known and unknown needs of the child. Sometimes, I am included in these meetings where I can specifically speak to your abilities to meet those needs and provide additional information on your family and community, outside of the home study information. Following this meeting, a decision is ultimately made, and it is always our hope that your family has been selected.

We continue our efforts to gather even more information, aiding in the preparation for this child. The amount of information given to a family at every stage will vary tremendously depending on the state, their confidentiality laws, and the specific items that the workers are able to release.