Adoption in Australia: Past, present and considerations for the future

Abstract

Australia has a troubled history with adoption, arising from the legacy of forced and “closed” adoptions and the systematic removal of Indigenous children, known as the “Stolen Generations”. Evidence from national inquiries and research shows that closed and forced adoptions denied children connection to their roots and had detrimental effects on children, birth parents, and their family and community networks. In recent years, the steady increase in the number of children in out-of-home care has prompted reconsideration of adoption, emphasising its purpose as a service to the child. Policy and legislative reforms to out-of-home care across Australian jurisdictions are promoting legal permanency for children who would otherwise grow up in care. Yet, issues continue to be debated about the “best interests of the child”, and the trade-offs of adoption compared with alternative legal orders, and the ethics of dispensing with birth parents’ consent. The adoption of Indigenous children remains very contentious.