The Catholic church in England and Wales has apologised for the first time over its role in the forced adoption of thousands of children from unmarried mothers.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster and head of the Catholic church in England and Wales, has issued the apology as part of an ITV documentary called “Britain's Adoption Scandal: Breaking the Silence”.
He said in a statement: “The Catholic Church understands and acknowledges the grief and pain caused by the giving-up of a child through adoption. The practices of all adoption agencies reflected the social values at that time and were sometimes lacking in care and sensitivity. We apologise for the hurt caused by agencies acting in the name of the Catholic Church.”
Between 1950s and 1980s more than half-a-million women were forced to give up their babies for adoption because they were unmarried mums.
