The thought of opening your world to more than one child at the same time and meeting their needs, can be daunting. Despite this, adopting siblings and helping them stay together can be extremely rewarding, not to mention beneficial to the children who share a unique and special bond with each other.

With siblings often waiting longer to be adopted, we encourage our prospective adopters to think about whether they could provide a loving home to more than one child, with thorough preparation and ongoing support available to help them on their way and whenever they need it.

Below, a number of our fantastic LGBTQ+ adopters share their experience of adopting siblings:

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Jamie and his husband adopted twin boys with ARC’s help.

"My Husband and I chose to adopt with ARC as we’d seen them at our local gay pride event.

We were always concerned about feeling like ‘the same-sex couple’ of the group throughout the training but we were never singled out or made to feel like a minority in any way. It’s safe to say we were treated just like everyone else which was a breath of fresh air.

We went on to adopt the most amazing twin boys. The first couple of months after placement were challenging but we were supported by the amazing guys at ARC more than we could have imagined. The boys are now legally ours but we still receive regular emails from ARC offering post adoption training and I know if we needed to reach out to them for any reason, they’d be there to help us any way we needed."

 

Same sex couple, Jordan and Andrew adopted two sisters through ARC.

"When we approached ARC we were keen to adopt two children; siblings so that they could remain together and to complete our family.

We were closely supported by our social worker and the wider ARC team, and also met same sex adopters who had been through the process with ARC which was very reassuring, especially when hearing the level of support that was available. We don’t access any formal support at present, but do continue to attend ARC’s social events which we feel is a great time to check in with the team and also to meet adopters that we met during our training.

Our two girls have two older sisters who have also been adopted. Although they don’t live together, they do come together often, usually every school holiday. Seeing the girls all come together is wonderful and very lively; it is great to see them flourish, watch their relationships progress and also to hear them talk about their connections, their birth family, and their experiences which will last a lifetime!

We would encourage others to adopt siblings and to embrace the wider sibling group; we adopted two girls but our family has grown by many."

 

L adopted two brothers with her wife through ARC.

"In 2020 me and my wife adopted two boys - siblings aged 5 and 6. The reason for adopting two brothers is that we believed that if they didn’t want to talk to us about their feelings, they would always have each other. Also, to keep their family together as much as we could. They are amazing and we wouldn’t be without them. I would recommend anyone to take on siblings and grow your family.

Did you know that any child over the age of 4 is classed as undesirable in adopting children? These little people deserve love, a family and a forever home. It’s amazing the firsts you go through as a family, no matter the age. The first time they call you Mam or tell you they love you…. means the world.

As for ARC, you won’t find better support and amazing people to go on your journey with you. With a wealth of knowledge and companionship they are by your side whenever you need them. Our social worker has become more like a family friend and I hope she is in our lives always. We have needed her support sometimes late at night and she has been there to talk through things no matter what.  Our lives are full now because of ARC. If you’re thinking of adopting siblings go for it!! The good times out way the hard times at the start. Thank you ARC for everything ❤️."

 

Jonluke and his husband adopted a brother and sister through ARC.

"My husband and I adopted two siblings a few years ago through ARC Adoption and as a gay couple we had a very positive experience.

The fact that we were a same-sex couple was a none-issue and was even seen as a positive in the assessment process with ARC. We felt completely supported through the whole process and our wonderful social worker was very much on our side; by the end of the process Ayesha felt like a family friend and we still keep in touch.

ARCs door is always open, and we’ve contacted them a few times since the adoption seeking support or advice, and they’ve never let us down. Thanks to ARC, we’re now a happy family of four: two dads, a little boy and a little girl and we will be forever grateful to the whole team for guiding us through the process.

We would thoroughly recommend ARC Adoption to other LGBTQIA+ people thinking of adoption."

 

Gary and Ross adopted two children through ARC.

"When we were originally thinking about adopting and starting a family, I was talking about it at work and a friend there told me about ARC.  They had previously adopted through them and had nothing but good things to say. 

We then looked into them further online and through Facebook, and we had also seen them at Northern Pride that year.  We saw that they had a mix of open days you could go to, including weekends and evenings, which worked really well for us as it meant we didn’t have to worry about arranging time off work to attend.  When we turned up, we were quite nervous as we didn’t know what to expect but all the staff were really welcoming and friendly, as they were all the way through the adoption process.  Being a same sex couple, we weren’t sure if that would be an issue when looking to adopt.  But this wasn’t the case and ARC went on to tell us about other same sex couples they’d already helped to adopt. 

During one of our training days, they invited a same sex couple who had previously adopted through ARC to talk to our group and share their experience with us, which I know helped to reassure us about our adoption journey and answered some of the questions we had.  They had adopted two children, we were also hoping to do the same, as we felt if we had the opportunity to keep siblings together, we would, and keep that bond they have in place. 

We were lucky enough to be matched to the best two siblings we could ever wish for and knowing they’ll grow up together is a great feeling.  Even now over 2 years later ARC are still in contact with us offering any support & training if needed."

 

Richard and David adopted three children with ARC back in 2018.

"Myself and my husband David adopted our three lovely boys through ARC four years ago. It was the best decision we ever made.

We originally first started our adoption journey two years previous to joining ARC with our local authority, but that didn’t work out, and we walked away thinking our family would never be.  Then 2 years later we found ARC, who have supported us since day one. Within a few weeks of our first call, we had a one to one meeting and it was amazing. ARC have been very supportive throughout our journey, even now nearly 4 years on we are still in regular contact, with help and support whenever we need it.

LGBTQ+ if you want the best use ARC."

 

Josh and Malcolm adopted their son and daughter through ARC.

"It has been over 6 years since we brought home our daughter and son (a sibling pair) with ARC as our adoption agency.  The biggest piece of advice we had was ‘find a social worker you trust and get on with,’  and we had a fantastic relationship with Jill and the rest of the team at ARC.  They were informed, organised and pragmatic, and were excellent in explaining the process and journey to us as well as the pitfalls and positives.

We've heard so many other experiences of other adopters and we were so lucky to have had such a supportive agency.  Post adoption support has been brilliant - they have stuck by us through all the trials and tribulations of being adoptive parents, and are always at the other end of the phone and wanting to help.

Being a same sex couple has never been an issue with ARC they have always treated us with support and understanding."

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Big thanks to all of the adopters who kindly allowed us to share their stories. 

If you are thinking about adoption and would like to find out more, simply click here and complete our enquiry form, and a member of our experienced team will contact you at a convenient time.