Private Adoption
✓ Expert Private Adoption Solicitors.
✓ Quality legal representation and support throughout.
✓ Trusted throughout the North West and beyond.
Non-Agency Adoption (Private Adoption) Lawyers
If you are considering adopting a child who is already part of your family or your everyday life, private adoption can provide a legal framework that reflects the relationship you have built. Our Adoption Solicitors help you understand whether adoption is the right route, what the court will need to consider and what becoming the child's legal parent would mean for everyone involved.
Private adoption, sometimes called non-agency adoption, covers adoption applications that do not follow the usual route of a child being placed for adoption by an adoption agency. It can include a step-parent adopting their partner's child, adoption by relatives and applications by people who already care for a child.
If the court makes an adoption order, the adopter becomes the child's legal parent and acquires parental responsibility. The legal relationship between the child and their existing parents is also fundamentally changed, so questions about consent, existing family relationships and the child's welfare need careful consideration before an application is made.
Farnworth Rose has more than 38 years of experience advising people on family matters. We advise you on the legal route that applies to your circumstances, the steps required before an application can be made and issues that may need to be resolved along the way. Where another parent does not agree to the adoption, we explain how the court approaches consent and what this may mean for the application.
Call us today or complete the form below to speak with a member of the team.
Why Choose Farnworth Rose?
Private adoption concerns a child's legal identity and their relationships with the people closest to them. We take time to understand what you are hoping to achieve before explaining the legal route and the issues that may affect it.
Your matter has a dedicated file handler, giving you a clear point of contact as your case progresses. We also define the scope of our work when you instruct us and provide a transparent fee estimate at the outset. If further work becomes necessary outside the agreed scope, we discuss that with you and explain any additional charge.
Potential difficulties are raised as early as possible, together with the options available to address them. That approach can be particularly valuable in an adoption application where the views of an existing parent, the child's circumstances or another family law issue may affect how the case develops.
Our clients tell us that they value being kept informed and receiving responsive advice. Family law clients also tell us that they appreciate having friendly, helpful support when dealing with difficult personal circumstances. We aim to bring those same standards of communication and care to the way we work with every family.
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Different types of private adoption
Most people associate adoption with children being placed with prospective adopters through a local authority or voluntary adoption agency. Private, or non-agency, adoption is different because the child has not been placed with the prospective adopter for adoption by an adoption agency.
Instead, an application may arise from a family relationship or an existing caring arrangement.
It is still a formal legal process. An existing relationship with the child does not by itself make someone their legal parent, and an adoption order cannot simply be agreed privately between the adults concerned. The court must decide whether making the order is appropriate, with the child's welfare throughout their life as its paramount consideration.
+ Step-parent adoption
A step-parent may consider adoption when they have developed a settled parental relationship with their partner's child and want that relationship to be recognised legally. If an adoption order is made, the step-parent becomes an adoptive parent with parental responsibility for the child. Unlike some other forms of adoption, step-parent adoption can allow the child to retain their legal relationship with the birth parent who is the adopter's partner. The position of the child's other legal parent needs particular attention. Their parental responsibility and legal parenthood may be affected by an adoption order, and their consent may therefore be needed. If you need more information regarding legal advice for step parents, contact our solicitors.
+ Adopting a relative's child
Private adoption can also arise where a child is being brought up within their wider family. For example, a relative may already provide the child's day-to-day home and be considering whether adoption should formalise that arrangement. The fact that the prospective adopter and child are related does not remove the need for proper assessment or court scrutiny. The court considers the child's welfare throughout their life and the effect that changing their legal family relationships may have.
+ Adopting a child already in your care
Some private adoption applications arise because a child is already living with someone who is not their parent or step-parent and that person wants to make the relationship permanent through adoption. The precise route depends on the existing arrangement, how the child came to live with you and your relationship to them. There are also legal requirements concerning how long a child must have had their home with an applicant before certain adoption applications can be made.
In a non-agency adoption, you will generally need to give the appropriate local authority formal notice of your intention to apply for an adoption order. Different notice and residence requirements can apply depending on your relationship with the child and how the child came to live with you, so these should be checked before an application is made.
Once notified, the local authority will assess the proposed adoption and prepare a report for the court. This assessment considers the child's circumstances, their relationship with you and their birth family, and the implications of adoption for their long-term welfare. It gives the court important information when deciding whether an adoption order should be made.
Once the relevant requirements have been met, you can apply to the Family Court for an adoption order. A parent or guardian with the relevant legal status will generally need to consent, although the court can dispense with consent in certain circumstances if it is withheld.
Farnworth Rose will guide you through each stage, from establishing the requirements that apply and notifying the local authority to preparing your court application and addressing any issues that arise.
Telling the local authority about a private adoption
Private adoption FAQs
+ Does the child's other parent have to agree?
A parent's consent may be required before an adoption order can be made. If consent is required but is not given, the court can only dispense with it on the statutory grounds, including where the child's welfare requires the consent to be dispensed with. Whether consent is required, and whether the court could dispense with it, will depend on the circumstances.
+ How does the court decide a private adoption application?
The child's welfare throughout their life is the court's paramount consideration when deciding whether to make an adoption order. The court will consider the child's circumstances, wishes and feelings where appropriate, their relationships with relatives and the lifelong effect of adoption, with the local authority's report helping to inform its decision.
+ What happens when an adoption order is made?
An adoption order makes the adopter the child's legal parent and gives them parental responsibility, while permanently changing the child's existing legal family relationships. It can also affect matters such as inheritance and legal family status, and once made, an adoption order cannot ordinarily be undone simply because circumstances later change.
+ How long does a private adoption take?
A private adoption can often take around six to twelve months, although the timescale varies considerably depending on the circumstances. Local authority assessments, court availability and whether a parent objects to the adoption can all affect how long the process takes, and more complex or contested applications may take longer.
+ Who is legally eligible to apply for a non-agency adoption order?
Eligibility depends on your relationship with the child and how long they have lived with you. Different residence requirements apply to step-parents, foster carers and other prospective adopters, and you will generally need to give the local authority at least three months' notice before applying, although exceptions can apply. We can advise you on the requirements that apply to your circumstances before an application is made.
Contact Our Adoption Solicitors
Private adoption can give an established family relationship a new legal status. Farnworth Rose brings more than 38 years of experience in family law to helping clients understand their options, with clear advice and a considerate approach to the relationships involved.
Our Adoption Solicitors are based in Burnley (Nelson) and Manchester (Swinton), and serve clients across the North West and beyond.
We regularly help clients with family law matters in Preston, Manchester, Blackburn, Rochdale and Bolton, as well as those further afield, wherever you are in England and Wales.
To speak with one of our Child Law Solicitors, call the number at the top of this page or complete the form below, and we'll be in touch.
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