The Child Minder

By Jonathan Gornall

Another week, another broadside in the propaganda war being waged against the nation’s child-protection system by the right wing press.

And, as in any war, truth can be the first casualty.

The term special guardianship, with its connotations of guardian angels, has a certain fairytale ring to it that adoption has never had. It sounds just that little bit sweeter and seems to have a win-win appeal for all of the parties involved.

The furore over claims social workers are removing children from their birth parents and placing them for adoption in order to meet government targets continues. On Sunday the BBC Radio 4 will air a programme featuring interviews with four parents who say their children were wrongly removed. John Hemming, the liberal democrat MP who first made these claims, will be pleased his controversial pet subject is still generating public debate. So am I.

Last night I caught the end of the BBC's new “The One Show” just as Adoption UK director Jonathan Pearce was being asked whether it was ever appropriate to tell someone they were too fat to adopt.

“The interests of the child and particularly the most vulnerable children must come first.” That’s what Tony Blair said yesterday, when announcing that Catholic adoption agencies will not get an opt-out from placing children with gay couples under new anti-discrimation legislation.

Yet in the intense debate over gay adoption, there has been very little focus on the interests of vulnerable children waiting for a permanent home - but plenty on Catholics wrestling with their consciences.

One much-quoted point in the media is that Catholic adoption agencies specialise in hard-to-place children. Yes, they do, but so do most adoption agencies. It is hard to find one that doesn’t boast of such expertise.