Women resident in the London Boroughs of Barnet, Enfield, Haringey,Camden or Islington who have lost children to adoption can meet other birth mothers to talk through their feelings at one of two regular groups hosted by PAC.
PAC has hosted a fortnightly birth mother group at its London premises for several years. A partnership between PAC and the North London Adoption Consortium (NLAC) has led to the establishment, commencing December 2011, of a new bi-monthly group at Enfield Baptist Church, Cecil Road, Enfield EN2 6TG.
Birth mothers who are residents of any of NLAC’s five member London boroughs can attend either the Enfield or PAC office venues, whichever is most convenient for them. The service is free of charge and is open to women who are currently involved in care or adoption proceedings.
The groups offer a confidential space in which women whose children have been adopted, or are in other forms of permanent care, can talk about their fears, feelings and loss. A qualified PAC support worker is on hand to answer questions about how the adoption and care systems work, explain birth mothers’ rights, provide support over contact plans for adopted or placed children and offer help with letterbox contact.
PAC’s Birth Parent Support Worker, Rita Cleary, said:
“Women who have attended the groups have spoken about how much support they have found in the group. Only another birth mother can truly know how it feels to have lost a child to adoption”.
“It’s great that we can now offer this vital support at a second venue, so that birth mums living closer to Enfield can come along and meet other women who are in similar situations and who can understand their feelings”.
Prior to attending, birth mothers will be offered an initial one-to-one private appointment to talk through whether the group can meet their needs
For further details of either of the group contact PAC’s Advice Line or email advice@pac.org.uk
Download the North London Birth Mothers press release
Download the PAC NLAC Leaflet
