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access to old social workers reports

David Flint

New Member
All my mother's 5 siblings were taken into care, I think in 1923 due to the actions of their Father's drinking and not supporting his wife & five children, so neighbours had to help feed them. Finally the situation was reported to the City authorities and the post WW1 equivalent of the children's social services removed them into the safety of Birmingham's main Orphanage/Children's Home , until they were grown ups (14 yrs). My own mother was born in the Birmingham Workhouse/Hospital in July 1923, so believe this action took place earlier that year. I was wondering what records might exist into any reports and documents from that time. both of the event itself and reports of the children welfare whilst in the Homes. I know that more recent documents of this kind would be very restricted access, but as this event happened 100 years ago and all parties are now long deceased. I was wondering; If such reports may still exist and how I might gain access to read them. I visited Birmingham's New Library a few years ago and know they contain lots of archives there but wanted to find out who and what to request for access before making a research trip over to Birmingham. The Family name in question is Reynolds and they lived at 199 Barford Street
 
hi david...i think first of all you need to know exactly which institution/childrens homes the children attended..did they all go to the same one to be kept together or did they end up in different places...this could be difficult to find out...either way i would think the library of birmingham would have records if they still exist..if the removal of the children had taken place prior to 1921 you could have looked them up on the 1921 census but that idea is no good if as you say it happened in 1923..

sorry i cant be of more help but maybe some of our others members can advise you better...

lyn
 
Thanks for the quick reply "True Brummie" the facts that I do have are on the 1921 census all the family were living at the Burford St address the 5 children's ages ranging from 11 to 1. Family stories say when the went into the Childrens home they were split up as regards Age & sex into different Houses within the Home, my mother Ethel born in 1923 at 77 Dudley Rd (the Workhouse Hospital address) remembered her house was called STUART and thinks all the different houses were named after either Scottish clans, or royal family names. So that might give me a clue. There is a possibility that it was in the Erdington district? But I was thinking such a case of this with it's costs must have generated a report within the Health inspectors office so that's where I was initially wondering where to look into, so any pointers would be gratefully received
 
There's some info here, which you may have already seen...


And this for the workhouses, which seems to suggest you won't have much luck with them...

 
There's some info here, which you may have already seen...


And this for the workhouses, which seems to suggest you won't have much luck with them...

Thanks at least it's a start to know where...and where not to look when we access the Library archives
 
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