How the Maternity Coach is helping adoptive parents when they return to work 

While conversations around parental support at work have progressed in recent years, the specific needs of adoptive parents are often overlooked.

Returning to work after adoption can be a complex experience. Every parent’s journey is unique, but for many adoptive families, additional considerations such as attachment needs, early trauma, and navigating post-adoption support can make the transition particularly challenging. Recognising this, The Maternity Coach approached us to commission a training programme designed to enhance their team’s understanding of the adoption journey.

  

The Maternity Coach’s Commitment to inclusive support

As an organisation that supports parents through maternity leave and their return to work, The Maternity Coach wanted to ensure that their coaching services reflected the experiences of all parents including those who adopt. To deepen their understanding of the adoption journey and provide better guidance to their clients, they commissioned our ‘Adoptive community in the workplace training for people managers’

Our training session was delivered by a HR professional who is also an adopter and covered;

the Adoption Process – an overview of what adoptive parents go through, from application to placement and beyond,
understanding adoption leave – how adoption leave differs from maternity and paternity leave, and why flexibility is so important,
attachment and trauma awareness – insights into how early experiences can impact adopted children and, in turn, their parents,
workplace support and flexibility – practical ways to ensure adoptive parents feel supported in balancing work and family life.

Feedback from the session was overwhelmingly positive. Participants described it as eye-opening and thought-provoking, with many expressing a new appreciation for the challenges faced by adoptive parents.

 

Creating a more inclusive workplace for adoptive families

By creating  an inclusive and understanding workplace, employers can make a real difference to adoptive families—helping parents navigate both their professional and personal responsibilities with confidence. Small changes can have a big impact, and by increasing awareness and flexibility, employers can create environments where all parents feel valued.

Some key considerations include;

providing training for people managers - equipping leaders with the knowledge to support adoptive employees effectively,
ensuring adoption leave is robust – aligning adoption leave policies with maternity and paternity leave to ensure equal support and recognising the flexibility needed to attend appointments before the adoption order,
offering flexible working options – recognising that adoptive parents may need additional time to settle into family life and their children may have specific needs that make it difficult to work in typical 9-5 day,
creating a supportive workplace culture – acknowledging adoption as an important and valid path to parenthood and helping create an environment where colleagues feel they can talk about their challenges and get support. 

 

If your organisation is interested in learning more about how to support adoptive parents at work, Adoption UK offers a range of training sessions designed to provide practical guidance for HR professionals, managers, and teams. Contact us at [email protected] for further information.