World Adoption Day 2026: a research study that needs single adoptive parents' voices
Today is World Adoption Day. We mark it quietly at Walk Together each year, partly because the day means different things to different people in adoption and partly because for many adopted adults it is a more complicated anniversary than its branding sometimes suggests.
This year, we are using the day to launch something that matters particularly to us.
A research study, now live
Susie James, who founded Walk Together, is also a researcher at the University of Bradford. Her study on the experiences of single adoptive parents in the UK has been in the making for a long time, and the survey opens today.
The research explores how single adopters access post-adoption support, the barriers they encounter, and the areas where support is lacking. As Susie has put it, single adoptive parents are statistically visible in UK adoption research but analytically invisible. They are counted. Their specific experiences are rarely examined in their own right.
This study aims to change that, and the findings are intended to inform future UK adoption policy and post-adoption support provision.
Who the survey is for
The survey is open to adults aged 18 or over who adopted as single parents from the outset of the adoption process and who live in the UK.
If you adopted as a couple, this particular study is not the one for you, but please do pass it on to anyone you know who might be eligible. Reach matters a great deal to studies like this.
How to take part
The survey takes approximately 20 to 30 minutes to complete. It is completely voluntary and completely confidential.
You can take the survey here: https://app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/bradford/experiences-of-post-adoption-support-in-the-uk-single-adoptive-parents
You can also scan the QR code on either of the posters below.
If you have questions
You can contact Susie directly at s.l.james@bradford.ac.uk. The study has full ethics approval from the Chair of the Humanities, Social and Health Sciences Research Ethics Panel at the University of Bradford, granted on 21 October 2026.
Why this matters
Single adoptive parents in the UK often describe a particular kind of invisibility in the adoption support system. The expectation is often that two parents will be present to carry the load, and when there is only one, the structural assumptions quietly make the work harder. The absence of research specifically about single adopters' experiences is part of what keeps the invisibility in place.
This study is a chance for single adopters to be heard in their own right. If that is you, your voice is genuinely needed. If it is not, sharing this with someone you know could make a meaningful difference to how UK adoption support is shaped in the years ahead.
We will keep sharing this across our blog, Instagram and newsletter over the coming weeks.
Thanks for reading,
Comments