BIRTH RECORDS COUNSELLING
Points to address during first interview
- Check identification (something with photo, birth certificate and proof of current address covers everything)
2 State purpose of interview: to be as helpful as possible in establishing and meeting the needs of the adopted person in terms of their need for information. For those applicants attending through the GRO route, assure that they will receive information today that will allow them to proceed with getting their original birth certificate.
3 Might need to explain purpose of interview again – e.g. for pre-1975 adoptions, the legal position that birthmothers gave up children believing that they would never be contacted, therefore interview provides consultation about the possible impact on birthmothers upon being traced
4 Give out our booklet ‘Adopted Person’s Information pack’
5 Ask what has motivated the person to come forward at this time? What has prompted this enquiry? (Might be significant life event, e.g. birth of own child/death of adoptive parent)
6 Find out person’s general view of their adoption. This might have a bearing on the reason for the search.
7 Find out what is already known about origins/source of this/how long this info known and what the impact of this has had on the person. What are the ideas/fantasies about the birth family? What information is missing?
8 Who else knows about their search? Support from partner? Do adoptive parents know and give support or has adopted person some anxiety about sharing this information? May be wisest to involve them too as could be difficult to keep this a secret (At what stage do you share?)
9 Imagine what situation the birthmother might be in now. What sort of feelings might she have on being contacted after all these years? Might she have kept the fact she had a child a secret from subsequent partner/children?
10 How old is she now? What’s worst possible scenario – illness/mental illness/death?
11 Need to put across the possible difficulty of accessing information/file. There may not be the right information that the person wants, e.g. often disappointing info about medical records
12 Need to allow time and pace of finding info/searching. Consider whether this is the right time for person. Talk about likely emotional impact. (Enough support?) Might be wise to allude to the sometime overwhelming emotional impact and possibility of genetic sexual attraction though this is a difficult subject to approach in a first interview. Encourage person to bring their partner along. Allow time for reflection during search – no need to progress more than wishes at right time-scale.
13 Our role in consultation and offering intermediary service if wished, but cannot help with tracing. Offer to meet again to follow up any information found or discuss further issues.
14 Inform about the contact Registers (details in this file and in the ‘Adopted Person’s Information pack’)
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Use Form AF4 (in this file) if need to find the name of the relevant Adoption Agency, and/or find out if a contact had already been made on the Adoption Contact register.