Adoptg a child as a sgle gay man - St Andrew's Children's Society

Contents:

• Q&A: ADOPTN FOR THE SGLE GAY MAN
• SGLE GAY MAN, 37, ADOPTS HIS SIXTH CHILD WH SPECIAL NEEDS AFTER STARTG HIS FAY AGED 21 AND SAYS BEG A PARENT IS 'SO MUCH MORE THAN BLOGY'
• ADOPTG A CHILD AS A SGLE GAY MAN
• MALNOURISHED CHILD ADOPTED BY A SGLE GAY MAN IS NOW AN OLYMPIC CHAMPN INSPIRG OTHERS

Q&A: ADOPTN FOR THE SGLE GAY MAN

As part of LGBT Adoptn and Fosterg Week, talks to one gay man about his experienc of adoptg as a sgle parent. Gay men and women across the UK are beg ved to attend an event the untry’s first-ever LGBT Adoptn and Fosterg Week which is currently nng natnally.

As a sgle gay man my early 40s, knowg no lbians who wished to have a blogil child wh me but still yearng to be a parent, I was enuraged by gay male iends who had adopted before me. A chance meetg wh an old iend of me (a gay man who had adopted three boys wh his partner) led to me llg Fai That Last and I had a home vis a fortnight later. Heterosexual iends and lleagu who have chosen to rema childls are sometim nfed as to why a gay man or lbian would want to adopt.

Likewise, younger gay men often say they uldn’t vote that much of themselv to a child permanently, for ever. I have been told by one or two gay men that they uldn’t nsir datg a gay parent as they eher don’t like children all that much, or are not open to the ncept of sharg. A selfls sgle man has recently adopted his sixth child after votg his life to helpg children dad, Ben Carpenter, 37, om Hudrsfield, has recently adopted his sixth child after ditg his life to helpg children, havg adopted his first child at the age of beme the youngt gay man to adopt when he took on his first child at the young at of 21, and has sce adopted another five children wh special needs over the years after settg out on a missn to help the most vulnerable of April last year, Ben brought home his sixth adopted child, Louis, aged two, after a perd of grievg followg the tragic ath of his fifth child,, now 14-years-old, has tism and was Ben's first child.

SGLE GAY MAN, 37, ADOPTS HIS SIXTH CHILD WH SPECIAL NEEDS AFTER STARTG HIS FAY AGED 21 AND SAYS BEG A PARENT IS 'SO MUCH MORE THAN BLOGY'

Ben, who is sgle and gay, said he wanted to dited his life to help vulnerable childrenBen's fifth adoptive child was Teddy, who sadly passed away November 2019. Sce then, the number of children adopted by lbian, gay, bi or trans parents has grown year on year. Last year, more than one five children adopted through Coram were placed wh lovg lbian, gay, bi or trans adopters.

ADOPTG A CHILD AS A SGLE GAY MAN

Dpe the law, some people still thk beg gay means you n’t be a parent. This was particularly te of gay dads, many of whom thought their sexual inty was patible wh parenthood – spe havg always felt paternal. Rearch published by CoramBAAF actually suggts that gay fathers show greater levels of teractn wh their child than other typ of parents.

MALNOURISHED CHILD ADOPTED BY A SGLE GAY MAN IS NOW AN OLYMPIC CHAMPN INSPIRG OTHERS

The CoramBAAF Bookshop has a range of books for parents and children themed around adoptn and fosterg, wh a specific topic area for lbian and gay fai. We know people fe themselv different ways and we wele applitns om people who are lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, or other.