Parents ‘broken’ by withdrawal of adoption payments say funding is a ‘postcode lottery’
Michelle Haigh can still remember the first time she saw a picture of her adopted son, Thomas.
Unable to have children, she and her husband Gary had decided they’d like to begin a family of their own, contacting a regional adoption agency nearby, One Adoption South Yorkshire.
She said: “We got profiles sent to us, where you read the background story, and then Thomas’s profile came through our letterbox.
Gary Haigh with two of the three brothers they have adopted
“I knew he was my boy, as soon as I saw him and I instantly said I wanted to proceed.”
Nine years on, the couple have not only taken in Thomas, who is now 10, but also his siblings, Lucas, 8, and Freddie, 5.
However, Michelle says their family unit has been “broken,” by a decision to withdraw their financial support, known as the adoption allowance.
The Haighs claim that, despite encouraging them to keep the boys together and promising to support each boy until they turned eighteen, they received little notice from their local authority before the money was stopped.
Sarah Johal, the National Strategic Adoption Lead for England, said their story is one of a growing number of similar cases, with local authorities, who all set their own adoption allowance policies, trying to save money in a difficult financial climate.
Ms Johal wants ministers to standardise the financial support given to adoptive parents, adding that the current guidance needs to be changed.
Gary Haigh and his adopted sons playing football
She said: “I think essentially, it is left to each local authority to use their discretion as to how they apply the regulations and guidance.
“It’s quite outdated and it doesn’t necessarily reflect the reality of the children and families we currently support.”
As it stands, adoption allowance is a blend of legislation and statutory guidance, set by each local authority at their discretion.
It is designed to encourage people to take in children who might otherwise not be adopted due to the extra costs of looking after them and is usually paid weekly or monthly.
The amount paid is often calculated based on the adoptive parents’ incomes.
Michelle says officials gave them little notice before the money was stopped
Ms Johal is also calling on the government to create a uniform means testing tool, completely waiving the financial assessment in certain cases involving children that wait longer for adoption such as sibling groups, children with complex additional needs and those from ethnic minority groups.
“It feels that if we can get more guidance around how local authorities use that discretion and in what circumstances and get more agreement around that across the country, it would be really helpful.”
The postcode lottery she described is being felt by the Haighs.
Their funding, which was originally around £631 a fortnight has been partially restored, but they are still feeling the financial strain.
The family’s adoption funding has been withdrawn
The pair, who live in West Yorkshire, have been forced to take out loans, cut back on essentials and put their home on the market, changes that have affected them and the children.
Gary Haigh said: “We try and keep them out of it, so they’re not aware of it, but they see arguments all the time from us about money.
“They’re asking: ‘Why can’t we go on holiday when our friends go on holiday, why can’t we go to the park, why haven’t we got this or that?'”
His wife said: “I’m constantly feeling like I’m letting them down because I’m worried about money.
“Every time we get a payment, we’re now feeling insecure at the fact that the next payment might not arrive in the next fortnight. I’m so stressed out that I’m not being the best mum I can be for my boys.
The pressure has left them seeking mental health support for Thomas who worries the house being for sale means he will be sent to another family.
His brother Lucas has cerebral palsy, meaning he already needs additional support.
A recent survey by the charity Adoption UK found adoptive parents are struggling with the cost of living crisis and most have not received more support.
It revealed 26% of adoptive parents said they were in receipt of adoption allowances or other financial support from their agency.
Of these, only 6% said there had been an increase in the amount paid during 2022.
Alison Woodhead, Adoption UK’s Director of Public Affairs and Communications, also called for more consistent guidance on the financial support available.
She said: “For one-off payments and ongoing allowances, we need clear national standards defining under which circumstances these will be awarded, and how much is appropriate in various cases.
“The current situation is vague, subject to too much interpretation and is not centred around the needs of the child.”
Doncaster Council said: “The current guidance was reviewed in early 2022. It outlines that an allowance can be paid to the adoptive parent(s) for sibling groups for every subsequent sibling placed with the family.
“Every adoptive family can request a Statutory Assessment Support Need from their local Regional Adoption Agency… this looks at a range of needs from mental health, and the need for therapeutic services, to additional support during the child’s education.”
It has become almost impossible to book a driving test on the government website due to bots on the booking system, driving instructors have told Sky News.
The only official way to book a practical car driving test is through the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) website.
New test slots are released by the DVSA at 6am every Monday, but “no matter how fast I am, there’s nothing available”, said Aman Sanghera, a driving instructor based in west London.
Driving instructor Aman Sanghera wants ‘stronger oversight and regulation’ from the DVSA
When asked about the cause, she said: “All of the tests are taken by bots, they are definitely taking over the booking system.”
In this context, bots are automated software designed to mimic human behaviour and programmed to carry out actions like searching for and reserving driving test appointments on the official government website much faster than humans can.
Individuals and companies use bots to block-book driving test slots and then resell them at a profit, which is not illegal, although it is a violation of the DVSA’s terms of use.
