APPENDIX 20
Memorandum by Nottinghamshire County Council
Welfare of Former Child Migrants (CM 130)
Summary of evidence
This Inquiry provides an opportunity to secure
redress for the harm and injustice suffered by the former Child
Migrants.
This redress should include:
— enhancing and extending the social
work support, family finding, and reconciliation services offered
by the Child Migrants Trust;
— providing direct financial assistance
to enable former migrants to visit the UK.
— for over 10 years Nottinghamshire
County Council has shouldered the largest share of the financial
cost of supporting the Child Migrants Trust. The British and Australian
Governments should acknowledge their responsibility for past policies
and should undertake to put the trust on a firm and adequate footing.
Introduction1. Nottinghamshire County Council welcomes
the Committee's Inquiry into the welfare of former Child Migrants.
The story of child migration is one that many people exposed to
it for the first time find literally incomprehensible. Few can
understand now how so many children could be taken from the UK
to settle in the Commonwealth. It is only through reading the
testimony of individual former migrants that one can begin to
grasp the enormity of the impact of the Child Migration Scheme
on both the migrants and their parents. Undoubtedly, the Committee
will hear first hand about these experiences and the effect of
child migration.2. However, now is not the time for recrimination
but for redress. The greatest service the Inquiry could render
would be to ensure that the reality of child migration is acknowledged
and that urgent measures are put in place to ease the burden on
former migrants and their parents before it is too late.
Nottinghamshire County Council3. It was only fortuitous
that Margaret Humphreys was working for Nottinghamshire when she
was first approached by a former migrant, thus starting the chain
of events and research which led to her uncovering the enormity
of the issue. For over 10 years, the Nottinghamshire County Council
has supported this work in both the early stages of research and
discovery and subsequently through the Child Migrants Trust.4.
The County Council has been privileged to be in a position to
help address a very serious moral and social issue. Recent history
shows the value of local authorities having both the resources
and the vision to address issues which are outside parochial concerns
or the limits of "local administration". Without the
practical, political, and financial support from the County Council,
in partnership with the Child Migrants Trust, it is unlikely that
child migration would have achieved the profile which is shown
by the Committee's Inquiry. Without the capacity for independent
action on the part of the local authority this support would not
have been possible.5. Many migrants visiting the UK make a point
of visiting both the Child Migrants Trust and Nottinghamshire
County Council. A recent letter from the International Association
of Former Child Migrants and their families described Nottinghamshire
County Council as "the conscience of Britain" on this
issue.
Background6. It is over 50 years since child migration
recommenced after the Second World War. Until as late as 1967,
child welfare charities in this Country sent large numbers of
children to the Old Commonwealth countries, especially Australia,
New Zealand, Canada, and Rhodesia. It is estimated that nearly
10,000 children were emigrated in the post-war period, the majority
destined for Australia.7. The reality of this policy is summarised
below:
Children as young as three were separated from
their families and brought up in institutions thousands of miles
from home.
They were removed from Britain often without
the knowledge and consent of their parents.
Many were told that their parents were dead,
although this was often untrue. Their names were changed and they
were often separated from their brothers and sisters.
They were often placed in large institutions,
isolated from the wider community, where many experienced severe
deprivation and near slave labour conditions.
Many experienced degrading physical, sexual,
and emotional abuse.
Their discharge from institutional care, around
16 years of age, was often without adequate preparation.
Few were given details of their history and
family background. As adults seeking family information their
enquiries were frequently met with bureaucratic indifference and,
at times, calculated deception.8. Through the work of the Child
Migrants Trust, and the more recent establishment of the International
Association, the depth of bitterness and hurt which it felt by
former migrants and their families is shown. For many parents
being reunited lifts a lifelong burden of guilt. It is only through
the experiences of the former migrants who were denied knowledge
of their background that one appreciates fully the importance
of identity and family histories.9. As time passes as parents
age the need for urgent action to reunite them with their children
becomes more pressing. Further delay in seriously addressing these
issues will mean that it will be too late for many.
