Publication of "Children Adopted from Care in Northern Ireland 2021/22"

Northern Ireland Executive
28 Sep 2022, 21 GMT+10

The Department of Health has today published the "Children Adopted from Care in Northern Ireland 2021/22".

This bulletin details statistical information relating to children adopted from care during the year ending 31 March 2022. The tables within the bulletin present a range of information about these children and their adopters, including durations between different stages in the adoption process. The bulletin is based on the DoH statistical return AD1 2021/22, which was collected from each of the five Health and Social Care Trusts.

Key Findings

During the year ending 31 March 2022, 89 children were adopted from care in Northern Ireland;

The average age of children at the time of adoption was at 4 years 6 months, and ranged from a year and a half to close to 11 years old;

From the child's last entry into care, the average length of time for a child to be adopted in 2021/22 was 3 years 4 months. This was slightly higher than in recent years;

For children adopted in 2021/22, the average duration from the HSC Trust proposal that adoption was in the best interest for the child (the Looked After Child Best Interest Proposal) to the Adoption Order was 2 years 6 months; and

In 2021/22, children adopted by Concurrent Carers[1] were younger at the time of adoption (3 years 11 months compared with the national average of 4 years and 6 months) and they also had a shorter last duration in care (3 years 2 months compared with the regional average of 3 years 4 months).

[1] The child is placed with carers who are approved as foster carers and adopters while the future of the child is still being decided.

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