The Independent Review Mechanism (England)

Panels, also referred to as Review Panels, are set up to be independent of your agency or fostering service provider. They will consider adoption and fostering suitability cases and adoption disclosure cases.

When the panel is being convened we will ensure the independence of the review panel by not including any review panel member who is or was:

• employed in the past year by the adoption or fostering service provider who made the qualifying determination,
• who knows the applicant in a personal or professional capacity,
• or who was approved as a prospective adopter or foster carer by the agency which gave the qualifying determination.

You must tell us when you receive a list of attendees if you believe a particular review panel member should not, in fact, be appointed to consider your case.

Locations of the Review Panel meeting

Review panels will be held on a monthly basis as required in Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester and twice a month in London. Once we receive your application we will identify the panel most suitable to consider your case, taking into account other cases needing to be heard. We will try to keep your travelling to a reasonable distance. Reviews of Intercountry Adoption cases will be heard by either the London panel or the Leeds panel.

Members on the Review Panel

Adoption or fostering suitability cases

The panels looking at these cases will have a membership of between 6 and 10 people. All panel members will have professional or personal experience of adoption or fostering. The make up of the panel will depend on the type of case being heard.
Each panel will have a:

• a Chair able to hear adoption suitability or fostering cases,
• a Vice-Chair able to hear adoption suitability or fostering cases,
• Lay Members with related experience e.g. education, psychologists, children’s guardians, retired social workers,
• Panel members with personal experience of adoption or fostering and
• Social workers with specialist knowledge of either adoption or fostering.

A registered Medical Practitioner will sit as a panel member in adoption cases and as an adviser in fostering cases where there is medical information being considered.

Adoption Disclosure Cases

These panels will have 3 members who will be drawn from the main review panel membership:

• Two social workers with at least three years post qualifying experience of child care social work including direct experience in adoption work and
• Registered Medical Practitioner or Lay Members with related experience e.g. education, psychologists, children’s guardians, retired social workers, or with personal adoption experience as required by case.

The panel chair would be selected from these three panel members.

Professional Advice to Panels on all Cases

This will be provided by a Professional Adviser who will be an experienced social worker with knowledge of both adoption and fostering legislation and practice and a Legal Adviser who will prepare a written report for the panel in all cases.)

A Panel Secretary will be present to make a record of the meeting.