Adopting a child is such an exciting time in your life. You’ll be welcoming your new child into your home, expanding your family, and ready to make new memories. Or perhaps you’re adopting siblings and welcoming in a complete family to start your lives together. At the start of your adoption journey with your child, you’ll also get to enjoy adoption leave. But what is adoption leave? And how much time can you spend with your new child?
We’re going to walk you through everything you need to know about your adoption leave and how you can make the most of it. From practical tips on bonding and the importance of routines to connecting with other adopters, you’ll find everything you need to know below.
What is adoption leave?
You are legally entitled to adoption leave if you adopt a child through an adoption agency. Your adoption leave entitlement gives you up to 52 weeks of statutory leave from your job. Day one of your adoption leave can start from the first day you welcome your child, or up to two weeks before they arrive. This differs slightly for adoptions from overseas, as your adoption leave can start when your child arrives in the UK, or within 28 days of their arrival in the UK.
If you are jointly adopting a child as part of a couple, you will need to decide which partner will take adoption leave. Only one of you is entitled to the full 52 weeks, so you’ll need to decide beforehand who will be the primary carer.
You will also qualify for adoption leave if you are using the fostering to adopt scheme. Early permanence, such as the foster to adopt scheme, will allow you to claim adoption leave, and this adoption leave and pay can start from the point of your placement, rather than when a Placement Order has been made.
Do you get maternity leave if you adopt?
As we’ve explored more above, adoption leave is equal to maternity pay. So if you are choosing to adopt a child, you will have the same rights as you would for maternity leave. You may need to check with your employer what this will give you in terms of pay, but you do have a legal entitlement to Statutory Adoption Pay (SAP).
If you’re the secondary carer for your child and your partner is claiming adoption leave for your child, their equivalent to maternity leave, then you’ll be entitled to your employer’s equivalent of parental leave or paternity leave.
How to make the most of your adoption leave
Welcoming a new child into your life through adoption is such an exciting time for both of you. So it’s perfectly understandable that you’ll want to make the most of the time you’ve got together before you have to go back to work! Here are a few of our top tips for things you’ll need to consider.
Building bonds
Your priority will, of course, be building a secure bond with your new child. Creating a secure attachment will be important for creating a nurturing environment and establishing trust in one another. If your child has a secure, stable home life, then they will feel safe and loved.
Spending quality time with your child can help to strengthen the bond between you. Reading together, playing, and cuddling are excellent ways to make use of quality time with each other. Lots of hugs and holding eye contact can also help to reassure your child that they’re loved and very much wanted.
Working out routines
Consistency will be the key to securing a strong bond with your child. By maintaining a routine in their daily life, from what time they have breakfast, the time you spend together reading or playing, to bedtime routines, will help your child to find stability. This can then, in turn, gradually build trust and security.
Remember that your child will have experienced trauma in their young life before they met you. They’re likely used to inconsistency in their routine, which can then make surprises or changes highly stressful. By maintaining a routine, you can show your child that they’re safe and don’t need to be on high alert for any sudden changes.
Connecting with other adopters
One of the best things that you can do throughout your adoption journey is to connect with other adopters. This will give you a support network that you can rely on for information about the different stages in the adoption process, which can be a great help when facing parenting challenges.
Here at Adopters for Adoption, we provide you with several opportunities to meet with other potential adopters, as well as those who have already adopted with us through arranged social activities. We are proud of the adoption support that we offer to our adopters, including during the adoption process, through your first moments as an adopter, and post-adoption.
We also offer our adopters training throughout various stages of the process so that you have all of the knowledge and skills that you’ll need to become an adoptive parent.
Want to know more about adoption?
If you want to know more about adoption and what this could look like for your family, we’re more than happy to help you. Simply fill out an enquiry form or give us a ring on 0800 5877 791 to speak to one of our friendly advisors who can answer any questions you’ve got about the adoption process.
There are around 3,000 children waiting to be adopted across England, all in need of a loving home. Could you be the parent they’re looking for?