A Child for Keeps: The History of Adoption in England, 1918-45

Contents......Page 6
List of Illustrations......Page 8
Acknowledgements......Page 9
List of Abbreviations......Page 10
Introduction......Page 12
Secrecy......Page 14
Attitudes to adoption......Page 17
Adoption histories......Page 19
Changing families......Page 22
New views of childhood......Page 29
The development of child protection legislation......Page 33
Parental rights before 1926......Page 38
Marriage breakdown and custody......Page 39
Illegitimate children and unmarried mothers......Page 41
The beginning of organised adoption......Page 50
The formation of the first adoption societies......Page 53
The establishment of the National Council for the Unmarried Mother and Her Child......Page 73
The first conference on adoption......Page 78
The Hopkinson Committee......Page 82
The Hopkinson Report......Page 94
The 1920s – an era of legislative reform......Page 98
The years after the Hopkinson Report......Page 100
4 Legislation Takes Shape......Page 105
The Tomlin Committee\'s report......Page 106
Parliamentary debates on adoption......Page 114
The Adoption of Children Act 1926......Page 124
Initial reactions......Page 128
Court procedures......Page 131
In re Carroll......Page 137
Other legal issues......Page 139
Adoption of Children (Scotland) Act 1930......Page 140
The London County Council......Page 141
Who were the adopters, the adopted, and the relinquishing parents in the early years?......Page 148
Concern about the role of adoption societies......Page 155
The Horsbrugh Committee......Page 164
Report of the Departmental Committee on Adoption Societies and Agencies......Page 165
The Adoption of Children (Regulation) Act 1939......Page 178
The death of Miss Clara Andrew......Page 183
7 The Second World War and Its Aftermath......Page 186
Implementing the Adoption of Children (Regulation) Act......Page 188
Servicemen\'s wives and adoption......Page 191
Unmarried mothers......Page 193
Renewed pressure for adoption reform......Page 196
Adoption legislation......Page 201
Attitudes to adoption......Page 206
The rise of adoption......Page 208
Who was adoption for?......Page 210
Secrecy......Page 212
Adoption and women......Page 214
Adoption since 1950......Page 216
Final conclusions......Page 219
Notes......Page 224
Biographical Notes......Page 255
Bibliography......Page 263
A......Page 277
C......Page 279
G......Page 281
J......Page 282
M......Page 283
P......Page 284
S......Page 285
W......Page 286
Z......Page 287