Mother and baby homes/Magdalene laundries – further update on research

(Above: Marianvale, the former mother and baby home outside Newry)

In August 2019, QUOTE Hub member Sean O’Connell and Leanne McCormick (of Ulster University) submitted a research report on the history of mother and baby homes and Magdalene laundries in Northern Ireland. The other members of the research team were Olivia Dee and John Privilege. The report draws on an extensive number of oral testimonies as well as archival research. The report was evaluated by an Inter-departmental Working Group set up by the Department of Health and a new section was added to the report (written by O’Connell and McCormick) providing an Executive Summary and further detail on legal issues.

The IDWG now has a new Chair. Judith Gillespie has replaced Peter McBride. The report is due for publication soon and victims and survivors have been contacted by the IDWG with an invitation to engage with a Victims’ Reference Group. Further updates on publication of the report and plans to feature some of the testimonies on a dedicated website will be announced here. If you have any queries on this you contact Sean O’Connell at s.oconnell@qub.ac.uk