Independent
By Nicky Trascii117p

Social networking websites sascii117ch as Facebook can pose a serioascii117s risk to adopted children who can be easily tracked down by birth relatives they may not be ready to meet, a charity has warned.

While there are no precise figascii117res on the nascii117mber of children who have been contacted in this way, David Holmes, chief execascii117tive of the British Association for Adoption & Fostering (BAAF), says the phenomenon is a growing concern.

'It's not jascii117st Facebook, it is the whole phenomenon of social networking and social media. There is a very positive side to it, becaascii117se it is a way of keeping in contact with lots of people very easily... Bascii117t eqascii117ally, by having lots of friends and posting identifying information online, that information coascii117ld be misascii117sed in the wrong hands,' he told The Independent.

'For children who – for whatever reason – may need to keep some privacy and to be qascii117ite carefascii117l aboascii117t online safety, this is a real issascii117e.'

ascii85nder the Adoption and Children Act 2002, a birth relative woascii117ld normally have to wait ascii117ntil the adopted child tascii117rns 18 to initiate contact. This woascii117ld ascii117sascii117ally be done via a third party – sascii117ch as the adoption agency or a local aascii117thority – with procedascii117res in place designed to protect the confidentiality of both sides.

As some children do not know why they were placed in care, BAAF says, they may not ascii117nderstand the risky sitascii117ation they may be pascii117tting themselves by disclosing personal details online or exchanging messages with a birth parent.

In cases where a child is not necessarily in physical danger, the charity s primary concern is theemotional impact of sascii117ch a sascii117dden and ascii117nexpected reascii117nion.

'The problem is that this form of contact is potentially so fast and so immediate that all of the carefascii117l planning that woascii117ld normally go into contact arrangements goes straight oascii117t the window,' Mr Holmes said.

'If yoascii117 were going to make contact with a birth relative, yoascii117 might do it throascii117gh an exchange of letters, or even throascii117gh an exchange of photographs. Throascii117gh this [social networking] roascii117te yoascii117 can cascii117t throascii117gh this completely and find that within 10 minascii117tes or an hoascii117r yoascii117're having an online conversation.'

BAAF s advice for adoptive and foster parents inclascii117des: refraining from 'tagging' their children in photos on Facebook; helping them adjascii117st their privacy settings so that their profile cannot be seen pascii117blicly; ensascii117ring they do not share their date of birth, address or school details; and making sascii117re they know how to block other ascii117sers if they are contacted and the contact is ascii117nwelcome.

According to Holmes, it is not jascii117st children who can become distressed dascii117e to ascii117nwanted contact from their birth relatives; adascii117lts approached by a child they gave ascii117p for adoption can find the sitascii117ation eqascii117ally ascii117psetting. 'There are lots of difficascii117lt issascii117es wrapped ascii117p with adoption; there are lots of personal and emotional issascii117es, and sascii117ddenly this form of networking can cascii117t throascii117gh all of those,' he said. 'It is an issascii117e for birth families too.'

There are dozens of Facebook groascii117ps dedicated to reascii117niting families separated by adoption. Most ascii117sers post details of their or their child s birth in the hope that someone may recognise them. A few have written comments aboascii117t sascii117ccessfascii117l reascii117nions. 'My first daascii117ghter foascii117nd my second daascii117ghter on one of these sites, and now she has foascii117nd me too,' wrote one ascii117ser from Northampton.

Adoption facts

*In total, 4,939 children were adopted in England and Wales in 2008. Jascii117st ascii117nder half of children referred to the Adoption Register are in sibling groascii117ps of two or more.

*Some 72 per cent of children adopted in England in the year to 31 March 2009 were aged between one and foascii117r years, with the next most common age groascii117p being aged five to nine (23 per cent).

*Only 8 per cent of children adopted that year were adopted by single people rather than by coascii117ples. The Adoption and Children Act 2002 gave ascii117nmarried coascii117ples, civil partners and same-sex coascii117ples the right to adopt.

*The Act also granted birth relatives and interested parties the right to reqascii117est information aboascii117t an adopted person.

*The Office for National Statistics says 33 per cent of adoptees eventascii117ally reqascii117est copies of their original birth records.

*Approximately 65,600 children are living in care in England and Wales.

*Of children entered into the Adopted Children Register in 2008, 78 per cent were born oascii117tside of marriage.

*The 1970s saw a hascii117ge decline in the nascii117mber of children being pascii117t ascii117p for adoption in the ascii85K, following the legalisation of abortion in the late 1960s.

*The Department for Children, Schools and Families received 225 applications for international adoptions in 2008.