PEOPLE are needed by Wiltshire Social Services to adopt and provide new homes for 23 youngsters.

All the children are over five, and ten are over the age of 11. They also include siblings.

This week is National Adoption Week and Social Services staff hope the publicity will encourage more people to think about becoming adoptive parents.

Molly O'Riordan, a family placement officer, said: "People sometimes think we are only interested in married couples. That is not the case at all. We welcome people from all walks of life and in a variety of family situations, including single people."

Ms O'Riordan said many potential adopters are interested in adopting babies because they themselves cannot have children, but there are already enough people interested in adopting babies.

She said: "We are specifically targeting children over the age of five. We want to get people thinking a bit more broadly rather than just focussing on babies. A lot of people wanting to adopt come to us because they are not able to have their own babies and are looking to adopt a baby.

"But they might be able to offer a home to slightly older children or it could also be people who have children of their own who might be interested in adopting."

Ms O'Riordan said it takes about six months for a person to be confirmed as an adopter.

Those interested attend a preparation course which involves talking about the sorts of children who are up for adoption and discussing the possibility that the children will want to remain in contact with their natural parents. The course also enables potential adopters who cannot have children to talk about their feelings.

Social services staff will provide support for potential adopters and children during the process .

Ms O'Riordan said adopters need to have some parenting skills, even if they have no children of their own. This could be from babysitting relatives' children.

She said while adoption could be daunting it was also rewarding.

"People have to like children and want to look after them and have to be prepared to devote part of their daily life to a child. The benefits for adopters is that they can see the children becoming part of their family and when children are settled, they flourish at home and at school," she said.

Adoption has recently received a high profile with the BBC documentary, Love Is Not Enough, which has been following the progress of four couples who want to adopt.

County council recruitment officer Helen Vennard said: "It has highlighted the details of the assessment process and shown that it is not always straightforward. Some families have to face certain issues before they can progress to being adoptive parents. It is a realistic programme which has brought adoption to a wider audience."

If you are interested in adopting a child in Wiltshire call (0800)1696321.

ADDITIONAL paid leave is to be provided for county council staff in Wiltshire if they decide to adopt a child.

A new scheme, similar to maternity leave, is being prepared by the authority.

Under the proposed new regulations, 90 per cent of salaries would be paid for six weeks to those on the verge of adopting a child.

Adoption Leave rules are already in force but do not take into account the requirement for prospective parents to spend time with the child prior to the adoption date.

The length of this introduction period depends on the age and circumstances of the youngster.

It was a member of staff, backed by his trade union, who challenged this omission.

Peter Smith, the director of corporate services, told county councillors on Tuesday he recommended the new policy should now be approved.

He said the changes to policy will bring adoption leave more in line with that for natural parents.