A Lancaster researcher has made public a redacted version of his confidential in-depth report into a baby who died at a mother and baby home at the centre of the historic forced adoption scandal.
Dr Michael Lambert of Lancaster Medical School has unearthed archival evidence from official records of the circumstances surrounding the birth, life and death of Stephen Holt at St Monica's maternity home in Kendal in 1964.
Stephen's mother was 17-year-old Judith Holt who, because she was pregnant outside marriage, was sent to a home for unmarried mothers by a local church social worker from her home in Penwortham, near Preston.
Her son Stephen was born on January 13 1964, living for 11 weeks before dying from spina bifida and hydrocephalus on April 3 1964. After decades of living with the loss of her son in secret, in 2006 Judith tragically took her own life in her car close to where her baby son was buried in Parkside Cemetery, Kendal.
She was one of thousands of unmarried mothers who gave birth at mother and baby homes, run by religious organisations across Britain. Dr Lambert's research has shown how difficult it was for an unmarried mother at that time to keep her baby given the lack of financial support, housing and childcare, with adoption typically presented as the only option, often said to be in the best interests of the child.
In 2021, a UK parliamentary report estimated that 185,000 babies were forcibly separated from their mothers in England and Wales between 1949 and 1976.It recognised the abuses that took place in mother and baby homes, classifying these practices, as well as those for the adoption of infants and babies, as clear violations of human rights, recommending that the Government should issue a formal apology.
Dr Lambert said: "Whilst resident Judith was expected to participate in the domestic life of the home before birth which entailed cleaning, polishing, laundry, preparing knitted garments for the child, participation in religious worship, and some time for leisure and rest. This regime was prescriptive and routinised, overseen by the Superintendent, Elsie M. Stannard."
Dr Lambert's research revealed that between 1938 and 1965, when Miss Elsie M. Stannard was the Superintendent of St Monica's, there were - including Stephen Holt - 44 recorded infant deaths and at least 43 recorded stillbirths recorded for mothers at the home. He identified 'clear failure of governance' from the religious organisations which oversaw the home and associated social work with unmarried mothers from both Carlisle Diocese and the Church of England.
In his report, he said the local health authorities which funded St Monica's as part of the National Health Service had been concerned about the quality and availability of maternity care provided but nothing was done.
"These unaddressed concerns may have contributed to Stephen's poor care and can be seen in relation to the reasons for other infant deaths and stillbirths in the home over time. Stephen was born with meningo-myelocele (spina bifida), a congenital clinical condition where the neural tubes fail to close in utero during foetal development, leaving portions visible or exposed."
"This condition made him less desirable for adoption by prospective adoptive couples and may have influenced how he was subsequently managed by Miss Stannard, other staff who worked in the home, and outside medical expertise."
