This week is national Adoption Week and here are some myths which campaigners are keen to dispel:

• Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to own your home, have a job or be under 40 to adopt a child.
• You don’t have to be married either, or in a relationship, or heterosexual.
• You don’t have to be a parent already or qualified in any specific way.
• A disability is not necessarily an obstacle to adopting.

They make it sound so easy. And for some families it is. But not all.

I recently met an inspirational woman called Francesca Polini who travelled thousands of miles to Mexico to adopt a baby after being turned by her local authority for being “too white”. Francesca and her husband are the first couple from the UK to adopt from Mexico and you can see her on ITV this Thursday evening at 7.30pm talking  about her adoption experiences on the current affairs programme Tonight. Entitled “Adoption Crisis“, journalist Jonathan Maitland investigates why only a quarter of the 4,000 children waiting for adoption will ever be placed, and asks if we are failing the country’s most vulnerable children. He also asks why potential parents feel forced to look abroad.

Francesca, a former communications director with Greenpeace, has written a brilliant book describing her unbelievable experiences in Mexico with her husband before they were finally able to return to London with baby Gaia. Those who are in the same situation will truly be able to empathise with Francesca who writes in her prologue:

“I write to give courage to those who feel that the best way for them to help this troubled place is to give a home to a child who otherwise wouldn’t have one. Like us, you will sometimes encounter polite confusion at best, and outright hostility at worst. Don’t give up. Your child is out there waiting for you.

“I write especially for the orphaned and abandoned children of the world, of whom there are millions. Many of them will die of starvation, disease or neglect before reaching adulthood; others will never realise their full potential and some will even grow into adults who perpetuate the very injustices that caused their own unfortunately circumstances.  There are many children in need, but there are also many families who would give them a good home. By raising awareness to this issue and campaigning for a more humane adoption process, I hope less of them will grow up hungry, scared, or sick, with loving parents. It’s a dream, I know, but I can think of no more worthy one to pursue.”

*Francesca tells me she is also on Channel 4 this evening at 7pm and the BBC Breakfast Show on Thursday morning too. Today’s Times also has a report saying that long overdue reforms of adoption are taking place which will no longer prevent white couples from adopting black or Asian children, which is what happened to Francesca and her husband.