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Our History
- By Michael Mesarowicz
- Published 08/27/2007
- Society Articles
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St Margaret's Children and Family Care Society has progressed significantly since its beginnings in 1955. The Society was founded as a response from the Catholic Church in Scotland to the issue of adoption. At that time there was a real demand for adoptive parents for babies. It was not as socially acceptable in the 1950s for a young woman to keep a child as a single parent, and there was not the same level of support for single parents. The church, by virtue of its position in the community, was frequently approached for help and advice. From a small beginning, St Margaret’s grew steadily, and during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, the number of baby placements that were made could be measured in hundreds. The Society retains an archive room which contains thousands of files, each one of which describes the story of a child who has been placed for adoption through St Margaret’s.
The Society changed its name in the mid 1990s. It was recognised that while St Margaret’s is primarily an adoption agency, the social workers were involved in much more than arranging adoption placements. The Society has a much wider role in supporting children and families, and felt the need to express this in the change of name to reflect the changing nature of the Society.
Today the Society also provides support to families immediately after an adoption order has been granted, and often in later life, if teenagers and parents feel the need for further support or counselling. Many people may be unaware of the intensive support we offer to young women who are considering relinquishing their child for adoption. At the point where a young woman is considering adoption, we offer counselling to her, to her partner, and to her family. We provide support if she feels the need to return to us at any point in later life. We also provide an Origins Counselling service for those who have been adopted and who wish to undertake a search of their birth parents.
The nature of adoption has changed over the years, and St Margaret’s has evolved to meet the challenges of the new era. We offer a Letter Box contact service, and some families will exchange photographs and a letter, usually once a year. We are finding that this is an invaluable service for those birth parents who participate. They are aware of the fact that the child they relinquished for adoption is growing, and has a secure life and family. It can be a tremendous reassurance for birth parents, and removes uncertainty and fantasy. It can also be a help to adoptive parents as their child grows up. Rather than trying to find the “right time” to tell a child of their adoption, the child grows up knowing she or he is adopted. We find that their understanding and questioning grows as they develop. We encourage families to celebrate the “special day” when their child came to join the family.
St Margaret’s is very much associated with the professional world of adoption. Our social workers participate in multi agency training, we are involved in contributing to the ongoing development and research in the field of adoption, and we are very much involved with other professional agencies. We are members of the West of Scotland Consortium of Adoption Agencies, and the group meets in our premises in Glasgow. We are affiliated to such agencies as the British Association for Adoption and Fostering, Fostering Network, and all of the local authority adoption services in the West of Scotland. We employ a team of six professionally qualified social work staff and two administrative support staff, we run our own Adoption Panel, we provide a small number of foster placements, and the Society is supported and guided by our Council of Management. Although we operate in a very professional manner the Society remains true to its roots. As a Voluntary Organisation we operate as a Registered Charity.
The members of the Council of Management and the Adoption Panel, each of whom brings their own expertise to the Society, are all volunteers and give of their time generously and freely. Indeed the Society could not function without their support
Today, St Margaret's Children and Family Care Society is a modern, dynamic, and outward looking organisation which offers a service across the community to people of all faiths and none. We continue to be a Catholic response to the issues of adoption in our society today, and we continue to bear witness through the work we undertake.
The Society changed its name in the mid 1990s. It was recognised that while St Margaret’s is primarily an adoption agency, the social workers were involved in much more than arranging adoption placements. The Society has a much wider role in supporting children and families, and felt the need to express this in the change of name to reflect the changing nature of the Society.
Today the Society also provides support to families immediately after an adoption order has been granted, and often in later life, if teenagers and parents feel the need for further support or counselling. Many people may be unaware of the intensive support we offer to young women who are considering relinquishing their child for adoption. At the point where a young woman is considering adoption, we offer counselling to her, to her partner, and to her family. We provide support if she feels the need to return to us at any point in later life. We also provide an Origins Counselling service for those who have been adopted and who wish to undertake a search of their birth parents.
The nature of adoption has changed over the years, and St Margaret’s has evolved to meet the challenges of the new era. We offer a Letter Box contact service, and some families will exchange photographs and a letter, usually once a year. We are finding that this is an invaluable service for those birth parents who participate. They are aware of the fact that the child they relinquished for adoption is growing, and has a secure life and family. It can be a tremendous reassurance for birth parents, and removes uncertainty and fantasy. It can also be a help to adoptive parents as their child grows up. Rather than trying to find the “right time” to tell a child of their adoption, the child grows up knowing she or he is adopted. We find that their understanding and questioning grows as they develop. We encourage families to celebrate the “special day” when their child came to join the family.
St Margaret’s is very much associated with the professional world of adoption. Our social workers participate in multi agency training, we are involved in contributing to the ongoing development and research in the field of adoption, and we are very much involved with other professional agencies. We are members of the West of Scotland Consortium of Adoption Agencies, and the group meets in our premises in Glasgow. We are affiliated to such agencies as the British Association for Adoption and Fostering, Fostering Network, and all of the local authority adoption services in the West of Scotland. We employ a team of six professionally qualified social work staff and two administrative support staff, we run our own Adoption Panel, we provide a small number of foster placements, and the Society is supported and guided by our Council of Management. Although we operate in a very professional manner the Society remains true to its roots. As a Voluntary Organisation we operate as a Registered Charity.
The members of the Council of Management and the Adoption Panel, each of whom brings their own expertise to the Society, are all volunteers and give of their time generously and freely. Indeed the Society could not function without their support
Today, St Margaret's Children and Family Care Society is a modern, dynamic, and outward looking organisation which offers a service across the community to people of all faiths and none. We continue to be a Catholic response to the issues of adoption in our society today, and we continue to bear witness through the work we undertake.