Adopted Notts newlywed and his wife successfully adopt children of their own

Newlyweds Bryan and Joy, both 44, live in Nottinghamshire with their two adopted sons, aged two and four.

Bryan, an HGV driver, was adopted as a baby through charity Barnardo’s at only six weeks old and his father, Dave, 71, grew up in Barnardo’s children’s homes and was later fostered.

Joy’s father, Richard, 69, was also adopted as a baby.

After undergoing an unsuccessful course of IVF treatment several years ago, Bryan and Joy had a decision to make - adoption, or having no children at all.

The couple looked at the adoption process with Barnard's, which included information evenings, visits from a social worker and training days where they were able to meet other couples going through the process.

Joy said: “We had a choice between saving up thousands of pounds to try another stressful round of IVF, or give a child in care a loving home and a life they deserve.

"The decision for us was simple, plus we had several positive adoption experiences in our families already, so we felt reassured it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary for us to do.

"We didn’t find it stressful and although Bryan found it a bit more difficult at first in terms of opening up about himself and attending the training days, we got a lot from it.

"After we were approved to adopt, we were quickly matched with a baby boy and on the day of our matching panel, it was a really emotional experience and everyone cried, including the professionals. We were so happy."

Bryan and Joy began regular visits to meet their little boy at his foster carers to build a relationship with him before bringing him home with them for good.

While the couple were in the process of adopting their son, they were informed he would soon have a birth brother, who would also be placed for adoption.

The couple had initially only planned to adopt one child, but admitted it didn’t take them long to reconsider and five months later, their second son came to live with them at three days old.

Joy said: “Every day is just so special to us now with the boys as they’re growing up, as they do something new or random every day and they make us smile.

"We get lots of support from Barnardo’s and always have done. We can always talk anything through with them if we need to and they are there either on the phone or in person.”

Bryan said: "Our two boys are just out of this world and we can’t imagine our lives without them now. They’re our amazing little angels who love each other one minute and are falling out the next, the same as any brothers do."

To anyone thinking about adoption, Bryan and Joy added: "Do it! You won’t regret it. Having an adopted child is no different to having a birth child.

"In our family, everyone is treated and loved exactly the same by all the family, and you are giving a child the life that they deserve."

Barnardo’s is supporting First4Adoption’s National Adoption Week, which runs from today (October 14) until Sunday and echoes the family’s call for more people to enquire about adoption to help give more children the chance to join their forever family.

To find out more about adopting through Barnardo’s, please call Barnardo’s Midlands Adoption Service on 01332 544711 / 0121 550 5271 or visit https://www.barnardos.org.uk/adopt/midlands