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Local Councils were asked to report to the Minister of Health by the end of March
1968 on their proposals to implement the Act. There have been protracted discussions
between the London Boroughs Association and the Family Planning Association in an
effort to formulate recommendations for a common policy amongst the London Boroughs.
At the end of the year these discussions were still going on and this Council in
common with most of the London Boroughs had not made a decision concerning the
implementation of the Act.
Care of Unsupported Mothers and Their Babies
Miss H. Oliver, Social Welfare Worker, comments:—
The means used in the Health Department to assist the unsupported mother are
set out below.
Satisfactory and economic housing for the unsupported mother is again a gap in
the services and this facet was also stressed in previous reports. The problem so far
is a small one in this Borough as many of the women return to parents or relatives if
they wish to keep their babies. Even so the wish is frequently expressed to have a
home of their own.
The number of new cases has fallen during the period under review but the
volume of the work has increased. There is a steadily growing number of unsupported
mothers living within the Borough who from time to time seek fresh help and advice
and. when it is possible to give more time to an individual, problems are tested in depth
so that the support given is more effective and a better relationship established.
A smaller number of women required residential care and if this trend indicates,
as I think it does, a greater acceptance and willingness to help by the community, it is
realistic and good. It is preferable for the pregnant woman to live in her normal
surroundings receiving her ante-natal care from her family doctor or at the local health
clinic. She is then encouraged to participate in the various activities conducive to
natural childbirth and mothercare. This development is a reasonable and logical attitude
to take in the society of today. For those who will continue to need the traditional
care of homes and hostels the service continues with adequate financial aid provided
by the Council; standards are good in these establishments and continue to improve.
They provide a diversity of choice to meet most needs. The patients maintained by
the Council are visited regularly by me and are able to discuss a problem if it arises.
It is sometimes suggested that adoptions take place because the mothers are homeless
but there is never one single factor governing these decisions. The main reason given
seema to stem from feelings of guilt at having brought a child into the world who in
all probability will never know its father — with all that this situation implies. Even
so one would wish to see more women with sufficient earning capacity and stamina
elect to keep their children; they should then be given the full support of the social
services to enable them to do so. It is difficult to express an opinion in considering
those women who are sometimes classified as inadequate. One must ask for how long
the community can continue to support them and what is the future of their children
because the intensive care needed is difficult to provide. There is a special venture in
a nearby London Borough, which seeks to meet this need, and a large house has been
taken where six inadequate mothers can be accommodated, each girl having her own
room in which to care for her baby. This home will also take a girl who has been
unable to reach a decision about adoption, and who needs a longer period in which to
consider this step. One mother and baby who was supported in the home by the
Council became more self-reliant and was eventually able to take a training.
A few girls can be helped by residential work, and if it is carefully selected, can
work well. However, the majority of women today are trained in some occupation
and do not wish to give it up, so that only a few can be accommodated in this way.
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