Following the award-winning The Long Wait campaign, one of the UK’s leading voluntary adoption agencies, Adoption Focus, is returning with a powerful new campaign facing an urgent reality: thousands of children are still waiting for a family to call their own.
More than 3,000 children are currently in need of adoptive families, yet there are only around half that number of adopters available to care for them.
According to Adoption Focus data submitted to Ofsted, for some children, the wait for a permanent family can exceed two years. The longest wait experienced to place a child was a remarkable four years and three months. Four years of Christmases, four years of birthdays and four years of wondering when the waiting will finally end.
The question at the heart of Adoption Focus’ new campaign is simple: Why are they still waiting?
Building on the success of The Long Wait, the new ‘They’re Still Waiting’ campaign brings the issue into sharp focus, reminding potential adopters that behind every statistic is an individual child waiting for the stability, security and love of a permanent family.
The updated campaign film returns viewers to the waiting room first seen in The Long Wait, where children sit waiting for their futures to begin. This time, however, the focus moves beyond the waiting room and onto one child in particular. The film reveals a child in a bedroom, time passing, suitcase packed, waiting for their forever home.
The campaign challenges perceptions around who can adopt and encourages people who may never previously have considered adoption to ask whether they could provide the family a child is waiting for.
To celebrate the launch, the campaign will be screened exclusively within the pre-show adverts for selected films at independent cinema Mockingbird Cinema in Birmingham throughout the month of September. Bringing the campaign to the big screen will help shine a light on the importance of adoption, celebrating the life-changing connections it can create and encouraging more people to consider opening their hearts and homes to adoption.
Anna Sharkey, CEO of Adoption Focus, said:
“There are thousands of children across the country who are waiting for the sense of belonging and security that a permanent family can provide. For every child, two years is not simply a statistic. It is a huge part of their childhood. With our ‘They’re Still Waiting’ campaign, we want everyone to see each child behind those figures. There are memories waiting to be made, bedrooms waiting to be filled and, most significantly, children waiting for someone to say: you belong here. People will often rule themselves out of adopting before they have even spoken to us. This campaign really is to encourage anyone who has ever wondered whether adoption could be for them to take that first step and speak to us.”
Leigh Smith, Head of Training & Support at Adoption Focus, said:
“Becoming an adoptive parent is a huge decision which we understand and naturally people have questions about whether they have the right circumstances, experience or support around them. We want adopters to know they don’t have to navigate that journey alone. Our team at Adoption Focus supports families before, during and long after a child joins their families, helping parents understand their child’s experiences and giving families the tools and support they need to succeed. What children need most is someone who is willing to find out more. That first step to enquire could ultimately change the course of a child’s life.”
The campaign ‘They’re Still Waiting’ is urging more people to come forward and find out whether they could become adoptive parents.
For more information about the campaign or to learn more about becoming an adoptive parent, visit https://www.adoption-focus.org.uk/theyre-still-waiting
