Adoptees and mothers continue to fight for an apology in the UK

Last July the UK adoption community held a demonstration in London to demand an apology for forced adoptions. This marked three years since the UK’s Joint Committee on Human Rights recommended the government issue an apology following its inquiry The Violation of Family Life: Adoption of Children of Unmarried Women 1949–1976.

After protesting outside Parliament House, adoptee activist Zara Phillips and representatives from the Movement for an Adoption Apology (MAA) and the UK Adult Adoptee Movement (AAM) delivered a petition to Prime Minister Kier Starmer at 10 Downing Street.

The protest was well attended and received a lot of media attention, including tying in with a broader investigation by Sarah Corker (ITV) into mother and baby homes. Despite this success and good support from a few MPs, as well as a strong endorsement from former prime minister Gordon Brown, progress has been frustratingly slow. In October Bridget Phillipson MP, Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women & Equalities advised that the government is looking very seriously at next steps but gave no real indication that an apology will be made.

Last month Zara Phillips released a new protest song about the mass graves discovered at Hopedene, a mother and baby home operated by the Salvation Army in Newcastle Upon Tyne. You can find the song here.

2026 marks 100 years since the Adoption of Children Act was introduced. This represents an important opportunity for the UK Government to recognise the harm caused and implement concrete measures for reparation. While UK adoption agencies are organising centenary activities to celebrate this anniversary, a formal apology would be a powerful reminder of the lifelong impacts of separation and adoption.

Mothers and adoptees have fought long and hard for an apology and will not give up now; they are already planning another protest for this May. For more information contact Zara, MAA or AAM via the links provided above.