Social services remove young children from grandparents and arrange adoption by gay couple
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Social services remove young children from grandparents and arrange adoption by gay couple
Social services have removed two young children from the care of their grandparents and arranged for them to be adopted by a homosexual couple.
By Lucy Cockcroft
Last Updated: 6:48AM GMT 28 Jan 2009
The five-year-old boy and his four-year-old sister were being looked after by their grandparents because their mother, a recovering drug addict, was not considered capable.
But social workers stepped in after allegedly deciding that the couple, who are aged 59 and 46, were "too old" to look after the children.
They were allegedly stripped of their carer's rights and informed they would be barred from seeing the children altogether unless they agreed to the same-sex adoption.
The distraught grandfather said: "It breaks my heart to think that our grandchildren are being forced to grow up in an environment without a mother-figure.
"We are not prejudiced, but I defy anyone to explain to us how this can be in their best interests.
"The ideal for any child is to have a loving father and a loving mother in their lives."
His wife added: "It's so important for children to fit in, and I feel our grandchildren will be marked out from the start when they draw pictures of their two dads."
The case raises fears about state interference in family arrangements, and concerns about the practice of adoption by same-sex couples.
Social workers at the City of Edinburgh Council have been accused of waging a "two-year campaign" through the courts to strip the grandparents of their legal rights as carers of the children.
Social services intervened because of concerns over the age and health of the grandparents, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the children.
The grandfather is a farmhand who has angina while his wife is receiving medication for diabetes.
The children have been in foster care for two years while their grandparents battled the social services department in court.
However, the cost of legal bills forced them to drop the case and relinquish their rights.
The grandparents reluctantly agreed to adoption, provided the children were found a "loving mother and father".
They were told last Thursday that two homosexual men had been chosen as the adoptive parents.
Social workers dealing with the case told them that approved heterosexual couples had also been keen to adopt the children.
When he protested to social workers, the grandfather alleges he was told: "You can either accept it and there's a chance you'll see the children twice a year, or you can take that stance and never see them again."
On another occasion he was allegedly told: "If you couldn't support the children [back the gay adoption], if you were having contact and couldn't support the children, and showing negative feelings, it wouldn't be in their best interests for contact to take place."
The City of Edinburgh Council said that it could not comment on individual cases.
A Catholic Church spokesman has accused social services of "politically correct posturing".
He said: "There is an overwhelming body of evidence showing that same sex relationships are inherently unstable and reduce the life expectancy of those involved.
"With this in mind, the social work department have deliberately ignored evidence which undermines their decision and opted for politically correct posturing rather than providing stability and protection for the children."
Social services have removed two young children from the care of their grandparents and arranged for them to be adopted by a homosexual couple.
By Lucy Cockcroft
Last Updated: 6:48AM GMT 28 Jan 2009
The five-year-old boy and his four-year-old sister were being looked after by their grandparents because their mother, a recovering drug addict, was not considered capable.
But social workers stepped in after allegedly deciding that the couple, who are aged 59 and 46, were "too old" to look after the children.
They were allegedly stripped of their carer's rights and informed they would be barred from seeing the children altogether unless they agreed to the same-sex adoption.
The distraught grandfather said: "It breaks my heart to think that our grandchildren are being forced to grow up in an environment without a mother-figure.
"We are not prejudiced, but I defy anyone to explain to us how this can be in their best interests.
"The ideal for any child is to have a loving father and a loving mother in their lives."
His wife added: "It's so important for children to fit in, and I feel our grandchildren will be marked out from the start when they draw pictures of their two dads."
The case raises fears about state interference in family arrangements, and concerns about the practice of adoption by same-sex couples.
Social workers at the City of Edinburgh Council have been accused of waging a "two-year campaign" through the courts to strip the grandparents of their legal rights as carers of the children.
Social services intervened because of concerns over the age and health of the grandparents, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the children.
The grandfather is a farmhand who has angina while his wife is receiving medication for diabetes.
The children have been in foster care for two years while their grandparents battled the social services department in court.
However, the cost of legal bills forced them to drop the case and relinquish their rights.
The grandparents reluctantly agreed to adoption, provided the children were found a "loving mother and father".
They were told last Thursday that two homosexual men had been chosen as the adoptive parents.
Social workers dealing with the case told them that approved heterosexual couples had also been keen to adopt the children.
When he protested to social workers, the grandfather alleges he was told: "You can either accept it and there's a chance you'll see the children twice a year, or you can take that stance and never see them again."
On another occasion he was allegedly told: "If you couldn't support the children [back the gay adoption], if you were having contact and couldn't support the children, and showing negative feelings, it wouldn't be in their best interests for contact to take place."
The City of Edinburgh Council said that it could not comment on individual cases.
A Catholic Church spokesman has accused social services of "politically correct posturing".
He said: "There is an overwhelming body of evidence showing that same sex relationships are inherently unstable and reduce the life expectancy of those involved.
"With this in mind, the social work department have deliberately ignored evidence which undermines their decision and opted for politically correct posturing rather than providing stability and protection for the children."
2009 Jan 28