A former Fife woman caught up in Scotland’s baby ashes scandal is threatening legal action over the lack of a dedicated memorial to babies whose remains were never returned to their families.
Bereaved mother Carol Howden was told there would be no ashes following the death of her four-month-old son, John, 30 years ago.
She later learned his ashes were dispersed in the grounds of Dunfermline’s council-run crematorium.
Fife Council has apologised for the anguish caused by past practices and said it has created memorials to babies.
Ms Howden, who now lives in the Highlands, said the lack of a dedicated memorial to her baby and infants from other Fife families who had suffered a similar experience to her own continued to be a source of distress.
In an interview with BBC Scotland, she asked: “Who took his ashes? Who scattered his ashes? It wasn’t me or my family. It was a stranger.
“You wouldn’t even want that for your pets would you, never mind your child, your gorgeous little baby.”
Fife Council has been accused of being “heartless” and failing to follow recommendations made after an official inquiry into the ashes scandal.
The local authority has not compensated all parents caught up in the scandal in its area, or erected a dedicated memorial for 13 local infants – measures adopted by other Scottish local authorities following an official, nationwide investigation.
In a statement, the council said it already had specific baby areas with memorials at its crematoria and cemeteries.
It said these areas were developed and managed in conjunction with the bereavement charity Sands.
The authority said it would be happy to work with any parent who wished to have their baby’s name added to any of these memorials.
But Ms Howden said a dedicated memorial was needed and the next step in her fight to create one would be legal action.
She said: “They need a memorial for the lost babies.
“I don’t know where John is. I have no plot. I just got told that he got put on a waste piece of ground. I know no more than that.”
