The application and assessment process seems complicated, but it is much more straightforward than it seems at first.

In this section we will help you understand the different stages of the process, and why they are important.

This should help you feel more confident.

We will also tell you what you can expect from Trafford, including the standards we have set ourselves to make the process as efficient as possible.

Our standards are based on the National Minimum Adoption Standards.

When you contact us to enquire about adoption we will send you written information and a letter inviting you to request an initial visit.

To begin a discussion about adoption you can:

• Register your interest online
• Call our adoption team on 0161 912 3971
• Send an email to annie.childs@trafford.gov.uk

If you request an initial visit, an adoption worker will arrange to visit you at your home to discuss the adoption process and your own personal circumstances in greater depth. We will explore with you why you want to adopt and whether you understand the issues and challenges of adoption.

We will answer any questions you may have.

We will tell you when our next preparation groups are due.

If you tell us that you want to attend the next preparation groups, and we agreed that you should, we will ask you to consent to checks with the police and other statutory bodies, also medical references.

Trafford runs a four-day preparation group three times a year.

If you are adopting as a couple, we ask you both to attend.

• The groups are a chance to find out more about adoption and the sorts of children who need adoption
• Adopters have said that they find these group sessions very useful
• You will be able to talk to experienced adopters
• There is an assessment element in the groups
• Social workers at the groups will pass information on to the assessing social worker. This information will be shared with you

After the preparation groups we will visit you to discuss your feelings about the group and the information passed by the social workers who ran the group.

If we and yourselves decide that you should continue to the assessment stage, we will invite you to submit a formal application.

You will be allocated an adoption social worker to carry out your assessment.

National Minimum Adoption Standards state that your assessment should be completed and presented to the adoption panel within 8 months of your formal application.

Your assessing worker will prepare a report which will describe your abilities and strengths, and any areas of vulnerability, this will help us determine whether you can provide a loving family and secure home environment for a child or children.

If you have children, they will be interviewed. We will also interview three personal referees. We ask you to have a medical examination.

If you have children from another relationship, we will interview your ex-partner.

When your assessment is complete, your social worker will write a report for the Adoption panel. You will be asked to read it and sign if you are in agreement.

Trafford's Adoption panel meets once a month, and the panel will consider your suitability to adopt. You will be invited to attend panel. Your assessing social worker will attend. The panel will discuss your application and recommend whether or not you should be approved to adopt.

You should be informed of the recommendation within 24 hours.

Our agency decision maker will consider your report and the panel's recommendation and then decided whether to approve your application. You will be notified of this decision in writing.

If your application is not approved, you will be sent a written explanation and will have a chance to appeal the decision, or request a review by the Independent Review mechanism.

If you want to adopt a child from abroad the assessment process is the same. However, we do not carry out these assessments.

You will be referred to a voluntary adoption agency who specialises in inter-country adoption.

Once you have been approved, your social worker will keep in touch while you wait for a child to be placed. This may take some time, but it is important that we find the right family for the child.

We will also support you when you receive information about a specific child and when a child is placed with you.

Our support does not end there - see our post-adoption support section. We will be available to you at any time in the future.