Section 550. Adoptive placement of children over one year of age; additional provisions

A. Except in intercountry adoptions, the licensee shall prepare a child for adoptive placement by involving him in adoption planning, considering his individual needs and concerns, and providing information in a manner the child can understand.

B. The licensee shall document in the child's file the services and contacts provided to the child for adoption preparation including:

1. Discussion about the child's feelings about adoption and identification of indicators that he is ready for the adoptive placement;

2. Discussion regarding the reason he cannot be returned to his birth parents;

3. Discussion about relationships with his social worker, foster family, and prospective adoptive parents;

4. Preplacement visits in his prospective adoptive home. The number of visits shall be determined by the needs of the child and the adoptive family;

5. Efforts to obtain photographs of the child from birth through his current age;

6. The licensee's preparation of a life book for the child;

7. Assessment and services related to the child's attachment and issues of attachment;

8. Assessment of the child's needs for contacts with prior caretakers and birth relatives, including siblings; and

9. Preparation of the adoptive family to receive the child, including expected behaviors and the life-long impact of the child's history.

C. If services to prepare the child for placement were not provided, the licensee shall document the reason the child was not prepared in the child's file.

Historical Notes

Derived from Volume 28, Issue 10, eff. May 1, 2012.

Statutory Authority

§§ 63.2-217 and 63.2-1734 of the Code of Virginia.