FOR couple John and Alice* adopting a baby was the best decision they ever made.

William is now a healthy, happy, four-year-old who is due to start school next year.

The pair, from East Lancashire, had been trying for some time to have a child and were offered IVF but decided to consider fostering.

Alice, 44, said they made enquiries with Lancashire County Council and were told about the concurrent adoption scheme where a baby up to age two is placed with a family who act as foster carers and later become adopters if the child cannot be returned to their birth family.

Alice said: "We heard about William two weeks before he was born. We were told a little bit about the history of his birth mother and the name they had chosen for him.

"He was eight days old when he arrived.

"William was sitting in the car and John and I just looked at each other and said 'what do we do?'. We had this little vulnerable child but instinct just kicked in."

She said she had been cautious about forming a loving attachment with William at first.

"In my mind I thought I would hold back on the love to protect myself with the risk of him going home, but the next night he was asleep in his Moses basket and I looked at him and felt an overwhelming rush of love," Alice said.

"That was really important. It means he had love from the start and for a baby that is vulnerable that is important."

At one point they started to prepare for him returning to a relative and comforted themselves with the thought that they had given him the best start in life, however in the end the adoption went ahead.

The pair had met William's birth parents several times before the adoption and still write to them once a year.

Alice said they talk to William about them and will support him if he wants to meet them when he is 18.

She said William, who has some health complications, is funny, intelligent and the 'nicest human being she's ever met'.

"I always say I'm so grateful I never had birth children. If I had I would never have met him. He and I were supposed to meet. It is the best thing we have ever done."

The couple, who praised the support they received from their social worker and the team at Lancashire County Council, are now looking at a second concurrent adoption.

During National Adoption Week the council is focusing on two types of adoption - concurrent placements and the fostering-for-adoption scheme so that more babies and young children can go on to live with their permanent family quicker.

There is also a focus on people willing to adopt siblings. Among the 62 Lancashire children currently ready to be adopted, there are nine two-sibling groups and four three-sibling groups.

Charlotte and Stephen adopted two siblings Charlie, three, and Ellie, one, in 2013 after years of unsuccessful IVF treatment.

Charlotte said: "While Ellie was easy to love and care for, despite being on a number of medications due to being seven weeks premature, Charlie took longer to adjust.

"Being older Charlie had more knowledge of the situation and in the first few weeks and months we did have some very difficult behaviours to deal with."

The pair sought help from a child psychologist and quickly saw a change.

"With both children now happy, we were settling down to our new life as a family of four, when in August 2014 we got a phone call to say that birth mum had had a baby girl called Grace and would we consider adopting her. "We spoke to Charlie and Ellie, who were very excited at the thought of having a baby sister, so we began the adoption process for a second time and in March 2015 Grace, who was now seven months old, came to live with us.

"We love our family and can’t imagine life any other way."

If you are interested in adopting an information evening will be held on Thursday at County Hall in Preston, from 6pm to 7.30pm. There is no need to book. For more details visit www.lancashire.gov.uk/adoption or call the adoption team on 0300 123 6723.

*names have been changed to protect identities.