Adoptive parents will benefit from new funding worth £19.3 million to access the best possible care for children who have often been victims of abuse and neglect.

The Adoption Support Fund will pay for therapeutic services - such as cognitive therapy, play and music therapy, and intensive family support - helping children recover from their previous experiences, bond with their adoptive families and settle into their new lives.

Local authorities have a legal duty to assess the type of support new parents will need to help their adopted child yet recent research conducted by Adoption UK shows many parents remain unaware of their rights and entitlements.

Eighty-one per cent of adoptive parents said their support needs were identified, yet only 56% were given the support they needed; and over half of the adoptive parents surveyed needed therapeutic services, but only 28% of adoptive parents reported that their adoption agency provided this.

Following the trial - which will commence shortly - the Adoption Support Fund will be rolled out nationally in 2015, giving providers the confidence to expand and offering adoptive families much greater choice and access to the therapeutic services they need.

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