Developing Adoption Support and Therapy: New Approaches for Practice

226 Pages·2004·1.03 MB·English

by  Angie Hart

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Developing Adoption
Support and Therapy
New Approaches for Practice
Angie Hart and Barry Luckock
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
London and Philadelphia
All rights reserved. No part ofthis publication may be reproduced in any material form
(including photocopying or storing it in any medium by electronic means and whether or not
transiently or incidentally to some other use ofthis publication) without the written
permission ofthe copyright owner except in accordance with the provisions ofthe
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms ofa licence issued by the
Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London, England W1T 4LP.
Applications for the copyright owner’s written permission to reproduce any part ofthis
publication should be addressed to the publisher.
Warning: The doing ofan unauthorised act in relation to a copyright work may result in both
a civil claim for damages and criminal prosecution.
The right ofAngie Hart and Barry Luckock to be identified as authors ofthis work has been
asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
First published in 2004
by Jessica Kingsley Publishers
116 Pentonville Road
London N1 9JB, UK
and
400 Market Street, Suite 400
Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA
www.jkp.com
Copyright © Angie Hart and Barry Luckock 2004
Library ofCongress Cataloging in Publication Data
Hart, Angie.
Developingadoptionsupportandtherapy:newapproachesforpractice/AngieHartand
Barry Luckock.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-84310-146-7 (pbk.)
1. Adoption—GreatBritain.2. Adoption—UnitedStates.3. Adoptedchildren—Great
Britain.4. Adoptedchildren—UnitedStates.5. Adoptiveparents—Servicesfor—GreatBritain.
6. Adoptive parents—Services for—United States. I. Luckock, Barry, 1953- II. Title.
HV875.58.G7H37 2004
362.734—dc22
2004015124
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN-13: 978 1 84310 146 8
ISBN-10: 1 84310 146 7
ISBN pdfeBook: 1 84642 021 0
Printed and Bound in Great Britain by
Athenaeum Press, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear
Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 7
1 Adoption Today 9
2 Understanding Adoptive Childhood and
Family Life: Family Practices and Narratives
as the Context for Adoption Support 33
3 Adoption Support: The Legal and
Organisational Framework for Practice 55
4 ‘Someone There for Us’: The Adoption
Support Services Adviser in Context 79
5 Facilitating ‘Good Enough’ Adoptive
Parenting Through Formal Therapeutic
Interventions 107
6 ‘Holding Multiple Families in Mind’:
Enabling Open Communication in
Adoptive Kinship 137
7 Developing Communities of Adoptive
Practice 167
REFERENCES 193
SUBJECTINDEX 213
AUTHORINDEX 221
List of Tables
4.1 Modelsof adoptionsupport 80
4.2 Knowledgebaseforadoptioncompetence 87
4.3 Skillsbaseforadoptioncompetence 88
4.4 DifficultiesfacedbyLucy,Billandtheirchildrenandtheexpertise
neededtoaddressthem 90
4.5 Componentsof effectivecasemanagementandkeyworking 93
5.1 Twoapproachestotheassessmentof theemotionalcapacityof
adoptiveparenting 130
6.1 Thinkingaboutthepurposeof contactforLukeandDebbie 160
7.1 Distinctionsbetweencommunitiesof adoptivepracticeandother
modesof practice 173
List of Figures
6.1 Adoptivefamilylifestorywork 150
7.1 Theadoptionstar 180
Acknowledgements
This book has two authors, and we are jointly responsible for its contents.
However,likemostbooks,wesuspect,somethingofateameffortliesbehindit.
TheideaswedevelopinDevelopingAdoptionSupportandTherapyhaveevolved
fromaresearchstudyweundertookwithChloeGerhardtin2001.Wethank
herforassistinguswiththatresearch,andforherenthusiasminhelpingusto
bringthisbooktofruition.Chloeundertookthemammothjoboforganising
ourreferences.Aswellasreading andcommenting ontheentiremanuscript,
shealsohelpedwithothereditorialtasks.
OurthanksarealsoduetoBrightonandHoveCouncilandSouthDowns
HealthCareNHSTrustforcommissioningtheoriginalresearchstudyandto
the Department of Health for funding it. In particular, we thank Derek
Blincow, Sue Boiling, Yvonne Ely, Fiona Johnson and Paul Holmes, and also
membersoftheBrightonandHoveAttachmentTeam,whogavegenerouslyof
theirthoughtsaboutservicedevelopmentinthisarea.Theadministrativeand
secretarialsupportofSarahGardnerandSallySmithhasbeeninvaluabletous.
Wearegratefultoverymanycolleaguesandfriendsforreading through
chapter drafts. Caroline Archer, John Simmonds and Helen Thomas read
through the entire manuscript prior to publication and gave us extremely
helpful feedback. Alex Saunders also deserves a particular mention for his
insightfulcommentsondifferentchapters.LeslieIronsideandJennyKenrick
have also helped us enormously by providing valuable comments on current
practiceinrelationtochildpsychotherapy.TrudyWardgaveussomespecialist
medical advice. Anne Foulger at the Department of Health provided us with
some useful statistics. Alan Simpson taught us a lot about key working. Alan
RushtonandJulieSelwynsharedthefindingsof theirresearchinprogress.
We cannot begin to list the names of those many friends and colleagues
withwhomwehavehadinspiringconversationsaboutadoptionsupport.Celia
Balbernie, Alan Burnell, Jenny Clifton, Mary Dozier, Monica Duck, Sheila
Fearnley,AlisonField,BarbaraFleetwood,MarnieFreeman,AlecGrant,David
Howe,KarenIrving,JeanneKaniukandcolleaguesatCoramFamily,Rachael
Lockey, Gillian Luckock, Carolyn Miller, Philly Morrall, Ginny Morrow,
Imogen Taylor, Beth Neil and Michael, Edward and Becky Street Hartfield
haveallgivenusparticularinsights.Someofthemhavecommentedonchapter
drafts.
7
8 / DEVELOPINGADOPTIONSUPPORTANDTHERAPY
We thank the staff at Adoption UK for answering our many
adoption-relatedqueries,andforallowingustorecruitparentstoourresearch
through Adoption Today. The staff at Jessica Kingsley Publishers deserve our
thanksfortheirpatienteditorialsupport.
We are particularly grateful for the co-operation we have received from
adoptiveandfosterparents(bothlocallyandnationally),andthoseadoption
supportersweinterviewedforouroriginalresearchstudy.Althoughforreasons
of confidentialitywecannotnameanyof thesepeoplehere,wethankallour
researchparticipantsforgivingustheirtimeandsharingtheirviewswithus.
Finally we thank our own families for the very valuable support they
providedtoussothatwecouldwritethisbook.