Where to find adoption records
Adoption records can be located in several agencies. The three main locations are the Local Authority, a Voluntary Adoption Agency and the court where the adoption order was granted.
However, in all adoption cases the Local Authority will have been involved, either as the placing agency and/or as the agency that was notified by the prospective adoptive parent(s) of their intention to apply for an Adoption Order. It is possible for two Local Authorities to have been involved if the prospective adoptive parent(s) did not live in the placing Local Authority area.
The placing agency (referred to in current legislation as the Appropriate Adoption Agency) may have been a Voluntary Adoption Agency. Some Voluntary Adoption Agencies no longer exist but in most cases their records were transferred to another Voluntary Adoption Agency or to the Local Authority in whose area they had their head quarters. The Locating Adoption Records database holds information about where adoption records can be located.
How long do adoption agencies keep records for?
Until 1975 there was no legislation to stipulate for how long and how adoption records should be kept. Therefore some agencies may not have retained information that will help adopted people gather background and other relevant information. Since the Children Act 1975 adoption agencies were expected to keep adoption records for 75 years. However has been increased to 100 years since the implementation of the Adoption and Children Act 2002.
Do I have an automatic right to the information held on the agency’s adoption record?
Agencies have the discretion to share information from the records they hold so adopted people do not have an automatic right to information. However during the past few decades adoption agencies have gained a greater understanding about the needs of adopted people to have access to information that can help them answer important questions about their background, and also to help them begin a search for birth family members, so agencies are usually willing to share information that is held on their records.
What normally happens? Will I have to go to the adoption agency?
Adopted people who want to access information about their family background would normally be expected to see an adoption social worker before information is shared from the records. Normally an appointment would be made for you to see the adoption social worker who will be able to go through the information with you. The information held in an adoption record is likely to give you more information than is on the birth certificate. For example, information about other birth family members. However remember that records can vary between a single page summary sheet or thirty or more pages depending on what information was gathered by the adoption agency at the time and how much has been retained.
How can I find out if the adoption agency that arranged my adoption still exists and if it is not what I can do then?
You should go to the Locating Adoption Records database on the Adoption Search Reunion website where you can search for adoption agencies in England and Wales, and if the agency that arranged your adoption has closed then it should signpost you to the agency that now holds the records.
I have discovered that my adoption was arranged privately, so how can I get more information about my background and circumstances about my adoption?
If your adoption was a private arrangement then there may be very little information available to you. It is worth contacting the local authority where the adoption order was made to see if they hold any information about your adoption. It is also worth contacting the Court where the Adoption Order was granted as some records relating to your adoption may be held there. There is no automatic right to any information but the Courts have discretion to disclose information on application (Adoption Rules 1984 S.I 1984 No.265; Rule 53(4); and Magistrates’ Court (Adoption) Rules 1984 S.1.1984 No. 611; Rule 32(6)). These rules have been retained and only apply to pre-commencement adoptions.
You should write to the clerk of the court and they will be able to tell you whether or not it is possible to have access to this information and how you can go about getting it. Sometimes an appointment is made for you to see a Judge who may then be able to answer some of the questions you have from the information held on the court record.
Your adoption worker can also write to court and make an application for access to court records on your behalf.