Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and I have listened to what he has had to say about it. I realise that he is concerned about this issue. Adoption can be, as he said, an emotional and sometimes traumatic experience and the effects can vary at different stages of the process. We know there are many successful adoptions - of that there is no question - but there is no doubt that a range of issues can arise post-adoption. The majority of adoptions in this country are inter-country adoptions, and a range of post-adoption issues can emerge which vary in severity and type. Families very often have successful adoptions, but we have all come across situations in which families, sometimes quite unexpectedly, have to deal with very difficult issues, often because of the very difficult start some of the children had and their pre-adoption experiences in residential centres. As more and more children are adopted at a later age, having had poor experiences before they were adopted, this issue is likely to be significant for an increasing number of families.

Under adoption legislation, when a child is placed on the register of inter-country adoptions, he or she is deemed to be, as the Deputy is well aware, the fully legal child of the adoptive parents - the couple - having the same legal status as any biological child of the couple born to them within their marriage. Accordingly, in the first instance, it is open to any adopted child and his or her family to access the full range of services which are currently available to all Irish children. These include specialist psychiatric and psychological services, educational services, health services, speech and language and disability-related services as well as having access to the normal GP and family support services in their areas, whether it be a local family resource centre or a CAMHS clinic. Children facing these issues clearly have access to the services that other Irish children have. These are adopted children with all the rights that other children have. There are some private services available as well, some of which specialise in attachment and behavioural problems, which the Deputy particularly mentioned.

The Child and Family Agency advises that there are a small number of adoptive parents who seek post-adoptive support from the adoption assessment team in their area. It is interesting that some of the parents who have been through the adoption assessment go back and look for support if difficulties arise, and these are often due to attachment-related behavioural issues. I want to inform the House that the agency also funds a post-adoption service operated by Barnardos in the Dublin area. Essentially, the post-adoption service would be available from the new Child and Family Agency plus the Barnardos service and the other range of services.

The Deputy made a point about specialist services and people having a particular skill. I would think Barnardos or any of the adoption agencies would have this skill to a degree. Regarding the range of expertise the Deputy described with respect to the service that is available in England - with which I am not familiar - and whether there is an equivalent service available here, the Barnardos service could perhaps be equivalent. It is the type of service we will see developing in the years to come if it becomes clear that there is an issue here, given the thousands of children who have been adopted from abroad, and that a more specialist service is needed. I can certainly have discussions with Barnardos, given that it already does some work in this area. The Deputy mentioned training; perhaps it could establish some links with the agency in England. I can certainly explore that possibility and see what training could be done that has not already taken place here.

It is very important that prospective parents are realistic about the psychological, behavioural and health issues which may arise post-adoption, particularly where a child has spent a period of time in a residential service in institutional care prior to adoption. The Child and Family Agency advises that the adoption assessment process that all applicants must undergo in order to be considered for adoption includes education, information and discussion about these issues with people who are going to adopt.

This is also very important. Couples who are adopting also need to show they can support the financial needs which may arise with regard to the child being adopted.

It is important we have increased understanding with regard to these issues and that time is spent during the assessment process discussing them with the couples. The Deputy asked about research. In 2007 the Children's Research Centre at Trinity College published a study on inter-country adoption outcomes in Ireland. This included discussion on post-adoption experiences and the publication is on the website of the Adoption Authority of Ireland.

I take the point made by the Deputy, and I have no doubt parents are looking for more and more specialist help with regard to the issues which arise in the children whom they have adopted. Very often these are attachment issues. I will take up the points made by the Deputy with Barnardos in the first instance and see whether the training needs outlined by the Deputy which must be met in Ireland can be developed.

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