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Since Friday 11 January, would-be adopters can access a new map showing the areas with the highest number of children waiting for new homes.

The map shows the number of children in each local authority waiting for a family to adopt them, showing potential adopters how many children are waiting in their area and elsewhere.

A new telephone information and advice service staffed by adopters will also open today, contactable on 0300 222 0022, to help potential adopters navigate the process of adopting a child.

Edward Timpson, Children and Families Minster, said:

Today we are providing potential adopters with the tools they need to find children who need adopting right across the country. Together the telephone ‘infoline' and the new ‘Hotspots' map will arm would-be adopters with the information they need to approach any local area.
"We know many potential adopters out there can provide children with loving, stable homes but simply don't know where to start. These new tools will give many more people support in taking the first steps to adopting a child and giving them the chance to succeed in life.

The information line, operated by First4Adoption, is funded by the Department for Education and will allow all prospective adopters to access:

• an authoritative source of advice and information on adoption in one place;
• signposting to suitable adoption agencies – including local authority and Voluntary Adoption Agencies; and
• information about the entitlements to adoption support that adoptive parents have.

Today's announcements are part of the package of reforms set out by the Prime Minister last year to overhaul the adoption system to make it swifter, more effective and robust. It will include ways to give adopters a more active role in the process and the same rights to pay and leave as birth parents.

The National Gateway for Adoption website, launching later this year, will provide an online service for the first stages of the adoption process, making it easy for those thinking about adoption to find out how to decide whether they're up for the challenge and joy of being an adoptive parent.

Notes to editors

1. First4Adoption can be contacted on 0300 222 0022, Monday – Friday 10:00 – 18:00.

2. The map is available from the Department's website.

3. The data is taken from the adoption scorecards. 

4. The Department's Action Plan for Adoption. 

5. The infoline is operated by a consortium of Coram, Coram Children's Legal Centre and Adoption UK. Coram Children's Legal Centre is the largest provider of free legal support for children in the UK and is a registered charity. It is independent of any agency. Coram is an adoption agency and a partner to local authority delivery of adoption services. Adoption UK is the only national self-help charity run by and for adoptive parents and foster carers, offering support before, during and after adoption.