Older child
Complex needs
and the dreaded 'Harder to place'
These are terms that have been used in the adoption world for a long time and some of them, we are thankfully moving away from.
But, what do they mean? The truth is, they are social worker jargon and essentially they are descriptions of children. That's right , simply just children.
Little human beings that have been through a huge amount in their lives and need adults that can step-up and advocate for them, nurture them, support them (through the rough and the smooth), and ultimately let them be children and experience all the wonderful things children should experience.
Adoption is not a quick fix, it requires dedication, perseverance, patience, energy and empathy by the buck load. We are here to support you on this journey, all the way, please get in touch.
Ideas for play activities
The aim of these activities (based loosely on Theraplay techniques) is to build attachment, self-esteem, trust in others, and joyful engagement.
In healthy relationships, there should be natural patterns of playful, healthy interaction between parent and child. One of the key aims is for the child to view themselves as worthy and lovable, and to experience positive and rewarding relationships and interactions.
Interactions focus on four essential qualities found in parent-child relationships:
1. Structure: Which helps the child become physically regulated. These activities have a predictable sequence and rhythm.
2. Engagement: The parent is attuned to the child’s state and responds in a way that helps the child to regulate and integrate physical and emotional states. The parent focuses on the child in an exclusive way providing sensitively timed soothing and delightful interactions.
3. Nurture: These activities are soothing, calming, quieting and
reassuring, such as rocking, feeding, cuddling and holding. This makes the world feel safe, warm, predictable and secure. The child develops the expectation that “people will take care of me” and “good things happen to me”.
4. Challenge: These are activities that help the child extend him or herself a little bit, appropriate to their level of functioning. It also allows the child to master tension arousing experiences (such as peek-a-boo).
The main thing is to have fun with your child, and not be too anxious about trying things out. If you try an activity that your child doesn’t like or gets upset, then comfort them, acknowledge their feelings and move on to a different activity. You may be able to return to this activity once your child is feeling more secure in the future.
Find more ideas her; http://ow.ly/pLoP50HHW2P
Older child
Complex needs
and the dreaded 'Harder to place'
These are terms that have been used in the adoption world for a long time and some of them, we are thankfully moving away from.
But, what do they mean? The truth is, they are social worker jargon and essentially they are descriptions of children. That's right , simply just children.
Little human beings that have been through a huge amount in their lives and need adults that can step-up and advocate for them, nurture them, support them (through the rough and the smooth), and ultimately let them be children and experience all the wonderful things children should experience.
Adoption is not a quick fix, it requires dedication, perseverance, patience, energy and empathy by the bucket load. We are here to support you on this journey, all the way, please get in touch.
Sometimes we see patterns in the types of children we have waiting for their forever families, there doesn't seem to be any particular reason for this it's just one of those things. At the moment it is little girls, we have a number of school-aged (or slightly younger) little girls we are family finding for.
There are quite a few similarities in the likes and dislikes of this particular cohort - unicorns and mermaids feature heavily. But, so do activities like climbing, bike riding and looking after animals. They are there only little individual beings!
Alongside these unique, wonderful little girls we are also always looking for people that would consider siblings - could that be you?
New Role - Project Officer (Early Permanence) - Adoption West (South West Adoption Consortium)
Exciting Opportunity to join us and work with with 3 Regional Adoption Agencies, 5 Voluntary Adoption Agencies and 13 local authorities to provide increased opportunities for Early Permanence placements for children in the South West.
Early Permanence is the umbrella term given to different arrangements including Fostering for Adoption and Concurrency that are designed to speed up a child’s journey through care and to reduce the number of moves a child in the care system potentially makes.
https://jobs.wiltshire.gov.uk/details#/reference/AW00033
Would you like to work for Adoption West? We are currently advertising a number of vacancies, head over to our website for a look.
https://adoptionwest.co.uk/vacancies-2/
It's not in the best interests of the children we are family finding for, to misrepresent and sugar coat what adoption is. Yes, it's amazing and can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also he tough and difficult and painful.
And that's why we are here, to offer support every step of the journey.
Read more about the support we offer ; http://ow.ly/Vk8Z50CNXtU
Compassion, empathy and tolerance. These are three of the key qualities real adopters say we should be looking for in potential adopters of siblings.
Interested in finding out more about adopting siblings, please do get in touch.
http://ow.ly/tdi850FwCFA
I’ve never regretted the fact that I never knew my daughter as a baby: she came to us fully-formed, her own little person with a unique sense of humour and the stubbornness that allowed her to survive her initial years which she has to this day."
https://www.first4adoption.org.uk/blessings-adopting-older-child-dad-shares-adoption-story/