Recent data shows the DVSA has closed over 800 business accounts for misuse of its booking service in the past two years.
It takes five months on average for a test in England – unless you pay a middleman
Ms Sanghera, who has been in the trade for over a decade, said the usage of bots started a few months ago “but is now getting out of hand”.
She said: “I’ve actually heard about driving instructors being approached by certain individuals to then take on their IDs to log in and to run this scam.
“I struggle to actually book a test for my students, which means that by the time my students are logging in, they’ve got no chance.”
Driving instructors can book driving tests on behalf of their pupils using a dedicated service, allowing them to bypass the general queue and potentially secure test slots more efficiently.
As a result, Ms Sanghera said students are “forced to go to third-party sites” to secure “the same test dates which are then available later on during the day at a premium rate of like £200-£300”.
She added: “Given that the DVSA is a government-regulated body, one would expect a more robust and fair system to ensure affordability and accessibility for all candidates.”
The long waiting lists and high demand for tests has led some to take advantage
The standard test fee is £62, offered by the DVSA, which is responsible for carrying out driving tests in Great Britain.
The biggest concern for the driving instructors Sky News has spoken to, including Ms Sanghera, is “the fact that students are being exploited”.
When Ahmed Ali struggled to find a practical test on the DVSA website, he turned to third-party sites – a decision he now regrets.
Ahmed Ali started looking for a test two years ago
He said: “I’ve spent about £650 on driving tests, and I’ve sat zero tests. I’ve given all this money to third-parties that look for cancellations so they could try to get you a faster test.”
But the 20-year-old said that despite making the payments, he “didn’t hear back from them again”, which is illegal.
“When you lose all that money, you get to a point where you can’t really afford to find another driving test,” he said.
“I just feel very frustrated because I’ve spent all this money, all this time into driving, and I haven’t sat a single driving test.”
Read more from Sky News:
Russell Brand charged with rape and sexual assault
Last UK blast furnaces days from closure
Ship owner files legal claim after North Sea crash
The DVSA urged applicants to only book tests via the official Gov.uk website and told Sky News it “deploys enhanced bot protection to help stop automated systems from buying up tests unfairly”.
“These applications, however, are constantly evolving and changing, and DVSA’s work on this is ongoing,” it said.
From Tuesday, the DVSA will require learner drivers to provide 10 full working days’ notice to change or cancel their car driving test without losing the test fee, up from the current three days.
Also part of the DVSA’s crackdown to reduce waiting times is a consultation expected to launch in spring 2025 “to streamline the driving test booking process” and “tighten terms and conditions”.
The last blast furnaces left operating in Britain could see their fate sealed within days, after their Chinese owners took the decision to cut off the crucial supply of ingredients keeping them running.
Jingye, the owner of British Steel in Scunthorpe, has, according to union representatives, cancelled future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the furnaces running.
The upshot is that they may have to close next month – even sooner than the earliest date suggested for its closure.
Read more: Thousands of jobs at risk as British Steel consults unions over closure
The fate of the blast furnaces – the last two domestic sources of virgin steel, made from iron ore rather than recycled – is likely to be determined in a matter of days, with the Department for Business and Trade now actively pondering nationalisation.
The upshot is that even as Britain contends with a trade war across the Atlantic, it is now working against the clock to secure the future of steelmaking at Scunthorpe.
The talks between the government and Jingye broke down last week after the Chinese company, which bought British Steel out of receivership in 2020, rejected a £500m offer of public money to replace the existing furnaces with electric arc furnaces.
The sum is the same one it offered to Tata Steel, which has shut down the other remaining UK blast furnaces in Port Talbot and is planning to build electric furnaces – which have far lower carbon emissions.
These steel workers could soon be out of work
However, the owners argue that the amount is too little to justify extra investment at Scunthorpe, and said last week they were now consulting on the date of shutting both the blast furnaces and the attached steelworks.
Since British Steel is the main provider of steel rails to Network Rail – as well as other construction steels available from only a few sites in the world – the closure would leave the UK more reliant on imports for critical infrastructure sites.
However, since the site belongs to its Chinese owners, a decision to nationalise the site would involve radical steps government officials are wary of taking.
They also fear leaving taxpayers exposed to a potentially loss-making business for the long run.
The dilemma has been heightened by the sharp turn in geopolitical sentiment following Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
The incipient trade war and threatened cut in American support to Europe have sparked fresh calls for countries to act urgently to secure their own supplies of critical materials, especially those used for defence and infrastructure.
Read more:
Car manufacturers fined £461m for collusion
There were no winners from Trump’s tariff gameshow
Gareth Stace, head of UK Steel, the industry lobby group, said: “Talks seem to have broken down between government and British Steel.
“My advice to government is: please, Jonathan Reynolds, Business Secretary, get back round that negotiating table, thrash out a deal, and if a deal can’t be found in the next few days, then I fear for the very future of the sector, but also here for Scunthorpe steelworks.”
British Steel declined to comment.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports12 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business3 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway