Lesbian and gay fostering and adoption: out of the closet into the mainstream?

Recent public debates have discussed lesbians and gay men caring for children as a novel phenomenon, but such arrangements are not new. Helen Cosis Brown and Christine Cocker track debates concerning lesbian and gay families and examine the relationship between policy and practice that is evidence based and ideologically driven. They outline the complexities of adoption and fostering practice within its political and social context and argue that the paramountcy of the child's welfare is the lynchpin to understanding the issues involved with the placement of children with lesbian and gay carers. The emphasis, in examining the detail of practice, is on recruitment, assessment, matching and support.