Thousands of adopted children miss out on education support, charity warns
Neil Puffett
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Adopted children as young as nine are missing out on additional support in school, due to an "arbitrary" government-imposed cut-off point, a charity has said.
From April 2014, an enhanced pupil premium has been extended to those who were adopted or granted a special guardianship order after 30 December 2005.
Charity Adoption UK has estimated that the cut-off point means up to 15,000 adopted children, some as young as nine, will miss out on the support.
It has called on government to extend the pupil premium plus, which is worth £1,900 per adopted and looked-after child, to all adopted schoolchildren.
Chief executive of Adoption UK, Hugh Thornbery, said the majority of children adopted in England come from a background of abuse and neglect, and children frequently experience significant difficulties in school due to early trauma they may have experienced.
“It is scandalous that so many adopted children will miss out on support just when they need it most,” he said.
“The arbitrary cut-off date will lead to the untenable situation where one sibling in a family qualifies for support and another sibling is denied support.
“Adoption UK is encouraged that the government has recognised that adopted children have additional needs in school and is providing vital extra support to some of those children via the pupil premium initiative.
“We strongly urge the government to extend this scheme to all adopted children so those who need it most don’t miss out.”
A survey conducted by Adoption UK of more than 1,500 adoptive parents found that 80 per cent of adoptive parents say their child needs more support than their peers and nearly two thirds (64 per cent) feel the teenage years are or were the most difficult time for their child at school.
A total of 96 per cent of parents surveyed felt that additional funding could help teachers and staff to understand the additional needs of adoptive children.
Earlier this month, a study commissioned by the Department for Education found that adoption breakdowns are higher than official figures suggest with lack of post adoption support a major factor in placements being disrupted.
