Church of England apologises for role in forced adoptions

The Church of England has told birth mothers and children affected by historical forced adoptions that it is "profoundly sorry" for its role in the practice.

It follows the government confirming on Wednesday that it will make a full apology on behalf of the state over the practice, which saw thousands of mothers pressured into giving up babies for adoption because they were unmarried.

Between 1949 and 1976, the Church of England helped run, or was responsible for, about 100 mother and baby homes where women were sent to give birth.

In a formal apology, the Archbishop of Canterbury Dame Sarah Mullaly said victims experienced "pain and trauma and suffering and fear when you should have received care and compassion".

She added: "You have nothing to be ashamed of. The shame is ours and we're profoundly sorry."

Under the practice, unmarried pregnant women would be sent to mother and baby homes, in effect, to hide them from society.

The apology comes after two years of research by the Church into its archives and other records. It also spoke to birth mothers and adoptees.

A new report published by the Church found that documents from 1970 offered an insight into attitudes at the time, with staff describing the homes as places "from which the adoption agencies get their raw material".

The report also found that some mothers were described as "dim, feckless [and] inadequate" and the Church was aware that the quality of the homes "did not always meet acceptable standards".

The Church's apology recognises that many of them were given menial and manual tasks as a form of punishment, even though they were heavily pregnant.

Dame Sarah said the Church was "profoundly sorry for the pain, trauma and stigma experienced and also carried today" by those affected.

"That is not acceptable and we are sorry for that," she added.

The Adult Adoptee Movement, which represents children forcibly removed from mothers during the era, described the statement as "not a meaningful apology".

"There is no admission of wrongdoing in this statement. No recognition of the specific harms," it added.

Not all the birth mothers subjected to forced adoptions went through a Church of England mother and baby home. Others were run by different Church and welfare groups.

In 2016, the Catholic Church apologised to those caught up in what it called the "grief and pain" experienced by mothers who lost children to adoption whilst in the care of Catholic run homes and adoption agencies.

The government has said it accepts that the state had played a role in the practice.

"The prime minister will have more to say on this shameful period in our history, reflecting the gravity of what has happened," she said.

It follows a separate series of BBC reports which led to the Scottish and Welsh governments to issue apologies to victims in their nations in 2023.

In her address, Dame Sarah said it was "shocking, absolutely shocking for women and babies to be separated with no consent".

She said the Church is now offering support services at the Parish level to those in need and has further resources available on its website.

Dame Sarah acknowledged that some birth mothers affected by the practice have since passed away, saying she has a "deep regret that this apology comes too late".