Northern Ireland adoption figures reveal 90 children adopted from care in 2025/26
A total of 90 children were adopted from care in Northern Ireland during 2025/26, according to new figures published by the Department of Health.
The latest Northern Ireland adoption figures show a reduction from the 96 children adopted during the previous financial year.
However, the statistics also reveal that the average time children spent in care before adoption has decreased.
The figures were published on Wednesday 21 October and cover the period from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.
Northern Ireland adoption figures show shorter waiting times
According to the Department of Health, the average length of time between a child’s most recent entry into care and adoption was three years and one month.
This represents a reduction of five months compared with 2024/25, when the average period was three years and six months.
The latest figures also show that the average age of children at the time of adoption was three years and ten months.
This compares with four years and six months during the previous year.
Children adopted during 2025/26 ranged in age from one year and four months to seven years and eleven months.
Adoption process takes more than two years after initial proposal
The Department of Health also examined the time taken between a Health and Social Care Trust proposing adoption as being in a child’s best interests and the eventual granting of an Adoption Order.
During 2025/26, the average duration between these stages was two years and two months.
This represents a slight reduction from the previous year, when the equivalent period was two years and three months.
The figures illustrate the length of the legal and administrative processes involved in securing permanent family arrangements for children who cannot return to their birth families.
Foster carers adopting children face longer timescales
The latest statistics also highlight differences in the time taken to complete adoptions depending on the circumstances of the child and their prospective adopters.
Children adopted by their existing foster carers continued to experience longer adoption timescales than those adopted through other routes.
The Department of Health said this pattern was expected because of the different circumstances surrounding these adoptions.
The longer timescales have been a consistent feature of previous statistical reports.
Statistics collected from Northern Ireland’s five health trusts
The annual report draws on information collected from all five Health and Social Care Trusts in Northern Ireland.
It provides details about children adopted from care, their adopters and the length of time between different stages of the adoption process.
The statistics are intended to support understanding of adoption services and provide evidence about how the system is operating.
The latest figures show that while fewer children were adopted from care during 2025/26, the average time taken to complete the process has decreased.
The Department of Health’s next annual publication, covering 2026/27, is expected in September 2027.
Official statistics
Children Adopted from Care in Northern Ireland 2025/26
Previous year’s adoption statistics — 2024/25
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