The speedy adoption by pop star Madonna of a baby boy from Malawi undoubtedly presents an idealistic picture of what it takes to adopt a child from overseas.
There are currently fewer than 400 inter-country adoptions carried out from the UK each year, and they typically take months rather than days to be processed.
The British Association of Adoption and Fostering (BAAF) is dismayed about what it terms 'the Madonna effect'. By fuelling a public misconception about the ease of adopting from abroad, it says, such cases could mean that fewer families will seek to adopt at home.
'The media coverage won't help the situation here,' says Mo O'Reilly, director of child placement at BAAF. 'Madonna has appeared to adopt almost instantaneously, which may make people think it is quicker and easier to adopt from abroad. This is certainly not the case, and we want people to consider the children here before looking overseas.'
Register now to continue reading
Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:
What's included
-
Free access to 4 subscriber-only articles per month
-
Unlimited access to news and opinion
-
Email newsletter providing activity ideas, best practice and breaking news
Already have an account? Sign in here