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Post-adoption contact

“…70 Some adoptive parents compensate for this in creative ways by arranging family routines in a way that will maximise points of natural connection in siblings' day-to-day lives, for example through enrolment in the same sports or dance clubs, or through sleepovers, shared holidays and family celebrations. 71 Aside from the logistical challenges of arranging activities with large sibling networks, contact can pose some emotional difficulties for adopted children and their families. Siblings may have shared histories of maltreatment or adversity and supporting contact may require a therapeutic element to minimise distress and enable meaningful positive sibling interaction.…”

“…115 This is less likely to be the case if birth relatives contest the role and status of adoptive parents or if their circumstances and unresolved difficulties pose a perceived risk to the child. 116 Neil noted that when adoptive parents were more communicatively open and their child's birth relative was accepting of the placement, this mutually supportive combination of characteristics led to sustained face-to-face contact that was more satisfying and beneficial. 117 Contact was more difficult or stalled completely when lower adoptive parent openness was combined with less acceptance by birth parents.…”