A consortium of five local authorities has teamed up to help children awaiting adoption in the south east find new families.

The consortium, made up of Kent County Council, Medway Council, Bexley Council, Brighton and Hove Council and East Sussex County Council was launched with the release of 240 balloons, one for each child that needs a family.

The authorities will pool potential adopters to find more families for children who are waiting for adoption throughout the region.

They will also hold joint recruitment campaigns aimed at specific potential adopters, share examples of good practice, carry out research and co-ordinate training and preparation for adopters.

The consortium will aim to match adopters with a child in their local area first but if no match can be found quickly they will be able to look to the consortium.

Keith Ferrin, Chairman of Kent County Council social services, said: "By working together and increasing our pool of adopters we hope to increase our success at matching families to children and be able to shorten the time some children have to wait.

"All research shows that the best future for looked after children is within families and we want to give each and every child in the South-East the best future possible."

Rodney Chambers, chairman of Medway Council's policy and resources committee added: "By sharing our resources, there will be a much better chance that children looked after by Medway Council will find a family that suits their needs.

"Although Medway has a large population, it is a small geographical area so we often need to place children outside our boundary. The consortium will also bring greater advantages for our adopters as there will be more children they could be matched with."

If you would like to find out more about adoption ring Kent County Council on 01303 226808 or Medway Council on 01634 306000.