Society for the Protection of Unborn Children

Not to be confused with the former Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child (now Voice for Life and Right to Life New Zealand).

Society for the Protection of Unborn Children
FormationJanuary 1967 (1967-01)[1]
FounderPhyllis Bowman[2][3]
TypeAnti-abortion lobby group
HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
Websitewww.spuc.org.uk

Society for the Protection of Unborn Children is an anti-abortion organisation in the United Kingdom which also opposes assisted suicide and abortifacient birth control.[4]

History and Controversies

SPUC was formed in 1966 amid parliamentary debates over the Abortion Act, which came into law one year later. Although it is not officially faith-based, SPUC and the more conservative anti-abortion charity Life mainly draw upon Catholic and evangelical Protestant support.[5]

Between 2020 and 2022 the group received over £72,000 from US donors who used an agency to disguise their identity.[6] this was also reported in The National [7]

in 2022 the BBC removed SPUC resources from its website after a "backlash from health experts". The Guardian referred to SPUC's "history of promoting misinformation in schools".[8] The Guardian also reported that SPUC promotes unproven and potentially "dangerous" abortion reversal on it's website.

In 2019 SPUC were criticised for using "cynical" Toy Story themes marketing to promote anti-abortion ideology to children.[9]

In 2023 the Herald reported that SPUC made made legal threats towards a teacher over an abortion education petition. [10]

In December 2022 it was reported “Several schools throughout Lanarkshire have been visited by (the) controversial anti abortion campaign group.” [11]

In 2024 it was reported that the organisation were opposed to safe access zones (buffer zones) to keep anti-abortion activists 200 metres away from clinics and that the organisation only had male directors [12]

[13] In January 2026 The Greenock Telegraph reported “Concerns have been raised locally after it was revealed that members of an anti-abortion group have given talks at schools in Inverclyde.”[14]

Resignation of Bowman

SPUC founder Phyllis Bowman resigned from her post in July 1999, with nearly half of the 12-person national executive resigning in sympathy. This was believed to be because of a rift with SPUC national director John Smeaton over the organisation's strategies.[2]

The Pro-Life All-Party Parliamentary Group, headed by the then-Shadow Home Secretary, Ann Widdecombe, met with SPUC to discuss concerns that following Bowman's resignation, the organisation may divert resources from the political arena and seek greater realignment with the Catholic Church, alienating some Protestant, Muslim and atheist supporters of SPUC.[2][3]

Tony Nicklinson right-to-die case

SPUC opposed locked-in syndrome sufferer Tony Nicklinson's legal battle for a right to assisted death.[15][16]

Marriage

SPUC has opposed same-sex marriage.[17][18]

On 18 June 2019, the Nottingham Post reported that the organisation did a leaflet drop in Sneinton, Nottingham alongside a letter for parents asking for their child to be withdrawn from Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) lessons.[19] The Nottingham Post reported that this backfired as some residents in the area condemned the action and, in an interview on BBC Radio Nottingham, the leader of Nottingham City Council confirmed that no letters had been handed in at any school.[20]

References

  1. ^ "About Us". Retrieved 1 August 2016. Our Society was founded in January 1967
  2. ^ a b c Norton, Cherry (17 July 1999). "Founder quits pro-life group over strategies". The Independent. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  3. ^ a b "MPs enter pro-life group row". BBC News. 19 July 1999. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  4. ^ "Morning-after pills and other abortifacients". Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  5. ^ Banchoff, Thomas (15 May 2011). Embryo Politics: Ethics and Policy in Atlantic Democracies. Cornell University Press. p. 87. ISBN 978-0-8014-6107-1.
  6. ^ "US Donors Are Helping Push Anti-Abortion Agendas in British Schools". Vice.com. 30 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  7. ^ "Anti-abortion group operating in Scotland receiving 'shadowy' US donations". The National. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  8. ^ Das, Shanti (9 July 2022). "BBC Bitesize gave platform to 'extreme' anti-abortion group". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
  9. ^ Das, Shanti (3 August 2019). "Scottish anti-abortion group slammed over 'cynical' Toy Story marketing ploy". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
  10. ^ "Scots teacher targeted by anti-abortion group over education petition". The Herald. 18 May 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  11. ^ Geddes, by Jonathan (27 December 2022). "Controversial anti-abortion group visited several Lanarkshire schools". Daily Record. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  12. ^ Paul, Hutcheson (27.03.24). "Anti-abortion group leading opposition to buffer zones has only male directors". Daily Record. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ^ Hutcheson, Paul (27.3.24). "Anti-abortion group leading opposition to buffer zones has only male executives". Daily Record. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ^ "Concerns as members of anti-abortion group speak at two schools in Inverclyde". Greenock Telegraph. 5 January 2026. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 24 March 2026.
  15. ^ "Tony Nicklinson loses High Court right-to-die case". BBC News. 16 August 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  16. ^ "Tony Nicklinson, Locked-In Sufferer, Sobs During BBC TV Interview After Losing High Court Right To Die Battle". The Huffington Post UK. 16 August 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  17. ^ "Aims". Archived from the original on 11 January 2015. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  18. ^ "John Smeaton, SPUC director". 3 September 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  19. ^ "Leaflet posted to Sneinton residents calling for boycott over lessons on same-sex relationships". Nottingham Post. 18 June 2019.
  20. ^ "Sneinton residents criticise 'out of date' letter backing boycott over same-sex relationships". Nottingham Post. 19 June 2019.


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