Adoption service scoops top awards

A PIONEERING adoption service is celebrating its first anniversary in style after scooping two prestigious awards and being praised in a government report.
WWiSH adoption service – run by Warrington, Wigan and St. Helens councils – won two prizes at the prestigious Improvement and Efficiency Awards, a national competition honouring excellence in the public sector.
Staff from WWiSH were handed gold in the “working together” category and bronze in the “innovation in social care” category.
WWiSH was one of only two council services to win two prizes.
The success came only a few weeks after the service was highlighted in a government report. The Department for Education cited WWiSH as a good example of local authorities working together.
WWiSH is the only combined service of its kind in the North West and one of only two in the country. The government has made speeding up the adoption process one of its top priorities. It is also seeking to tackle the shortfall in prospective adopters compared to the number of children waiting to be adopted.
WWiSH was set up last March by the three councils who agreed to merge their adoption services to save money and improve quality.
Since then, 55 children have been adopted. The shared service has been able to cut the length of time children must wait before being placed with an adoptive family.
A successful marketing and publicity campaign to recruit potential adopters saw a surge in those coming forward seeking to adopt. WWiSH had 34 prospective adopters approved and currently has another 42 adopters being assessed.
Adoption manager Ruth Fitzgerald said: “It’s been a great first year for the service and I’m delighted all our hard work has been recognised. Getting two Improvement and Efficiency awards is a great achievement and testament to the efforts of our staff. And I’m pleased the government, who have placed such importance on improving the adoption process, have also recognised our pioneering approach.
“It’s a real achievement to get 55 children adopted into loving, permanent homes in the space of 12 months. The adoption process is complex and time-consuming. We merged our services to try and speed up that process and give children needing to be adopted more opportunities. So far, it seems to be working.”
Cllr Colin Froggatt, executive member for children and young people’s services at Warrington Borough Council added: “It’s a fact that there are more children needing adoption than there are adopters which is why we set up this innovative service last year. This new approach gives greater placement choice to our children and a better chance to match their life needs.”