The factors having adverse impact on the centres’ activity included no audit or monitoring of their functioning as well as absence of the programme for family support and foster care system as part of the Lower Silesia development strategy.
The main criterion based on which audited adoption centres qualified children for adoption was the children’s benefit. Tests made as part of the child qualification for adoption were carried out in line with the provisions of the Family Support Act. They aimed at choosing a family for the given child based on his or her needs and qualities of character, and also the possibility of establishing an emotional bond between the child and his or her new family. In the period 2012-2013 (first half), 361 children in total were adopted from among 591 ones qualified for adoption. The employees of adoption centres had required education degrees and professional preparation. The centres also provided psychological and pedagogical consultancy services to persons who wanted to adopt a child, to adoption parents and also to pregnant women who considered having their child adopted.
NIK positively evaluated activities taken by the Marshal of Dolnośląskie Province who in the audited period organised the activity of adoption centres and also provided them with funds, qualified staff and premises. The funds earmarked for that purpose of PLN 2.2 million in 2012 and about PLN 1.1 million in the first half of 2013 were spent properly, in compliance with the sound management principle.
NIK auditors identified the following irregularities during the audit:
- prolonging adoption proceedings. In the audited period the duration of adoption proceedings varied. In extreme cases it was up to 1.5 year. The reasons included long-lasting procedures to regulate the legal status of the child qualified for adoption and prepare candidates for foster parents (including completion of the statutorily required training). On the other hand, duration of adoption proceedings was influenced by expectations of candidates for foster parents related to the age and health of children. Not many people wanted to adopt ill or older children (above five years of age). The Family Support Act does not specify the duration of adoption proceedings , however – according to NIK – for the benefit of children they should be shortened. NIK auditors made a survey among candidates for foster parents and the persons who already adopted a child concerning the reasons for prolonging adoption proceedings.
- In all three adoption centres covered by the audit deadlines for qualifying children for adoption were misseddespite the fact that the children’s legal status was regulated. In 10 cases the deadline was exceeded by 14 days (39 maximum) which stood for a violation of the Family Support Act;
- too long waiting time for training programmes organised by adoption centres for potential foster parents. One of the main reasons was improper organisation of training programmes by adoption centres. Other causes were related to candidates for adoption parents (pregnancy, health problems, going abroad to work). Besides, one centre made the completion of one training programme compulsory for parents, although the programme was not approved by the Minister of Labour and Social Policy;
- the audited adoption centres informed the Lower Silesia Data Bank with delays of the adoption of a child, or of the fact that a child was qualified for adoption when no candidate for a foster parent was found. The 7- or 14-day deadlines were exceeded in 55 out of 95 instances which made up nearly 60 percent;
- adoption centres did not observe the procedures for personal data protection. The data of children from adoption centres as well as candidates for foster parents were not secured against the access of third parties which represented a breach of the Personal Data Protection Act;
- Social Welfare Centre of Lower Silesia (DOPS) did not conduct effective monitoring or content-related audits of the activity of adoption centres, therefore breaching its statutory and contractual obligation. The efforts of DOPS were limited to verifying material and financial reports drafted by those institutions. No IT systems were used for auditing purposes. The Ministry of Labour and Social Policy did develop an IT system of the Central Statistical Application to manage adoption procedures, the so-called SAC - adoptions, however the system was not implemented by the end of the audit ;
- The Marshal Office of Dolnośląskie Province did not develop the programme for family support and foster care system as part of the Province development strategy of the. The Marshal of Dolnośląskie Province explained that works on updating elementary strategic documents for Dolnośląskie Province were a problem. At the same time he ensured that the programme will be developed and adopted by 2014;
- audited adoption centres did not have full and up-to-date information on depriving biological parents of parental rights because family courts provided those data with delay. The institutions covered by the NIK audit had information about 253 court decisions out of the total of 479 decisions (nearly 53 percent). Efforts taken by the centre running the Lower Silesia Data Bank to improve the situation were ineffective. Pursuant to the Code of Civil Proceedings, within 7 days from the day of validating the decision on termination of parental authority, courts were obliged to send the said decisions to relevant adoption centres running provincial banks of data on children waiting for adoption.
In its post-audit recommendations NIK stated that the following steps need to be taken by the Marshal of Dolnośląskie Province:
- make sure the Marshal Office of Dolnośląskie Province takes efforts to:
- monitor the activity of adoption centres to guarantee compliance of the child adoption proceedings with the Family Support Act,
- supervise execution of the obligation to train candidates for foster parents only within the scope laid out in the Family Support Act,
- audit adoption centres in line with the agreements on the performance of tasks related to the child adoption.
