The UEA Moving to Adoption model
The UEA Moving to Adoption model is a social work practice framework for supporting children’s moves from foster care to adoption.
The model is based on 6 key principles:
1
Opportunities for the foster carers and adopters to build a positive relationship should be promoted at an early stage in the moving process
2
The child and the adopters should be given opportunities to become familiar with each other though play and observation prior to adopters undertaking caregiving tasks
3
All plans and timescales should focus on the needs of the child
4
The child’s feelings about the move should be held in mind, and responded to sensitively
5
Some continuity of foster family relationships and environment will support the child in managing the loss of the foster family and building trust in the adoptive family
6
Allow flexibility in the planning, in consultation with the child, the families and the social workers, to allow for emerging circumstances and needs
The UEA Moving to Adoption model was developed in the Centre for Research on Children and Families, University of East Anglia, UK. The research and development team was Elsbeth Neil, Mary Beek and Gillian Schofield.
The UEA model was developed in the Centre for Research on Children and Families, University of East Anglia, UK. The research and development team was Elsbeth Neil, Mary Beek and Gillian Schofield.
The UEA model aims to address concerns that when children move to an adoptive family, their feelings of loss and separation can be overlooked. This is especially so when moves happen over a short time period and when contact with foster carers is abruptly cut off.
The model is underpinned by a framework for providing therapeutic caregiving in foster care and adoption, the Secure Base model www.uea.ac.uk/providingasecurebase.
This website provides practice and implementation guides, training materials and resources linked to the UEA Moving to Adoption model including suggestions for applying the model during the COVID-19 pandemic. The website is relevant to the full range of professionals, as well as the foster carers and adopters who are supporting children’s moves to adoption.
