Discusses the role of adoption services within the wider context of children's services, and examines the reasons why adoption, having once achieved a position at the pinnacle of the available child placement options, now seems to be a placement option fundamentally out of step with other initiatives for child welfare services. (TJQ)

Discusses Britain's Children Act, which requires child welfare authorities to give due consideration to a child's religious background when placing a child or planning for its future. Reviews some child welfare practice and policy implications of this regulation. (HTH)

Children in out-of-home care risk losing contact with parents and others despite emphasis of the Children Act 1989. Contact is lower for children in foster care and as family support diminishes. Contact after adoption increases as methods of indirect contact developed by adoption agencies are implemented; lost contact for all children can be…