A 27-year-old man is working hard to change the law to make it possible to be legally adopted by his stepfather.
Nathan Sparling has called for a reform in Scottish family law, which would allow him, and other adults in his position, to be adopted.
The UK only allows adoptions up to the age of 18, and Nathan has said that a lot of young people are unaware that this is the case until it is too late for them to do anything about it.
Nathan was first introduced to his stepfather, Brian Sparling, when he was 13-years-old. He said that immediately the pair struck up a good relationship.
Speaking to BBC Scotland, Nathan said: ‘From the second or third time I met him I was going along to the football with him. I became a season ticket holder at Dunfermline and really just enjoyed spending time with him. He married my mum when I was 16 and I feel like we have had the bond of father and son for 14 years. I'll never call another man dad."
In his late teen, Nathan began looking at how he could become legally adopted, but as he was over the age of 18, he found out that it would be impossible for him to be adopted.
Five years later, Nathan’s mum and stepfather had twin boys, and the arrival of his brothers, now aged four, made Nathan begin to think about adoption again.
He said that he had never grown up with a father figure, and it took Brian coming into his life to understand what the love of a family could be, being treated as a son as well as a grandson. He said that now his brothers have been born, he is even more desperate to formalise the relationship he has with his stepfather, adding that it has been a pleasure to be part of their life while they grow up.
Nathan’s stepfather, Brian, has recently shocked the family by returning with a tattoo. The tattoo has the dates of birth of his 4 children, Nathan and his sister Amy, as well as his twin brothers.
Nathan said that this gesture had a profound effect on him, saying that it ‘jolted’ him.
Lots of countries around the world allow adoption at any ages, and Nathan has written to a number of MSPs to get them to ask for a change in the law to allow adults to be adopted.
He has said that the process could only take six words to be changed on the Adoption and Children Act (Scotland) 2007.
A spokesperson for the Scottish government has said that they are improving procedures to ensure that there is a modern and child-centred adoption system in the country, and that they will look into the proposal.
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