BBC’s Eleanor Bradford promised two boys a home and a family in 2014, but now she’s changed her mind and says that “she is heartbroken” because of “the lack of support for adoptive parents and that she must return the older brother back to foster care”.  She doesn’t seem too concerned about what the child needs or why he is acting out, though she does claim that he is a thief and “extremely challenging”. She does not say what he is doing with the money, or even give an amount. She completely trashes the poor child and even blames his biological parents. She did however manage to keep two siblings together for eight years that “began as a dream”. Now though, because she says that it has “turned into a nightmare”, the oldest brother will once again be tossed into the horrific fostercare system and this time he will lose contact with his brother.

Eleanor Bradford feels that she cannot meet the boy’s needs and is asking “for support for parents to help reduce adoption breakdown”. Again, nothing about what the children are going through and what they need. She is just “unable to deal with the oldest boy’s behavior”. Will she “be able to deal with” the youngest boy’s behavior four years from now when he reaches the same age? Time will tell. What kind of message does the youngest child receive from her now that his older brother is “being returned? Surely that will increase any trusts issues that are most likely happening in the adoptive placement.

Eleanor is a successful educated woman so what is going on here? Why can’t she “handle a little boy”? She is the head of marketing and public relations at Gordonstoun and columnist for the Press and Journal. She is an “award-winning communications specialist, columnist and former BBC correspondent. Currently leading a communications team at Gordonstoun, the Scottish school attended by three generations of the Royal family and which leads the sector on character education. I specialize in high-impact communication campaigns across social media, TV, radio and newspapers, crisis communications and superb storytelling in everything from film-making to website design. Excellent contacts across the media, politics, health and higher education,” she says on her LinkedIn profile.

Hmm, forget the bad grammar and spelling on her site. She claims to be a communication specialist with experience in crisis communications. Not only that but she also hopes to teach teachers to deal with traumatized children in schools. Interesting. Something is a little off about her “not being able to handle a little boy”. Does she just not care for the child at all? Was it always about her and now he just doesn’t fit what she wants? Scary for the children.

She is a board trustee at Adoption UK Graphic which claims to support adoptive parents. But didn’t she just say that she had to return the boy because there was no support for adoptive parents. Wait a minute! That is confusing. I bet the poor child she “returned” is really confused. His brother, the one that she kept is probably confused about all of this too.

Eleanor Bradford claims that she is a, “Leader of a professional team in external and internal communications, digital communications and public affairs. Responsible for developing national and international media coverage. Leading engagement with the media, the business community, politicians, government representatives, and key opinion formers. An ambassadorial role at the regional and national level, promoting the University’s position within the higher education environment.”, and she “can’t handle the little boy she promised to give a home and a family?

She goes on to brag about advising BBC on all Scottish-related health issues. “Health Correspondent for BBC Scotland: I covered health issues for Scottish and UK-wide TV and radio and for the BBC’s online pages. I advised the BBC on all Scottish-related health issues. I was an early pioneer of social media and developed a strong digital media presence. Regularly broadcast to audiences in excess of several million across BBC Scotland, BBC Breakfast News, BBC Online, Radio 4, Radio 5, and BBC Worldwide.” she says. But she missed the mark on children’s related health issues.

“Awarded for Independent Boarding School of the Year, Independent School Parent Magazine in October 2021, Winner of best boarding school”.

She is a member of Debating Matters, a society which encourages school pupils and young people to improve their communications skills by taking part in its debating competitions. She is associated with the Medical Journalist Association so she has to be aware of experiments on fostered and adopted children, and with the education in crisis communication, and someone that hopes to teach teachers to deal with traumatized students one would think that she can handle a little boy’s needs.

Eleanor Bradford claims that the child she had to return is addicted to gambling. Yet, she spoke at an International Conference on Eating Disorders at the Scottish Parliament. Training in eating disorders goes hand in hand with training in addictions, so why can’t she help the boy she promised to give a home with his “illegal behavior” that she claims stems from using a cell phone that a neighbor gave him to gamble?

She adopted the children when she realized that she and her partner could not have children. That sounds as if she needed to fill a void in herself and the children met her need. In 2014 they adopted two brothers aged three and seven who would have been separated then had they not agreed to take the oldest boy in too. They became an “instant family”. She describes the first 5 years of having the boys as, “full-on but fabulous,” but adds, “the dream that turned into a nightmare”. And then, she goes on to describe how “heartbreaking” this is for her, ignoring how both of the boys must feel.

Even worse, she all out trashed the boy in The Sunday Times saying, “what began as a dream for us, but turned into a nightmare when he started lying, cutting up her clothes, stealing, and engaging in online criminal behavior,” she adds that “he shows a lack of empathy and morals”. In her article she even blames the children’s biological parents, “he may have suffered fetal alcohol spectrum disorder caused by his mother’s drinking during her pregnancy”. She also goes on to say that ‘If one foster carer’s salary had been invested in a counselor or teacher trained in trauma, not only our son but many other traumatized children could have accessed support”. Didn’t she as an advocate and a board trustee for Adoption UK know that they would need therapy and that adopted children do not usually just adjust to their new surroundings? Why didn’t Eleanor Bradford get counseling for the family? Did she not seek help because the government did not pay for it for her?

She herself explains that many adopted children suffer from trauma and that it impacts their behavior. She herself included common issues that children that have been traumatized either before or during their stay in foster care have to deal with such as addiction, stealing, lying, sexual behaviors, and sometimes even violence. It is just not acceptable that she “returned” this boy when the issues presented.

Adoptive parents do need support, but they also need to be vetted better. Too many children are running away, sex trafficked, sold for forced labor, drugged, and abused after they are adopted. In response to Eleanor Bradford’s ridiculously evil reasons for “returning” the boy she claimed as “family” in 2014, a Scottish government spokesperson told the BBC, “All local authorities have a statutory duty to provide support to adoptive families. This approach is supplemented by a Scottish government commitment to invest £500m over the life of this parliament through the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund”, so it sounds as if Scotland offers “adoption Payment incentives” much like the United States and other countries do. That money that is paid to the adoptive parents is meant to be spent on the children’s needs. In this case it sounds as if she pocketed that money and denied the boys mental health and spiritual needs. Were she a biological parent, and she reported such behavior, along with a lack of support, both children would most likely be removed from her home under the umbrella of neglect. What a tragic story for the children.

The original can be found here. We adopted two brothers. Eight years later, we gave one back

Minding Hearts is building advocacy and peer support groups in each state. The groups are created to raise awareness, educate, and advocate for those that might not otherwise be heard. We are here for encouragement, education, and support. We cannot give legal advice, but we can try and direct you in the right direction with your case. Links to legal services are listed with their states. Please share and let’s grow our groups. We are here to support families and develop resources that maintain family integrity. We look forward to your support. If you would rather become active by donating, then visit the donation page.