Anomalies found following scan on grounds of former Sean Ross Abbey mother and baby home

Sean Ross Abbey in Roscrea, Tipperary

A ground penetrating scan on the grounds of the former Sean Ross Abbey mother and baby home has found anomalies that require a more in-depth analysis, a report has found.

The examination of the land in Roscrea, Co Tipperary, took place after the survivor’s group We Are Still Here campaigned for funding to carry out the work.

The scans have revealed several anomalies around the large grounds of the former institution which was run by the Sisters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary order.

An anomaly is an area of ground that has been moved unnaturally and could be where other children were buried.

The results come after the ground was already scanned in 2019 by the Commission of Inquiry into mother and baby homes.

However, survivors argued that the examination should have been broader and did not cover other areas of concern.

Sean Ross Abbey was made famous by the Oscar-nominated film Philomena, which told the story of Philomena Lee whose son Anthony was taken by the nuns and adopted to the US.

The boy, who was later named Michael Heiss, came back to Ireland to search for his mother, but the nuns denied him a reunification.

Ms Lee only discovered her son had died by the time she had traced him. A memorial stone for Michael Heiss is in the burial site of the grounds today.

A total of 1,090 children died across almost four decades at Sean Ross Abbey, however, only 1,024 deaths are officially registered.

Last year, survivor Teresa Collins lobbied the Government for funding to carry out a ground-penetrating scan around the grounds of the former mother and baby home.

It came after just 44 babies’ graves were found despite the large number of deaths there.

There were several areas of interest including the Angel’s Plot and trees among the grounds that survivors wanted scanned.

The results of the findings have been forwarded to the Department of Children for consideration.