The recommendation is to wait at least 6 month in order to overcome grief and emotional upset as best as possible. We believe that you can start the process earlier than that and will consider applications from you when you think you are ready. Just keep in mind that adoption will need your complete focus, so don't rush it, but feel free to get in contact earlier than 6 months after you had an unsuccessful IVF or a miscarriage.

We do not charge any fees to adopters and nor will the local authorities. So costs for the adoption process will be limited to out of pocket expenses such as travel costs, the cost of a DBS check and the fee your GP will charge for a medical examination.

The assessment processes undertaken by a independent adoption agency and by a local authority are governed by the same laws and guidelines and will contain the same elements. The experience of going through the assessment process will vary depending on the culture and values of the adoption agency you go through. At Jigsaw, a number of team members have been through the process themselves as we understand that it is a very demanding experience for adopters. We are therefore committed to supporting you through the process and always treating you with respect. 

When you are approved and reach the matching stage, the main difference is that a local authority tend to prefer to match you with a child looked after by itself. As an independent adoption agency, we are not tied to any local authority and can look for a suitable child all over England and Wales. 

Local authorities typically expect adoptive families to maintain contact with the birth parents. Contact varies but it is likely to include indirect, annual letterbox contact with some members of the birth family. We will discuss this further with you during the process.

If brothers and sisters are placed separately for adoption, their adopters usually want to keep the link alive by meeting up occasionally.