Adoptions up nearly 10 per cent in just one year
Adoptions are up 9.8 per cent in just one year according to the Office for National Statistics (release). The number rose from 4,740 in 2011 to 5,206 in 2012.
Outside of marriage adoptions were up from 82 per cent to 85 per cent in the same period, with most of those adopted in 2012 (63 per cent) aged between one and four years old.
It remains excruciatingly difficult for willing parents to adopt in the UK, as parents are often treated with suspicion by adoption agencies, rather than welcomed as caregivers.