Birth Parents & Pregnancy
Options for birth parents
Making an Adoption Plan
Open Adoption
Confidential, non-judgmental support to safely explore your options.
At The Evermore Centre, we help answer questions about adoption, explain how adoption works today, help you understand your rights and your ability to control and make choices in adoption planning. We can also assist you with referrals to other services that may be of help to you.
Options for Birth Parents
When facing an unplanned pregnancy, you can choose one of three options:
Continue the pregnancy and parent the child;
Continue the pregnancy and make an adoption plan for the child through voluntary committal (domestic adoption) or independent (private) adoption;
Terminate the pregnancy.
When seeking to create an adoption plan you have two options:
Voluntary Committal
An adoption plan where birth parents have the opportunity to make a plan together with a Ministry of Social Services worker and participate in the selection of prospective adoptive parents. This adoption process is facilitated by the Ministry, and there is no cost incurred by the birth parents.
Learn more in the Government of Saskatchewan Birth Parent Services and Adoption Planning information sheet.
Independent (Private) Adoption
An adoption plan where birth parents make a plan for adoption with someone they know, such as a friend or relative, typically someone significant to them.
Adoption is the legal transfer of rights and responsibilities from birthparents to adoptive parent(s). In an Independent Adoption, prospective adoptive parents will hire a lawyer and an Independent Practitioner to do a Mutual Family Assessment (MFA). Together, they are responsible for gathering the documentation required for making an application to the court for an Order of Adoption.
The Ministry of Social Services will be required to be involved with the birth parent(s), as birth parents will be required to obtain a certificate of counselling, which will be used in the court process. A Ministry-approved independent practitioner completes the home study. Expenses are paid by the prospective adoptive parents.
Learn more about Independent Adoption.
Making an Adoption Plan
Our goal at The Evermore Centre is to offer you support and information so that you can make the choice that will be right for you.
If you would like to discuss your options and learn more about the possibility of making an adoption plan, please contact the Evermore Centre to book a consult. Our staff will speak with you in person or over the phone.
The choice to create an adoption plan for an unborn child must include a consultation with a birth parent worker with the Ministry of Social Services. The role of the birth parent worker is to inform/educate birth parents about all of their options. A birth parent worker will provide you with a “Certificate of Counselling”.
Contact
MSS Birth Parent Services - North Region - Saskatoon Contact
MSS Birth Parent Services - South Region - Regina Contact
*Please note when calling the birth parent worker intake line, if you are prompted to leave a message, you MUST leave the location of where you reside so that you will be connected with a birth parent worker in your area.
Open Adoption
Today’s adoptions are different in significant ways compared to the past. One of the most significant changes involves the degree of connections that may be a part of many adoption plans. The plan for maintaining connections (which can be direct or indirect) is referred to as Open Adoption.
Open adoption is a topic that birth parent(s) require a strong understanding of when choosing to create an adoption plan for their infant/child. Please read more about open adoption here.
