Forced adoption helpline calls double after government apology

Calls to a helpline for victims of forced adoption have doubled since the government formally apologised for its role in the practice, according to the organisation that runs the service. The apology came last month after years of campaigning by survivors, and it has prompted a surge in people seeking help to trace lost relatives.

Forced adoption affected an estimated 250,000 mothers in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, who were made to give up their babies simply because they were unmarried. Many families are still searching for the children who were taken from them, and the renewed attention on the scandal has brought new hope to those looking for answers.

One of them is Angie from Lincolnshire, who was adopted in 1962. She later discovered that her birth mother was 16 and unmarried when she was forced to give her up. Angie described a difficult childhood with her adoptive mother, who she said would tell her she was unwanted. She eventually reunited with her birth mother, but her mother died from cancer shortly afterwards, leaving Angie still searching for her birth father.

In Lancashire, Alan Strawton is looking for his missing sister Anne, who was born in the 1960s at a former institution for unmarried mothers in Newcastle. The trace goes cold after her birth, and Alan says he does not know where to turn next. In Teesside, the Pickard family are searching for baby John, who was taken from his mother shortly after birth because she was unmarried. They believe he may have been illegally sent abroad, and shipping records suggest he made a voyage from Liverpool to New York in the 1950s. His mother never stopped searching for him, and died without knowing what happened.

The government's apology, which acknowledged its central role in these cruel practices, also promised extra support for families. The minister responsible said he was writing to local authorities and regional adoption agencies to make sure people can get access to their records. But organisations like PAC-UK, which helps trace loved ones, say there are still barriers, including a postcode lottery for how quickly people get their files.

For Angie, the search for her father has hit a brick wall, but she has not given up hope. She said it would mean the world to find him, and she hopes the renewed focus on the forced adoption era may help her finally get to the truth about her own identity.