BAAF, the British Agencies for Adoption and Fostering, has changed its name.

The leading UK-wide membership organisation for those involved in adoption, fostering and child care, has made the change to more clearly communicate the its range of activities.

It will now be known as British Association for Adoption and Fostering.

This reflects the widening range of the organisation's work and the important contribution made by individual members as well as by agency members.

Felicity Collier, Chief Executive of BAAF Adoption and Fostering, said: "We are delighted to announce our name change at this stage in our development.

"There are currently unprecedented levels of interest in adoption and fostering issues and over the coming years we will need to respond to an increasingly challenging agenda.

"We want to ensure we communicate the full range of our work and present ourselves as the modern and representative organisation we are."

BAAF members include local authorities and voluntary adoption agencies. The organisation also has over 1,500 individual members including child care, legal and medical professionals.

It speaks out on behalf of looked after children and promotes the highest standards of child-centred policies and services.

BAAF also provides information, advice, publications, training and conferences for social work practitioners and other professionals who have a role in caring for looked after children.

The association campaigns rigorously to raise public awareness of adoption and fostering and recruit new adoptive families.