Dr Geoffrey Shannon, Chairman of the Adoption Authority, is pleased to announce the publication of the Authority’s Annual Report 2019 at /images/AAI_Annual_Report_2019_FINAL.pdf The report details the activities of the Authority throughout the year and developments in adoption in Ireland.

 The report shows that a total of 79 domestic adoption orders were granted in 2019, the majority of those to step-parent applicants – showing the impact of provisions in the Adoption (Amendment) Act 2017 that dispense with the requirement for both a parent and step-parent to apply to adopt the child. Forty-eight Declarations of Eligibility and Suitability were granted to applicants seeking to adopt abroad. The Authority received 560 applications to the voluntary register that mediates contact between adoptees and birth relatives, the National Adoption Contact Preference Register. The total number of entries was over 14,500 by year end. In 115 cases, a potential match was identified between the applicants and birth family members who had previously joined the Register.

Key events of 2019 for the AAI

•  Dr Judy Lovett joined the Authority as Research Officer in August and, together with the Research Advisory Committee and Board, agreed an ambitious three-year research strategy for the AAI.
•  The AAI launched its revamped website and new electronic document management system.
•  The Authority received a Champions of Plain English award from the National Adult Literacy Agency.
•  The AAI received into its care approximately 13,000 adoption files and records from Cúnamh Adoption Agency (formerly the Catholic Protection and Rescue Society of Ireland, established in 1913).