Christine Hayes, a former adoption social worker, has weighed in on the renewed debate over forced adoptions in Britain during the 1960s and 1970s. In a letter to the Guardian, she argues that while a government apology is welcome, it must be accompanied by acknowledgment of responsibility from all parties involved—including parents, charities, and mother and baby homes.
Parents' Role in Forced Adoptions
Hayes recalls that young women and girls who became pregnant outside of marriage were often told by their parents that they had brought shame on the family. They were instructed to leave and not return until the baby was no longer with them. This was the norm in society at the time, and children's charities played a significant part in carrying out what society requested.
Impact on Birth Parents and Adoptees
As an adoption social worker during that era, Hayes witnessed the trauma suffered by birth parents when their babies were removed for adoption. Later, when the government introduced adoption support services regulations in 2005, those who had suffered previously were provided with counselling and support. Hayes and her colleagues established weekend workshops for adoptees, birth mothers, and birth fathers. For many, it was the first time they had met others in the same situation.
These workshops helped disabuse adoptees of the belief that their birth parents had not loved them or had rejected them. The relief was palpable. Similarly, the workshops helped birth parents address their long-lasting shame and subsequent mental health issues.
Call for Collective Responsibility
Hayes concludes that not only should there be a government apology, but everyone must take responsibility for such decisions—society, families, the agencies, and mother and baby homes. This includes parents who pressured their daughters, charities that facilitated the adoptions, and the homes that housed pregnant women and girls.
