Maureen Oswin (1931 - 2001) was a writer and researcher on the care of children with severe learning disabilities. She witnessed the everyday lives of children living in institutions in the 1960s and 70s.
Her books, "The Empty Hours" (1971) and "Children Living in Long Stay Hospitals" (1978), highlighted the poor treatment of children in institutions. They helped fuel the drive to move children out of hospitals and ultimately to the closure of the institutions.
Invited out of retirement in 1997 to 'revisit the Empty Hours', she gave a talk at the Open University about her research, transporting her audience back through time to the children's wards that she had witnessed.
The Collection includes research notes and publications. Much of the collection contains personal details of children and other people she came into contact with. Consequently access to many items is restricted for Data Protection purposes.
Access
The Maureen Oswin Collection catalogue.
For further information or to arrange an appointment to view the materials, contact the University Archive Team.
Links and related materials:
The Open University Faculty of Health & Social Care Social History of Disability Research website
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