I am adopted
As a person who is adopted, you may have lots of questions about your birth family, and about why you were adopted. You may also want some support. This can be in the form of advice and guidance or accessing therapy.
What to do if you have a question about your adoption
You might find some answers about you and your adoption
- in your Life Story Book
- in your Later Life Letter (this is a letter written to you by your social worker explaining your journey to adoption in a more detailed way. This letter is given to your parent/s to share with you at a time when you will be able to understand and manage the information in it; this is usually when you are a teenager)
- by talking to your parent/s
- By speaking with someone from the Post Adoption Team. You can contact us by email on AdoptionSupport@leics.gov.uk with you name and number and let us know how you want us to contact you.
- There is further information and opportunities to get involved on our website Family Adoption Links
Accessing your birth records
You can access your birth records if you don’t have them because you were adopted.
You need to be 18 or over to do this.
Everyone adopted before 12 November 1975 will need to attend a counselling session with an approved adoption advisor first.
You know your birth details: You can order a copy of your original birth certificate from the General Register Office.
For adoptions outside England or Wales you need to contact the General Register Office where you were adopted.
If you don’t know your birth details you need to fill in an application for Birth Certificate Information Before Adoption (BIBA) service. You can find more information on Gov.UK
Adoption contact register
If you are over 18, you can add yourself to the Adoption Contact Register at the General Register Office to:
- find a birth relative or an adopted person
- say you don’t want to be contacted
This is not a tracing service - for a connection to be made between people, you must both be on the Adoption Contact Register.
I am Fostered
Being fostered means that you are living with and being cared for by someone who is not your birth parent. Sometimes mums and dads can't give you all the things you need to stay safe and well. There are all sorts of reasons why this might happen and this will be explained to you in a way you understand. What is important is that you know a bit more about foster carers, explained in this video from Action for Children.
Coming into care: what you need to know
I am on a Special Guardianship Order
A special guardianship order (SGO) is a private law order made by the family court. The person or people named on the SGO will be your special guardian.
Special guardian’s, have parental responsibility for you until you are 18 years old. You will live with them permanently. They will make both day-to-day decisions about your care and more important decisions about your life.
Although an SGO means that your parents will have fewer rights, they will need to keep them informed and get their consent for some important decisions, including:
- changing your surname
- changing your religion
- taking you abroad for more than 3 months
- putting you up for adoption
- surgery that doesn’t improve your health, such as circumcision, sterilisation or cosmetic surgery
You can find more information on what a Special Guardianship Order is from this video and also on this website Kinship
What to do if you have a question about your SGO
As a person who is on an SGO, you may have lots of questions about why you aren’t living with your parents. You may also want some support. This can be in the form of advice and guidance or accessing therapy. We are here to help.
You might also find some answers
- in your Life Story Book (if you have one)
- by talking to your carers
- By speaking with someone from the Post SGO Team. You can contact us by email on SGOSupport@leics.gov.uk with your name and number and let us know how you want us to contact you.
I am a care leaver
It can be very complicated to know exactly what support you should be getting from Children’s Services. CORAM Voice have tried to make things a bit easier for you, by providing information about the support you should get. It includes help about your rights as a care leaver
But you should always get some professional advice about your leaving care status and your rights. You can ask your personal advisor (PA) or social worker,
My rights as a care leaver | Coram Voice
For Leicestershire young people the County Council has a dedicated page to help you find out more about things like your money, rights and home. There is information about training and Jobs
Leicestershire care leavers | Leicestershire County Council
I am a victim of crime
Being a victim of crime can change how you think and feel about different situations in life. It can leave you feeling vulnerable and alone.
This leaflet helps explain the support that's available to you:
If you feel you need more support, please use the links below
Victim Support is an independent charity dedicated to supporting victims of crime and traumatic incidents in England and Wales.
A free, independent and confidential service supporting victims and witnesses of crime across Leicestershire.
Support for victims and witnesses of crime
Support for young people involved with or at risk of crime
I am homeless
Homelessness is when you don’t have somewhere to live. You are homeless if you are
- sleeping rough on the streets
- staying temporarily with a friend or family or 'sofa surfing'
- living with your family in temporary accommodation
- living in a B&B
- squatting in a property.
If you’ve been made homeless and you’re worried about it, or you know you'll be made homeless in the future, there are ways to get support.
Childline is a really helpful website and explains what to do next. You can get in touch with them really easily.
You may find the Housing and Money area of our website useful too.
I am a teen parent
Being a teen parent can change your life drastically and make you feel very alone. But in Leicestershire there is lots of support available to you to help as you transition into parenthood.
You can find support with parenting from lots of different organisations, including the Family Help Service (previously known as Children and Family Wellbeing Service, Leicestershire County Council).
Our Family Hubs offer Young Parent groups and the 0-2 Pathway, which you may be able to attend. Please speak to your midwife or healthcare professional about being referred to the service.
You could also speak to your Health and Wellbeing officer at school for advice, support and guidance. Teen Health 0-19
For extra support you can access the young mums service here: Leicestershire Maternity Services
The health for under 5’s service can also offer you support both mentally and physically from pregnancy until your baby is 5 years old. Health for Under 5s
I am at risk of offending
If you are concerned that you might become involved in anti social behaviour or offending, please seek support from a trusted adult.
At Leicestershire County Council our Youth and Justice team are here to help. You can read more about the support available by clicking in the link.
Go-Getta is also a great website to research what other support is available.
