'My baby was taken into care from my hospital bed'

The Growth project works with women whose children have been removed from their care, including at birth

"I gave birth, I got her dressed and then 20 minutes later she was taken away from me."

Amy – not her real name - has two daughters who were taken into care and later adopted. Her youngest was removed at birth.

"It was heartbreaking, I got postnatal depression afterwards," she says.

"My daughter was removed from the hospital bed and if I wanted to see her, nurses had to come with me because of the risk of me running away with her."

Amy is one of a number of women involved with a charity in Sheffield, where a new project provides safe and stable accommodation and mental health support for mothers who have lost custody of their children.

The Growth project provides safe housing

Amy had a traumatic childhood. She was in foster care and was then placed in a children's home.

As a care leaver, she became pregnant and experienced domestic abuse, but ended up homeless when she left the relationship.

She began using drugs and her daughter was put up for adoption.

"I started spiralling from that and using heavier drugs like crack cocaine," she explains.

"I met another guy and got pregnant and again it was a violent relationship. I moved because of the violence and I was put into a refuge."

Amy's second child was taken into care during the Covid pandemic, and contact with the baby was over a Teams call on a laptop.

"I think maybe if Covid didn't hit, I could have had a better chance of getting my daughter back.

"I could have gone to parenting courses and I could have done more to try and change my life, which I managed to do in Sheffield a year later."

After moving to South Yorkshire, Amy is now raising her third child herself and has helped to develop the pilot project for other women in her situation.

Growth, which is run by Target Housing, provides accommodation, mental health support and a case worker for women who have had children removed from their care or are at risk of losing custody.

It received 60 referrals for the 12 places available and all the women being supported have experienced domestic abuse.

Lucy – not her real name – is among the 12 who were given a place on the scheme.

"They gave me supported housing which was the foundation of being able to pick a lot of life back together," she says.

"They supply the housing and help you with everything along the way.

"They support you within your meetings so you don't feel like you're alone, you don't feel like you've got to fight a case because they're stood alongside you as well."

Mothers involved in care proceedings in the family courts are often told they need to access mental health support, but can face long NHS waiting lists.

The Growth project provides them with dedicated psychological support.

"You have one specific psychologist that you meet on a regular basis and she tailors a plan to your specific needs," Lucy explains.

The project targets women who have previously struggled to engage with support, and Lucy admits that in the past she refused meetings with social services.

"When I was referred into Growth, they gave me the support and the strength to be able to stand out there and not have to go into hiding.

"I knew that even if I went into hiding, Growth would come and find me."

Rebecca Smith is service manager at Target Housing

Target Housing set up the Growth project after identifying a need to support women who were experiencing child removal in Sheffield.

A report by the government's Changing Futures programme found that women could lose access to their children due to issues such as insecure or unsuitable accommodation, substance misuse and contact with the criminal justice system.

Mothers released from prison sentences were more likely to be unable to provide appropriate housing that would allow them to be reunited with their children.

It also identified that women who have children removed often have a background of childhood trauma, do not trust "the system" and are at risk of further disadvantage and of having future children taken away from them.

The report added that the hope of being reunited with children was a "powerful motivator" for mothers to engage with support.

It highlighted that poor housing options for these women, which were not considered safe, could force them to leave their accommodation and "sofa surf" or sleep rough, further reducing access to their children.

'Postcode lottery'

Through Growth, the service users are provided with family homes so there is space for children to stay during contact visits and possibly be returned to their mothers, if appropriate.

Service manager Rebecca Smith said the charity applied for Big Lottery funding for the pilot after studying the connection between homelessness and child removal.

"It's a bit of a postcode lottery in terms of where women live and what support is available," she says.

"In terms of providing supported accommodation, the psychologist and the case work provision, I don't think there is any other service that is as unique as Growth."

Target Housing has been trying to secure funding to continue the project in Sheffield and possibly expand into Rotherham.

Having helped to develop it, Amy says Growth has a special place in her heart.

"There's not enough services that support women with child removal.

"I feel like if I'd had something like this with my daughters I could have had a chance at keeping them, but there was no support then."

Lucy, who has continued to be supported by Growth, agrees.

"Without the stability they provide us and the confidence and support they give us, nothing would change so people would suffer more and not get any better."

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