Councillor Blair Crawford said that the Council “missed a trick” in not capitalising on LGBT adoption week in their search for 50 new foster carers.
The Council announced on 7 March that they were to start the search for new carers, 3 days before the event to promote fostering among the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities ended.
Cllr Crawford said: “Events like that where you can get people who would not normally think of fostering or adopting is just the place to go.
“We need to do some positive discrimination and make sure that everybody knows that nobody is excluded from fostering.”
The council, in its press release, encouraged same sex couples to get involved with the adoption process yet failed to utilise the event to their advantage.
Councils across Dorset joined with the LGBT fostering event but Bournemouth Council failed to get on board.
“There is a view among some people that for a number of reasons, not just their sexual orientation, that would stop them from considering it, and we want to get over that.” said Cllr Crawford.
Nick King, a gay father of two adopted children speaking to The Breaker previously said: ““I think awareness of how to go through adoption is good amongst those in the LGBT community who are interested in adoption and having children. My experience is that’s a minority of the LGBT community.”
Adoption has been a legal right of same-sex couples since 2005 and according to the latest statistics 3% of adoptions are made by same-sex couples.
Go to the New Family Social website for more information on LGBT adoption.
Any LGBT couples or individuals or anyone interested in fostering in Bournemouth is urged to contact Bournemouth Borough Council’s Fostering and Placements Team on 0800 009 3084 or e-mail bournemouthfostering@ontracagency.com.
Main image credit: Wikimedia Commons
