Conversation & discussion on contemporary Adoption & Fostering
Episodes
Saturday Aug 20, 2022
Saturday Aug 20, 2022
This week Scott and Al are a summer holiday! Not together thank heavens but this is an interview with Mark Owers that was recorded a few weeks ago. Mark is an adoptive parent as well as a social worker and consultant to the DfE and the Government in relation to adoption and fostering and the Chair of the National Adoption Recruitment Steering Group. He is able to bring an in depth knowledge to the policy context, how we got to where we are and consider the future of adoption. We also discuss the Adoption and Special Guardianship Leadership Board and Mark's recent article here.
As always if you’ve experience of adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
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Saturday Aug 13, 2022
Saturday Aug 13, 2022
In this episode we are more than happy to have Becky back onto the podcast. As you'll hear Becky has an encyclopaedic knowledge of AUK's 2022 Adoption Barometer and she unpicks some of the data and we have a good natter.
As you'd expect we do occasionally get drawn into a broad range of issues including decorating children's bedrooms, women's football and the joy of pies.
As always if you’ve experience of adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
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Saturday Aug 06, 2022
Saturday Aug 06, 2022
In this episode we speak to Liz Harvie adopted adult and adoptee rights campaigner. We'd been planning to speak to Liz for quite a while and the interview conincided with the release of the House of Commons & House of Lords Joint Committee on Human Rights -The Violation of Family Life: Adoption of Children of Unmarried Women 1949–1976 report. Liz was generous with her time and story shared some of her own experience and the impact of being adopted and reunion on her, liz spoke across a broad range of issues including the report and we're sure you'll agree she was a great guest.
As always if you’ve experience of adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
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Saturday Jul 30, 2022
Saturday Jul 30, 2022
Hello and welcome to conversations from the adoption and fostering podcast.
In this episode Scott spoke to late discovery, transracial and translation adoptee Ryan, he shares his complicated and challenging experience of finding out he was adopted at 18 years old.
Ryan talks about living his shame and avoiding dealing with his adoption until the last few years and his journey looking for support as an adult. Ryan is open an honest in discussing the complexities of his situation and the lack of information he has of his biological family from Morocco.
You can see Ryan's YouTube video here
https://youtu.be/4C-LNcmxdFk
And his Written story here https://peshy37.wordpress.com/2021/02/18/my-story/
As always if you’ve experience of adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
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Saturday Jul 23, 2022
Saturday Jul 23, 2022
In this episode we speak to adoptive parent and Executive Headteacher Rob Leitch about his campaign to "Provide all care-experienced children with a right to be assessed for an EHCP"
This petition calls for all care-experienced children to be provided with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) assessment as an automatic right, upon request. This would provide all care-experienced children with an equality of opportunity, following a disadvantaged start in life.
You can add your signature here
Rob is a great guest and he shares some of his experience as an adoptive parent as well as his views on the challenges of education and the unique education model in the online school he is the headteacher at.
As always if you’ve experience of adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
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Saturday Jul 09, 2022
Saturday Jul 09, 2022
Hello and welcome to this episode of the adoption and fostering podcast. Catching up on recent news and to discuss the challenges faced by Voluntary Adoption Agencies we are pleased to have Satwinder Sandhu vice chair of the Consortium of Voluntary Adoption Agencies and CEO of the IAC join us. We unpick the impact of Families for Children closing as well as the current system and how they work with the Regional Adoption Agencies. We also consider the recent government madness and the impact on the Care Review.
As always if you’ve experience of or informed views on adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
We like real live connections so if you want to get in touch do so yourself.
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Saturday Jul 02, 2022
Saturday Jul 02, 2022
Hello and welcome to conversations from the adoption and fostering podcast.
In this episode Scott spoke to adoptive parent chris, he shares the experience of being approved to adopt with his wife in the run up to the first lockdown.
Covid arrived as their son moved into their house and Chris discusses the pressures of their early days together in lockdown as well as other challenges as well as strength they’re finding as a new family. It’s been a uniquely difficult time for many adopters and Chris speaks to many people’s experience at this time.
As always if you’ve experience of adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
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Saturday Jun 25, 2022
Saturday Jun 25, 2022
Hello and welcome to the Adoption and Fostering Podcast, in this episode and after much time effort and energy arranging it we're pleased to interview the Children's Minister Will Quince.
We were really pleased to be given an hour with the Minister and we were really hoping to engage in conversation with him in relation to the many questions that we had and the ones so kindly supplied. There was so much we could have chatted about but we tried to stick to topic and on stuff that we thought was applicable. Will was honest and I think we came away with the impression that he was genuine and was interested, bothered and well informed. We were asked to give a broad outline of topics before hand but Will was happy for us to ask anything with no caveats.
People will make up their own minds and as in all things time will tell as to the decisions that are made and the legacy that is left.
As always if you’ve experience of or informed views on adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
We like real live connections so if you want to get in touch do so yourself.
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Saturday Jun 18, 2022
Saturday Jun 18, 2022
Hello and welcome to this special edition of the podcast. We have an interview with the chair of the Independent Review of Children's Social Care in England where we discuss the final report and the response from the Government and the sector.
You can read the report here.
It is a conversation and we drew on the published responses and our own reading of the report to inform the conversation. We were mindful of the breadth of the report and consequently the conversation stays within limits on what we could cover reasonably in the time we had. Josh was open and honest and there was no restrictions on what we spoke about though we did give a broad idea what we'd like to discuss prior to speaking.
After the last interview with Josh we did have some criticism and accusation of collusion and being in the pocket of the Government. We're not, we do this at no cost and don't get paid, we do this because our lives and the lives of our children have been shaped by fostering and adoption and we want to shine a light on it.
As always if you’ve experience of or informed views on adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
We like real live connections so if you want to get in touch do so yourself.
Listen/subscribe on iTunes here
Spotify here
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Saturday Jun 11, 2022
Saturday Jun 11, 2022
In this episode we hear the relatively unique story of Leah who shares her experience of being a birth parent to two children who were adopted. Her story is one of relinquishment instigated by herself and she shares how this came about and the impact on herself and her children.
As always if you’ve experience of adoption, Fostering or special guardianship from any perspective and would like share that on the podcast please get in touch through the Facebook or twitter page or email us at AandFpodcast@gmail.com
Listen/subscribe on iTunes here
Spotify here
Google here