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ADOPTION

It's up to us!

In the light of the recent vote to extend joint adoption to cohabiting couples, Paul Woolley, public policy manager at CARE, argues that the onus is on all of us to make our voices heard

The front page headline of the Christian Herald threw down the challenge: "Who will speak up for marriage?" It was a timely question. The House of Commons had just voted in support of an amendment to the Adoption and Children Bill to extend joint adoption to cohabiting couples (heterosexual and homosexual). Soon afterwards, the House of Lords voted to accept the amendments.

CARE was disappointed. It had argued against extending joint adoption to cohabiting couples while agreeing that reformation of the adoption process was vital.

It is a tragedy that only about 3,000 children a year are adopted from an estimated 60,000 in local authority care. Of these "looked after" children in England, 70% leave school at 16 without any qualifications, and 67% have a mental health problem.

But CARE’s view was that changing the original Government Bill to extend joint adoption was unnecessary; individuals in cohabiting relationships, heterosexual and same-sex, have long been able to adopt.

Clearly it cannot be in the best interests of children to be placed with couples who have not undertaken a legal commitment to one another. It is also wrong to place children deliberately into an environment where they are denied either a father or mother figure.

In short, children need stability. Cohabitation is proven over and over again to be much less stable than marriage. So, a man and a woman should make a life-long commitment to each other through marriage before they can adopt as a couple.

Our public policy team lobbied hard, on behalf of these vulnerable children from a Christian perspective, but CARE has also been working for a number of years on providing support for marriage. One such resource is Celebrating Marriage – a project to equip schools to deliver marriage education. Website www.celebratingmarriage.com is for pupils and teachers, parents and their children.

So, it’s one thing for CARE to speak up for marriage, but what of politicians, the Church and ourselves as individuals? Perhaps we should complain a little less about our politicians and encourage a little more.

It’s important to give credit where it’s due. When a party takes a position we agree with, CARE – as a non-party political organisation – says so. CARE enthusiastically supported the Government’s decision to introduce entitlement to adoption leave and give tax breaks on charitable giving. In the light of this, is it not right to congratulate the Tories for taking a strong position on marriage?

The Church can also speak up for marriage and has an unprecedented opportunity in this respect. In addition to teaching about marriage (not least through marriage preparation classes), the Church can model good and healthy marriages. We all know that marriages are under increasing pressure today and the Church can play a vital role in supporting married couples.

As individuals we can all speak up in support of marriage as well as other important issues. One example of action we can take is through politics. There has never been a better time to be politically involved and the democratic opportunities within each of the mainstream political parties are enormous. Keir Hardie became the first Independent Labour MP in 1892, and went on to become the first leader of the Labour Party. It was his Christian faith that drew him into politics. Hardie said: "The impetus which drove me first of all into the Labour movement and the inspiration which carried me on in it, has been derived more from the teaching of Jesus of Nazareth than all the other sources combined."

Similarly, William Wilberforce changed history with his parliamentary battle against the evil slave trade. Perhaps it’s time for us all to respond to the challenge that Hardie and Wilberforce have left us, roll up our sleeves and join political parties.

It is tempting for Christians to look to politicians to cure the ills in society, and they have an important part to play, but the primary responsibility to teach and live out the "good life" lies with the Church.

© Christian Family Network
is run by CPO, supported by
Care for the Family, Marriage Resource, Positive Parenting,
Care, Women Alive, Christian Herald and many others.


		ADOPTION It's up to us! In the light of the recent vote to extend joint adoption to cohabiting couples, Paul Woolley, public policy manager at CARE, argues that the onus is on all of us to make our voices heard The front page headline of the Christian Herald threw down the challenge: "Who will speak up for marriage?" It was a timely question. The House of Commons had just voted in support of an amendment to the Adoption and Children Bill to extend joint adoption to cohabiting couples (heterosexual and homosexual). Soon afterwards, the House of Lords voted to accept the amendments. CARE was disappointed. It had argued against extending joint adoption to cohabiting couples while agreeing that reformation of the adoption process was vital. It is a tragedy that only about 3,000 children a year are adopted from an estimated 60,000 in local authority care. Of these "looked after" children in England, 70% leave school at 16 without any qualifications, and 67% have a mental health problem. But CARE’s view was that changing the original Government Bill to extend joint adoption was unnecessary; individuals in cohabiting relationships, heterosexual and same-sex, have long been able to adopt. Clearly it cannot be in the best interests of children to be placed with couples who have not undertaken a legal commitment to one another. It is also wrong to place children deliberately into an environment where they are denied either a father or mother figure. In short, children need stability. Cohabitation is proven over and over again to be much less stable than marriage. So, a man and a woman should make a life-long commitment to each other through marriage before they can adopt as a couple. Our public policy team lobbied hard, on behalf of these vulnerable children from a Christian perspective, but CARE has also been working for a number of years on providing support for marriage. One such resource is Celebrating Marriage – a project to equip schools to deliver marriage education. Website www.celebratingmarriage.com is for pupils and teachers, parents and their children. So, it’s one thing for CARE to speak up for marriage, but what of politicians, the Church and ourselves as individuals? Perhaps we should complain a little less about our politicians and encourage a little more. It’s important to give credit where it’s due. When a party takes a position we agree with, CARE – as a non-party political organisation – says so. CARE enthusiastically supported the Government’s decision to introduce entitlement to adoption leave and give tax breaks on charitable giving. In the light of this, is it not right to congratulate the Tories for taking a strong position on marriage? The Church can also speak up for marriage and has an unprecedented opportunity in this respect. In addition to teaching about marriage (not least through marriage preparation classes), the Church can model good and healthy marriages. We all know that marriages are under increasing pressure today and the Church can play a vital role in supporting married couples. As individuals we can all speak up in support of marriage as well as other important issues. One example of action we can take is through politics. There has never been a better time to be politically involved and the democratic opportunities within each of the mainstream political parties are enormous. Keir Hardie became the first Independent Labour MP in 1892, and went on to become the first leader of the Labour Party. It was his Christian faith that drew him into politics. Hardie said: "The impetus which drove me first of all into the Labour movement and the inspiration which carried me on in it, has been derived more from the teaching of Jesus of Nazareth than all the other sources combined." Similarly, William Wilberforce changed history with his parliamentary battle against the evil slave trade. Perhaps it’s time for us all to respond to the challenge that Hardie and Wilberforce have left us, roll up our sleeves and join political parties. It is tempting for Christians to look to politicians to cure the ills in society, and they have an important part to play, but the primary responsibility to teach and live out the "good life" lies with the Church. © Christian Family Network is run by CPO, supported by Care for the Family, Marriage Resource, Positive Parenting, Care, Women Alive, Christian Herald and many others.