from Christian Today (Photo: Unsplash)
The number of parentless children waiting for adoption has soared in recent years thanks in large part to couples turning to IVF, surrogacy and egg freezing, a new study has suggested.
The study, conducted by children’s charity Coram and Adoption England, found that the gap between the number of children in need of adoption and the number of approved adopters has increased 52 per cent in the last five years.
The situation is projected to worsen, with the gap expected to reach 87 per cent by 2030. At present, England alone has 1,600 children waiting for an approved adopter.
Carol Homden, the Chief Executive of Coram, said that couples with fertility problems were increasingly undergoing more rounds of IVF before even considering adoption.
“We need to make sure adoption is considered a viable option for forming your family, as surrogacy is very legally complex and uncertain, while IVF, even now, does not always work, and places many emotional and physical demands”.
Economic as well as cultural factors are also at play in the system.