The Child Migrants Trust10. The Child Migrants Trust
was established in 1987 to:
reunite Child Migrants with their families.
provide social work support to the migrants
to help them come to terms with their past
provide social work support to parents.11.
Again, the evidence of former Child Migrants will be testimony
to the value of the work of the Trust. The recognition which is
now being given to the reality of the child Migration Scheme and
the experiences of former migrants should not disguise the fact
that the Trust has frequently had to struggle against responses
ranging from official indifference to active and organised opposition.12.
The Committee may receive evidence arguing that the migrating
agencies have easier access to historical records and therefore
should undertake this work. However, over the last ten years the
Trust has developed a great deal of expertise in tracking down
families which other agencies would find difficult to replicate.
But more significantly, the other players in this sorry story
are tainted with the past—neither governments nor the migrating
agencies have the credibility with the former migrants that the
Child Migrants Trust has. It is widely acknowledged as a highly
professional, neutral, and respected social work agency.13. Although
the work of the Child Migrants Trust is national and international,
the County Council has since the outset been one of its chief
supporters in both financial and other ways. The core work of
the Trust in the UK is currently funded by grants from Nottinghamshire
County Council, the Department of Health, other authorities, and
sundry donations and income.14. Core funding in 1997-98 is broadly
| £000
|
| Nottinghamshire County Council |
84 |
| Department of Health | 25
|
| Sundry | 10
|
The Department of Health grant was renewed in 1997-98 for two
years on a tapering basis and ends in 1998-99 with a final grant
of £20,000.In addition, National Lottery funding has been
secured for further social workers to work with parents in the
UK. The Australian Government funds two workers to work with former
migrants in Australia. The ability to meet the requirements of
these grants depends on having a secure core.15. Despite the
continuing financial restraint on local authorities Nottinghamshire
County Council has remained committed to the Trust and to its
work with former Child Migrants. However, the County Council is
not in a position to provide the additional resources which the
Trust needs if it is to make serious inroads to the size of the
problem and respond effectively to the numbers of migrants coming
forward for help. Last spring the Leader of the County Council
wrote personally to the leaders of other Social Services authorities
asking for contributions. A small number did make a financial
contribution, but most wrote to acknowledge the issue but report
that they felt unable to contribute because financial constraints
and because most felt that Central Government should acknowledge
responsibility for earlier policy failures.16. The task of reuniting
former migrants and their parents or families is a finite one,
and one which in view of the ageing nature of parents is becoming
increasing pressing. A serious commitment from the British and
Australian Governments to put the Trust's resources on a firm
and adequate footing for, say, a period of at least five years
would make a significant impact on resolving the unresolved episodes
in many people's lives and erase the stain on our social history.
Child Migrants17. The establishment of the International
Association domonstrates both the scale of the issue and the intention
to focus collective action on seeking redress. The Committee will
no doubt wish to hear the voice of former Child Migrants at first
hand.18. Child migrants are a varied group of people coming from
a wide range of backgrounds and current circumstances brought
together only because of their history and the effects that child
migration had on them. It is this common thread that makes them
unique and remarkable. Some have gone onto make significant achievements
whilst others have struggled with the continuing effects of their
migration.19. The Committee may wish to consider what practical
support can be made available perhaps along the lines of a fund
to provide for practical assistance for migrants needing to research
their backgrounds or wishing to see their parents and families,
home country etc.
Recommendations20. The Inquiry provides an opportunity
for the issue of child migration to be recognised and for action
to be taken by Government to make whatever restitution is still
possible.The Committee is asked to consider recommending that:
(i) The Department of Health agree to take over
the funding of the Child Migrants Trust and to put it on a firm
and adequate footing for, say, the next five years to facilitate
Child Migrants discovering their family background and being reunited
with their parents where this is still possible.
(ii) The British and Australian Government establish
a fund to provide practical assistance to Child Migrants wishing
to visit the UK to research their personal history and be reunited
with their families.
February 1998
| 
