Mothers and children ‘desperately need’ apology

A woman who was forcibly adopted as a child says she and other campaigners are “desperate” for an apology from the government.

A campaign group called the Movement for An Adoption Apology said as many as 215,000 women in the UK who had babies out of marriage were forced to give them up between the 1950s and 1970s.

Veronica Dewan, who was born in a mother and baby home, said both her and her birth mother’s mental health had “suffered tremendously”.

A government spokesperson said the practice should never have happened and it was “continuing to engage with those affected to provide support”.

Ms Dewan’s birth mother was a student nurse and her father was an Indian student who was studying in the UK at the time.

“I was with her for six weeks and then she was told it was not possible for me to stay with her because she would have to face the prejudice of the time, as my father was from India and this was 1957,” she said.

Ms Dewan, from Salisbury in Wiltshire, said she had a traumatic childhood and was expelled from school and taken back into care.

It was not until 1976 that she found out her mother’s true identity.

“So many of us have suffered so much trauma, both birth parents and adoptees.

“We need trauma-informed therapy. I have paid for so much through my life and I’m not the only one.

“I meet so many people in this situation who had really difficult adoptions, trying to struggle through and live life as best they can,” she added.

The Scottish and Australian governments have already apologised for the practice of forced adoption.

Stephanie – not her real name – from North Somerset, had her child taken from her in 1968 when she was 16.

“I wanted to keep my baby, I really did – I wanted to keep my baby very much,” she said.

“It has a huge impact. Every day you think about your baby, hoping they’re alright, it affects your whole life,” she added.

When the time came to leave the mother and baby home, Stephanie said she was told to never speak about what had happened.

“You feel hurt and numb because you can never grieve properly,” she said.

The campaign group handed over a letter demanding an apology from the government at 10 Downing Street on Wednesday.

A Department for Education spokesperson said it took the issue “extremely seriously”.

“This abhorrent practice should never have taken place, and our deepest sympathies are with all those affected,” the spokesperson added.

Additional reporting by Joe Sims.