Fewer children find homes under new law

ADOPTIONS in South Africa have halved since 2009, the year before a new act regulating the practice was passed.

Only 1 236 children were adopted in South Africa from April 1 2013 to March 31 2014, down from the 2 602 adoptions approved four years ago.

“The interpretation of the Children’s Act by the courts and the officials is definitely one of the major contributors to slowing the adoption process down and could lead to people giving up,” said Ann Skelton, director of the Child Law Centre at the University of Pretoria. “The delays are bad for babies, who bond better earlier.”

The centre has successfully challenged sections of this law.

Adoptions have slowed since the implementation of the act in 2010, among other reasons, because:

State social workers lost their accreditation to screen for adoption, making it harder for rural families to adopt;

Adoptive parents must get a Form 30 declaring they are fit to look after a child. It is taking months to process these forms and many courts will not place vulnerable children in temporary care without them, even with police clearance;

Provinces must supply a section 239 letter to approve an adoption and getting this letter can take up to a year; and

The Register on Adoptable Children and Prospective Adoptive Parents, an Excel spreadsheet, did not exist when the act came into force, bringing adoption to a temporary standstill.

“Members of the National Adoption Coalition are partners with the Social Development Department and urge the government to let them assist with adoptions,” said Sue Krawitz, chairwoman of the National Adoption Coalition. “We have qualified people to do the job and if [the government] help subsidise us, we can do the work professionally and place children into families quicker.”

Russell Linde, attorney for the Ulutho orphans and vulnerable children programme, supported this: “We have knowledge of the act and can offer assistance with process and systems.”

Social development spokeswoman Lumka Oliphant said the department was in the process of amending the Children’s Act and had consulted with private adoption service providers in this regard. “Their inputs were also submitted as part of the amendments,” he added.

The Children’s Second Amendment Bill is expected to come before the parliamentary portfolio committee this year.

Recent hurdles and responses include:

ACCREDITATION: The Children’s Second Amendment Bill expands the definition of “adoption social worker” to include social workers employed by the provincial or national departments of social development. FORM 30: Individuals must submit Form 30 to have their names screened against the National Child Protection Register. Abba adoption services has 92 outstanding Form 30s from three organisations in Pretoria, some of which were submitted six to nine months ago.

SECTION 239 LETTERS: Ulutho is preparing a legal challenge, with other organisations, to section 239 of the act, under which provinces must approve adoptions.

Provinces accredit adoption agencies who screen prospective parents.

“We have instances in our area, East London, where letters take in excess of a year,” said Linde. “We were shocked by how long they were taking.

“We are applying to compel the state to improve its systems or give an explanation why they are so poor, because they are not complying with the time lines stipulated in the act,” he said.