Lost letter: 'I would love to know what she wrote'

When Katie Schneider was two years old she was put into foster care.

Four years ago she found out her birth mother had written a letter for her to open when she was older.

When she asked to see it, the council responsible could not find the letter or any record of her being in its care. Her mother died 17 years ago.

Devon County Council apologised after Ms Schneider took her complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman.

The 34-year-old has been speaking to BBC News.

"My mother was an alcoholic and a drug abuser. I was removed from her care when I was two.

"She wrote me a letter which I only discovered about four years ago because my dad gave me all my court documents. In there it stated that my mum had written this letter to me.

"I contacted Devon County Council and they really just sort of shrugged me off for quite a while.

"I made several complaints saying I was not happy with how they were dealing with me. I felt like they just wanted me to go away.

"In October last year we had a meeting and they told me not only could they not find the letter, they had also lost all of my records of even being in care.

"There was no real explanation as to where they had gone.

"They didn't even know where to look which I thought was astounding. But they assured me they turned every possibility upside down and it couldn't be found.

"I would love to know what she wrote in that letter.

"She could have written a load of twaddle, or she could have put something important in there for me to read. But I will never know.

"I'm one of these people that thinks you either become a victim or you don't.

"I'm not going to dwell on my history - it doesn't define me as a person. I've got two beautiful children, a good job, a nice home.

"I think I'm one of the lucky ones but purely put that down to my dad. He is an amazing dad. Maybe if I had been left in the system my life wouldn't be how it is now.

"It has taught me to appreciate things and don't judge people.

"For years and years I was really angry with my mum. I hated her.

"But then when my dad handed me those court papers and I read everything - I sobbed when I read it. Because actually she's had something terrible in her life for her to become the person that she was - some really awful things.

"When I read it I realised I didn't hate her, I actually felt really sorry for her.

"The letter could have said anything. She could have given me secret bank details for a million pounds or she could have written something from the heart, or apologised, or it could have been anything.

"I can't change what happened and social services aren't going to find that letter. Hopefully they will do better in the future and someone else won't have to go through all of this again.

"It is extremely sad but there is nothing I can do about it so there is no point on dwelling on it.

"It's one of those things I just have to put my big girls pants on and carry on."

The Children Act 1989 says that councils should keep records for at least 50 years.

A Devon County Council spokesman said: "For young people and children in care it's both important for them, and in their best interests, to keep connections with their birth families.

"In this case however, a link with her birth mother had been lost. We apologise unreservedly for that, and have reviewed our practice to ensure that mistakes like this are not repeated in future."

Follow BBC News South West on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].