Your question deserves
a proper answer.
Done entirely for you, with complete discretion.
I investigate adoption histories, unknown parentage, and unexpected DNA discoveries, combining genetic evidence with twenty years of documentary research to find the answers you have been carrying for years. Based in Nottingham, available UK-wide.
However you arrived here,
the question belongs to you.
This service is for people who were formally adopted and wish to trace birth family members or access adoption records. If you are investigating a biological parent question using DNA evidence rather than formal adoption records, the unknown parent investigation service covers that route.
Some people have known their whole lives. Others discovered it through a DNA test that returned close matches they did not recognise. Some found a document in a drawer. Some were told, suddenly, by someone who should have said something years ago.
However you arrived here, you are carrying a question that belongs to you. A question about where you came from. About who your biological family are. About a parent, or a family, you have never met.
These situations are not rare. And they are not straightforward to investigate without the right methodology. DNA evidence alone rarely gives a complete picture. Documentary research alone often reaches a wall. The combination of both, carried out by someone who knows both archives, is what produces answers.
- You were adopted, and the information you were given tells you almost nothing about your biological family
- You are donor-conceived, and you want to know more about the person whose genetics you carry
- A DNA test returned close matches you do not recognise, and no one in the family can explain them
- You have always suspected something was unspoken about your parentage, and you want to know the truth
- You have been searching on your own and reached a wall you cannot get past alone
This is not a basic database search.
It is a full investigation, combining genetic evidence with documentary research across every relevant record set, to build a complete, evidenced picture of your biological origins. Most adoption and unknown parent cases require both kinds of evidence working together. DNA tells us who shares your biology. Documents tell us who those people were, where they lived, and how your story connects to theirs. One without the other rarely gives a complete answer.
DNA Analysis and Match Mapping
I review your full DNA match list from AncestryDNA, 23andMe, MyHeritage, FamilyTreeDNA, or Living DNA, and identify the closest, most significant genetic connections. I map how your matches relate to each other using shared match clustering, even before we know who those people are. This stage often reveals the biological family line within the first week.
Documentary Research
Every DNA lead is followed into the historical and civil record. I search birth, marriage, and death registers, census returns, parish records, and specialist archives, including adoption registers, mother and baby home records, and, where relevant, Irish or international archives, to build a paper trail that confirms, or complicates, what the DNA suggests.
Case Building and Hypothesis Testing
I construct and test a hypothesis: who are these matches, how do they connect to your biological line, and what does the combination of genetic and documentary evidence tell us? I work methodically through every viable lead until the evidence points clearly in one direction. If it does not, I tell you honestly why, and what, if anything, might be possible in the future.
Careful Presentation of Findings
You receive a complete written report, in plain language rather than genealogy jargon, explaining what was found and what it means. I walk you through it personally on a follow-up call. There is no moment where you open an email alone and discover something life-changing without anyone there to explain it.
Some adoption searches uncover information that is harder to receive than others. A family secret that explains everything and changes everything at the same time. A biological parent who has since died. A half-sibling nobody knew about. These outcomes are not unusual.
In every case, the thing that helps most is having someone who already knows what the records say, and can present the truth carefully, completely, and without judgement. Whatever your investigation turns out to reveal, I will handle it with the same care I would want for my own family.
Your investigation ends with something permanent.
Not a printout of raw DNA data. Not a list of names with no context. A fully investigated, carefully written account of what the evidence found, what it means, and what it tells you about the family line you did not previously know.
Every investigation includes
- Full DNA match analysis and mapping
- Documentary research in all relevant archives
- Complete written investigation report
- Personal follow-up call with Gary
- Progress updates at key milestones
- Plain-language explanation of all findings
Your written report contains
- A narrative account of the investigation
- All DNA evidence explained in plain language
- Documentary evidence with source citations
- Biological family profile, where found
- Family tree of biological line, where possible
- Guidance on next steps, if you want them
Fixed pricing.
No surprises.
Every investigation is different. But every price is fixed. No hourly rates. No surprise invoices. No 'it depends' when you ask for a number. You see the exact cost confirmed in writing before any payment is made, and you decide whether to proceed.
- DNA match review across all platforms
- Shared match clustering and centimorgan mapping
- Written interpretation report
- Follow-up call with Gary
- Everything in DNA Match Analysis
- Full documentary research in civil registration, census, and specialist archives
- Adoption registers and mother and baby home records
- Complete evidential report
- Personal walk-through call
- Full Adoption Research Investigation
- Complete family history research across all lines
- Heritage Report
- Framed family tree available as an add-on
Not sure which is right for your situation? Book a free 30-minute call and I will tell you honestly what your case needs, including whether this service is the right approach for where you currently are.
Four steps. You tell me what you know. I do everything else.
You do not need to know anything about centimorgans, adoption registers, or documentary archives to begin. You need the question, and a willingness to hear whatever the answer turns out to be.
Free 30-minute call
We talk. You tell me what you know, however little, what you are hoping to find, and anything you have already tried. I tell you honestly what I think is possible and whether this is the right service for your situation. No commitment. No pressure.
Scope agreement
If we decide to proceed, I send a simple written brief confirming exactly what I will investigate, what you will receive, the fixed price, and the expected timeline. You confirm, pay a 50% deposit, and the investigation begins.
The investigation
I research. You wait. I contact you when I find something significant, or at agreed milestones throughout. You are never left wondering what is happening. Most adoption investigations take six to twelve weeks, depending on complexity.
Delivery and follow-up call
You receive your complete written report. Then we speak. I walk you through the findings in full, explain every piece of evidence, answer every question, and give you the space to take in what you have learned. There is no rush.
Ready to take the first step? The consultation is free, takes thirty minutes, and requires no preparation on your part.
Book a Free Call to Discuss Your InvestigationTwenty years of research.
Personal conviction. No shortcuts.
I am Gary Skerritt. I have been researching family histories, my own and other people's, for twenty years. I am based in Nottingham and work with clients across the UK and internationally.
My interest in this work is personal, not academic. My father came from Ireland. I spent years tracing that side of the family through the gap years, through the Catholic registers, through the records the 1922 Public Record Office fire destroyed, and through everything it left intact. I know what it means to search for people who were never meant to be found.
I combine DNA interpretation with documentary research across every major UK and Irish archive. This combination, genetic evidence corroborated by historical record, is the methodology that works where single-source searches fail. It is a specialist skill. It is what I do.
Testimonials are not yet available for this recently launched service. The first client case is currently in progress. When it completes, a genuine, specific testimonial will appear here. In the meantime, the free 30-minute consultation gives you the opportunity to hear about Gary's approach and experience directly before committing to anything.
Everything you need to know before you call.
If your question is not answered here, it will be answered on the free 30-minute consultation call.
You have been carrying this
question long enough.
The first step is a conversation. Thirty minutes, no commitment, entirely private. Tell me what you know and what you are hoping to find. I will tell you honestly what I think is possible, what the investigation would involve, and whether this is the right service for your situation.
There is nothing to prepare. You do not need to have done any research. You just need to make the call.