‘It's All a Bit Pantomime’: An Exploratory Study of Gay and Lesbian Adopters and Foster-Carers in England and Wales

Abstract

This paper reports the findings of a study identifying the experiences of gay and lesbian adopters and foster carers in England and Wales. Qualitative interviews were conducted with twenty-four lesbians and gay men who had undertaken any part of the adoption or fostering application process since the implementation of the Adoption and Children Act of 2002. The study suggests that whilst increasing numbers of lesbians and gay men are accessing fostering and adoption services, gender and sexuality are still problematic areas of contestation within this context. As a result, participants were required to present themselves to assessing professionals in distinct ways, in order to be recognised as 'legitimate' in their applications. Using the concept of 'displaying family', this paper illustrates the ways in which sexuality can complicate such displays, as they fall outside prevailing cultural and familial scripts. However, taking an intersectional perspective, this paper will also demonstrate that this was dependent upon the complex subjectivities of each participant. Finally, it will analyse what this means for the assessment of gay and lesbian adopters and foster carers, and how social workers can respond to both individual identities and diverse family forms.

Families beyond boundaries: Conceptualising kinship in gay and lesbian adoption and fostering

“…Participants observed that professional discourses around family, kinship, or parenting were sometimes implicitly heteronuclear in their construction. As illustrated within previous findings (Wood, 2016), this meant that gay and lesbian applicants often disrupted the heterogendered underpinnings of adoption or fostering processes.…”

“…Similarly, participants' kinship networks were often viewed through a biogenetic lens, sometimes at the expense of families of choice. Narratives demonstrate that the recognition of “family” remains highly dependent upon wider dominant cultural meanings and that those experiences situated beyond heteronormative models of parenthood may be rendered invisible within such processes (Hicks, ; Finch, ; Wood, ).…”

“…In the context of gay and lesbian families, this is imperative, in order to counteract gendered or heteronormative interpretations. The work of Finch () develops this further through the concept of “display” and, as highlighted within wider literature (Jones & Hackett, ; Saltiel, ; Wood, ), it offers a critical lens for deconstructing why certain relationships are seen as familial, and others are not. Finch (: 67) contends that family practices need to be distinctly conveyed, as the extent to which they are recognised is dependent upon “wider systems of meaning.”…”

“…Hicks (, ) suggests that adoption and fostering social work is therefore not a neutral activity but one which produces certain knowledge claims about a range of subjects, including sexuality, gender, and family. More recently, Wood () identifies that gay and lesbian applicants are required to negotiate their presentations to services in relation to a range of “normative” constructs, including relationship status, age, class, and many more. This forms part of a broader, complex task of displaying family to wider assessing agencies, in order to be recognised as “legitimate” (Finch, ).…”

What is known about the LGBTQ perspective in child welfare services? A scoping review protocol

“…Increasing numbers of lesbian women and gay men are accessing fostering and adoption services. Kate Wood13 points out that gender and sexuality are still problematic areas of contestation within this context. LGBTQ foster parents and foster-to-adopt families have also received relatively little attention in the published literature.…”