Congratulations to all of the happy families!

Earlier this week, the Department of Education released some adoption statistics, and among them it was revealed that same-sex couples now account for one in eight adoptions in England, which is the highest proportion since records began.

Out of the 3,820 children that have been adopted in the past year, 450 of them were by same-sex couples. However, the data also showed that the amount of adoptions has fallen since 2015 where 5,360 children were adopted overall.

Tor Docherty, the chief executive of New Family Social, said: “LGBT+ people can bring fantastic parenting skills to their adopted children.

“We’re thrilled to see agencies consistently recognising that LGBT+ people pay a key role in helping transform the lives of our most vulnerable children.”

The new figures show a sharp increase in the amount of same-sex couples adopting children, as in 2016 the rate was only one in ten adoptions.

At the time, Docherty commented: “Although the total number of adoptions fell in England in 2016 it’s heartening to see that agencies continue to consider and successfully place children for adoption with same-sex couples.

“It’s key in every adoption case that the needs of the child remain paramount and that agencies consider the full range of potential parents.”

However, even though England legalised same-sex adoption back in 2002, the news isn’t the same for same-sex couples around the world.

Earlier this year, Senate Bill 1140 was passed in Oklahoma, which allowed adoption agencies to refuse same-sex couples from adopting a child if it went against their personal religious beliefs.

The legislation was condemned, with GLAAD’s vice-president of programmes Zeke Stokes saying: “This bill is heartless and un-American.

“No qualified parent should be turned away from adoption or foster agencies simply because they are LGBTQ.”

In the wake of the bill, California banned state-funded travel to Oklahoma. Speaking to the San Francisco Chronicle, the state’s Attorney General, Xavier Becerra said: “California taxpayers are taking a stand against bigotry.

“California will not use state resources to support states that pass discriminatory laws. Our taxpayer dollars do not fund bigotry. No exceptions.”