View report page

27
Observations.
This case illustrates a mother's difficulties when she comes out of hospital with her child.
It shows the difficulty she has in placing her child suitably before she has money to pay for
its care and until she has placed her child she cannot go to work to earn the money.
It also shows the need for suitable foster mothers to be readily available.
It further illustrates the hazardous life of the child from the time it leaves hospital at least
until its mother gets work and shows the frequent changes of home and mothering to which it is subject.
This child of three weeks old passed from the care of its mother to foster mother A, from foster
mother A back to its mother, from its mother to foster mother B and from foster mother B to foster
mother C, all in the space of a few days.
Defects in the Child Life Protection Law.
(1) Insufficient control by the Welfare Authority over the Foster Mother, the Foster Child and the
Child's Mother.
(2) Shortage of Foster Mothers.
Requests are being constantly received from parents, rescue workers, hospital almoners and
others for addresses of possible foster mothers and only a small percentage of these can be met. It
is not unusual for applicants to state when they ring up Willesden that they have already tried
London and neighbouring districts in vain.
Suitable women are chary of becoming foster mothers on account of:—
(1) The small payments.
(2) The irregularity of the payments.
(3) The possible or even probable lapse of payments altogether.
(4) The difficulty and delay in getting help from Public Assistance Departments when
foster children are left on their hands.
(5) The knowledge that at any time a child whom they have become fond of may have
to be parted with.
(3) Impairment of health and well-being of Foster Children.
(1) The children are suffering on account of their hazardous lives from the time they leave
hospital until their mothers get work.
(2) The children are suffering both physically and mentally on account of the frequent
changes of home and the different mothers under whose care they come.
Suggested Remedies.
(1) The amendment of the law to give Welfare Authorities better control over Foster Mothers,
Foster Children and Foster Children's Mothers.
This would require a careful and thorough examination of the present position and
consideration of the best means for improvement.
(2) The payment of foster mothers directly by Welfare Authorities—part or all of the fees
to be recovered by the Welfare Authorities from the parents.
This should be a duty placed by law on all welfare authorities alike.
Payments to foster mothers could thus be made secure and sufficient.
(3) Applications for placing children with foster mothers to be made by the mothers to the
Welfare Authority.
(4) The establishment by the Welfare Authority of a Home or Clearing House in which when
necessary children could be received straight from hospital or in other emergency until placed with a
suitable foster mother.
(5) Mothers' pensions.
It hardly seems that these would solve this particular problem but they might be desirable
in some cases. Although illegitimacy is not the severe social handicap it was years ago the majority
of these girls still desire to keep the knowledge from their friends and usually do not want to be
hampered with a baby. They prefer to work and be free.