Children's stories The stories of the children featured below are based on true case histories of children successfully placed by Adoption Focus. Their names and some details have been changed. Although none of these children need a new family now, their stories illustrate the types of children desperately in need of new families. Mark and David Brothers from a white, Irish Catholic family. Mark aged eight, is an affectionate, energetic boy who has a talent for music and is a keen footballer. Mark needs some extra help in school because he was rarely sent to school in the past and he can be an angry little boy at times. David aged two is a lively, happy toddler who is meeting his developmental milestones. The boys’ birth family life was chaotic and there were some unexplained injuries to both boys. Mark and David were placed in an adoptive family but this had to end, through no fault of the boys and Mark is keen to move to a new family. There will be letterbox contact with their birth parents and contact with their grandmother. Marcey Marcey, aged eight months, has a sunny nature and is developing extremely well. Her birth mother is an Asian Muslim student studying at university. Although her boyfriend has supported her, the family will not accept her baby and do not approve of the relationship. Marcey needs Asian Muslim adopters. Chantelle Aged six, Chantelle's mother is white English and her father is white English/Pakistani, his great grandfather originated from Pakistan. Her half-brother, Tyrone, aged three is white English. They are the youngest in a sibling group of six children who all have different fathers. They are in care due to neglect by their birth mother. Chantelle and Tyrone were left in the care of their older siblings and several other people and may have been exposed to sexual activities. Chantelle is fun-loving and academically able. She is not dry at night and has daytime accidents. Tyrone is an intelligent, robust and happy child. His speech is delayed and he will need speech therapy. Chantelle and Tyrone need to keep in touch with their older siblings who are placed in long term foster homes. Christopher Christopher has white, English origins, is 15 months old and has been in his foster home since he was two days old. He is a lively, active boy who is generally healthy and developing normally. He is the youngest of four children and his older brothers and sisters are placed together in a permanent foster home as their mother neglected their care. They will want to know that he is being well cared for. Dan, Amee and Tom Dan, Amee and Tom are white, English siblings who come from a background of neglect due to their mother’s alcohol dependency. There is a history of marital violence between the birth parents. The birth father is a drug user and his whereabouts are unknown. Dan, aged seven, is delayed in his speech and has an educational statement; this means he receives extra help in mainstream school where he is making steady progress and beginning to gain confidence within his peer group. Amee is a timid child. She has settled well in her foster home but shows signs of anxiety when she hears raised voices. Tom is meeting all his developmental milestones and has a sunny personality. Jayden, Charlie and Sammy Three boys aged three and a half, two, and ten months. Full of life and mischief, Jayden and Charlie were placed with their foster carer when Charlie was four months old, and Jayden was just two. Their birth mum is very young. She grew up in care and is desperately trying to find someone to love and call her own. Unfortunately, she lacks the skills and maturity to manage the needs of children. Social Services tried to help her develop the parenting skills her children need, but she didn’t turn up when she was meant to and was often out with her friends. Her life is chaotic and she is not very good at keeping herself safe. When Sammy was born he was placed with his older brothers as there were concerns about the violent relationship she had got into. The children need parents who can manage all three of them. Terri-Lee Terri-Lee is 18 months old. She has been living in a fostering household since her first birthday. There were concerns about her development because she was small for her age, had poor muscle tone, and wasn't making an attempt to crawl. Further investigations into her care while with her birth parents - both have a level of learning disability - revealed that she had been treated as a much younger baby. This meant they had not followed the health visitor’s advice about weaning and had kept her in her buggy at all times. Terri-Lee has made great strides in her development but is still delayed and hasn't taken her first steps. She needs adopters who can deal with the uncertainties surrounding her future development - bearing in mind that both parents have learning difficulties. They are expecting another child who will also need to be adopted. It is hoped that the adopters who have Terri-lee will also have the new baby. Jamie Jamie is four months old. He is a white child who spent a couple of months in hospital after he was born withdrawing from drugs because his mother used drugs during the pregnancy. Jamie has a number of health problems and is currently tube-fed. His foster carers have cared for him since he was discharged from hospital and describe him as a little fighter who has melted their hearts. Jamie’s future is uncertain because the full impact of his mother’s drug use will not be known for some time. Jamie needs parents who can manage this uncertainty, help him with his additional health needs and work with health and education professionals to enable him to become the little boy he wants to be. Our adoption support Contact us The Children's Perspective - Video