Stories, silences, and secrets: donor conception, identity and belonging in contemporary families
Annual TCRU/Coram Lecture 2026
Tuesday 28 April 2026
5 - 7.30pm
Coram Campus, 41 Brunswick Square, London, WC1N 1AZ
Coram and the Thomas Coram Research Unit (based at University College London) hold an annual lecture to consider current themes in research relevant to children and families.
This year’s lecture will focus on donor conceived children and young people. Policy and practice relating to donor conception in the UK have shifted significantly over recent decades. Parents are now encouraged to tell children about their conception, and since 2005 donor conceived individuals have had the legal right to access identifying information about their donor at 18. At the same time, rapid developments in DNA testing and digital technologies are reshaping what information can be known, and by whom.
Drawing on 15 years of collaborative research, Dr Sophie Zadeh (University of Sussex) will explore the lived experiences and long-term perspectives of donor conceived children, young people, and young adults. Her lecture will examine how family practices – from secret-keeping to storytelling – alongside broader cultural ideas about relatedness, origins, and identity, shape how donor conception is understood and integrated into a person’s sense of self.
Set within an evolving legal and policy landscape, including ongoing debates about access to identifying information and retrospective reform, this lecture will consider what it means to grow up donor conceived in contemporary Britain. Emphasising the diversity of donor conceived people’s experiences and wishes, Dr Zadeh will argue that policy and practice must move beyond assumptions and actively centre the voices of those directly affected.
The lecture will be followed by a panel discussion bringing together legal expertise, practice perspectives, and lived experience to reflect on the implications for adoption, assisted reproduction, and family policy today.
Please join us for the lecture and discussion which will be followed by drinks and light refreshments (from about 6.30pm).
About Dr Sophie Zadeh
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Dr Sophie Zadeh is a Reader in Family Psychology at the University of Sussex. Her research examines families formed through reproductive donation from a psychological perspective.She has conducted some of the first studies of children and young people’s experiences and outcomes in one and two parent families with donor conceived children. Her research has had notable influence on policy, both nationally and internationally. Sophie is the Principal Investigator of the recent Young Adults Study: www.youngadultsstudy.co.uk
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About our Panelists
The panel will be chaired by Dame Carol Homden DBE PhD, Group Chief Executive of Coram, and will include:
Naomi Angell, leading family lawyer and founder of the Children’s Legal Centre (now part of Coram), bringing a legal and policy perspective on fertility law, surrogacy and adoption.
Naomi Angell is a consultant at Osbornes Law and a leader in the field of adoption, surrogacy and fertility law. Naomi combines her case work representing children and parents with involvement in family policy, bringing about changes in law and practice. In 1981, Naomi set up the Children’s Legal Centre which became part of the Coram group of charities in 2011. She has been a member of many influential national committees including chairing the Family Law Committee and the Faster Family Justice Committee at the Law Society. Naomi was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2020 Family Law Awards.
Zoë Lambert, co-founder of In-Between Lines and trustee of Coram Intercountry Adoption Centre (Coram IAC), offering personal and professional insights into complex identity and adoption practice.
Zoë Lambert was adopted from Cambodia by white British parents and grew up in Singapore. While at Exeter University, Zoë developed a project called ‘In-Between Lines’, exploring the experiences and voices of those with complex identities. In 2023/2024 she was part of the first Youth Insight research project at Coram, writing a paper on the social and psychological development of complex identities in adolescents in the UK and contributing to an event for researchers and practitioners. Zoë now works as a paralegal and is a trustee of Coram IAC (Intercountry Adoption Centre).
Join us
Book your free place at the talk via TicketTailor using the link below.
We look forward to seeing you there.