Hansard

The final item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S6M-20902, in the name of Fulton MacGregor, on strengthening adoption support for families. The debate will be concluded without any question being put. I invite members who wish to participate to press their request-to-speak buttons.

Motion debated,

That the Parliament notes the findings of the report, Strengthening the Safety Net: A Framework for Adoption Support in Scotland, which was published by the Cross-Party Group on Social Work and highlights what the group identified as serious and systemic shortcomings in adoption support services across Scotland; believes that adoptive families in communities in Coatbridge and Chryston, and across the country, frequently experience fragmented, inconsistent and inadequately resourced post-adoption support; recognises that the Adoption UK Barometer 2025 suggested that 78% of adoptive families in Scotland face significant challenges, with 40% reporting severe difficulties, and that official figures on adoption breakdown are believed to likely underestimate the true scale of family distress due to inconsistent definitions and limited data collection; expresses concern at reports that many families reach crisis point without timely access to specialist, trauma-informed support, respite provision or intensive family services, increasing, it believes, the risk of placement disruption and further harm to children and families; acknowledges that adoption does not erase the effects of early trauma, abuse and neglect, and that adopted children’s needs often intensify during adolescence and key transition points; considers that the transfer of post-adoption support from specialist adoption teams to generic children and families services after three years frequently fails to reflect the complexity of adoptive family life; notes the report’s recommendations for a national adoption practice model, improved training, mandatory data collection, minimum standards for preparation and support, enhanced crisis intervention and respite services, and greater flexibility in adoption allowances, and further notes calls on the Scottish Government to work with adoptive families, adopted people, frontline practitioners and local authorities to urgently develop and implement a comprehensive national framework for adoption support, and to ensure that families across Scotland, including in Coatbridge and Chryston, can access consistent, high-quality, lifelong adoption support, regardless of postcode.

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