Adoption in decline as more children go into care

Only 60 babies were adopted in Britain last year despite an increasing number of children being taken into care, official figures show.

While thousands of children are being looked after in care homes or foster families, the number being adopted continues to decline, in a trend described by campaigners as "deeply worrying".

The Department for Education figures show 3,050 looked-after children were adopted in the year ending March 2011 -- a drop of five percent from the previous year.

Only 60 infants under the age of one were adopted, compared to 70 children in 2010 and 150 in 2007.

At the same time, the number of under-16s in care rose by two percent in the last year, to 65,520 -- the highest level since 1987 -- with the majority of these in a foster placement.

Children are currently waiting an average of two years and seven months to be adopted.

Anne Marie Carrie, chief executive of children's charity Barnardo's said the situation was "a tragedy" and called for decision making around adoptions to be sped up.

"An increase in care numbers, coupled with another consecutive drop in adoption rates and of children being placed for adoption is deeply worrying," she said.

"Everyone involved in the care system needs to be braver and should act fast to place children with a new permanent family when it is clear that even with support the child?s birth family is not going to change and cannot cope."

Overall the number of children placed for adoption fell to 2,450 in the year to March, down two percent from 2010 and 10 percent from 2007.

The figures also show the proportion of care leavers not in education, employment or training increased from 32 percent in 2010 to 33 percent in 2011.

Children?s Minister Tim Loughton also described the trend as "worrying".

"It?s worrying that the number of adoptions has continued to decline, and it?s simply not good enough for vulnerable children to be waiting well over two years to be adopted," he said.

"It?s also concerning that for those children leaving care, around a third are not in education, employment or training ? much higher than the general population."

He said the government's new adoption adviser, Martin Narey, is working to reduce delays in the system and help local authorities improve their practice.

The Family Justice Review, due later in the year, will also aim to tackle delays and bureaucracy in family courts.