New Princes Street Gardens memorial for babies whose ashes were dumped at Mortonhall Cemetery

It was a scandal that hit the hearts of the entire nation.

Parent Dorothy Maitland stands with scupltor Andy Scott by the new memorial in Princes Street Gardens.

The initial anguish hundreds of parents faced after losing a baby in the first place is just unimaginable. But in 2012 the Evening News revealed babies’ cremated remains were cruelly dumped in a mass unmarked grave at Mortonhall Cemetery in a scandal spanning more than four decades.

As a result, hundreds of grieving parents will never know the final resting place of their beloved children, with at least 250 cremated babies buried in secret. Parents were instead told there would be no ashes left to scatter following cremation.

A year-long inquiry followed by former lord advocate Dame Elish Angiolini into the crematorium’s practices from 1967 to 2011.

Elephant memorial sculpture by Andy Scott

The report contained damning evidence that managers at the council-run crematorium knew that there were ashes after baby cremations but refused to tell parents, claiming it would be “too distressing”.

The creation of a memorial was one of the 22 recommendations produced in Dame Elish’s 600-page report commissioned by the council’s then chief executive Dame Sue Bruce.

Edinburgh City Council built a £250,000 memorial garden at Mortonhall in 2015 for those devastated parents.

But with some families vowing to never return to the crematorium grounds, officials agreed to build a second permanent memorial.

Elephant memorial sculpture by Andy Scott Mortonhall

More than six years after the scandal was uncovered, a two and a half tonne baby elephant is being unveiled today in Princes Street Gardens as a way to remember the hundreds of babies for years to come.

One of the heartbroken parents affected was Edinburgh mum Dorothy Maitland, who has had to come to terms with the harrowing loss of one of her twin daughters, Kaelen, who was born in 1986.

Ms Maitland was operations manager of charity Sands Lothians, which counsels parents who have lost a child through a stillbirth or neonatal death, when the scandal was exposed at the crematorium on Howdenhall Road. The new £250,000 memorial, embossed with forget-me-not flowers, was designed and sculpted by Andy Scott – who is renowned for the iconic Kelpies at the Forth & Clyde Canal in Falkirk.

Ms Maitland described the poignant sculpture in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle as “absolutely stunning”.

Mortonhall Baby Memorial sculpture, Princes street Gardens, Edinburgh

She said: “I think it is beautiful. It goes above and beyond expectations. I think anyone who has lost a baby will find enormous comfort from visiting here. There were two choices, a rocking horse and elephant. If I’m being honest I did vote for the rocking horse. But now I’ve seen the elephant I think it is perfect. I feel really proud.

“Kaelen would have been 33 this year – she is always there with me. It has been so difficult for the whole family.”

Sculptor Mr Scott gave the baby elephant the working title “Lulla-Bye” given the tragic circumstances surrounding the project, which took around four and a half years to come to fruition.

He added: “Elephants never forget. I wanted to do something that will capture the imagination. It was quite a daunting thing to take on because of the emotions and the terrible loss the parents had suffered. It wasn’t a project I took on lightly. It’s been a rewarding project in how it has been received.

“I wanted the idea of something of a lost toy, maybe being left behind and the feeling of sadness and loss. But also something that would resonate with siblings. I hope the parents respond well to it.”

In the wake of the Mortonhall revelations, a separate independent commission, led by former High Court judge Lord Bonomy, was later set up to review policies and practice across Scotland. His report produced 64 recommendations for change, which the Scottish Government accepted “in full, and without reservation”.

From April, Scotland’s crematoriums will not be able to dispose of a person’s ashes for at least four weeks after cremation and must keep records of where the remains were buried or scattered for a minimum of 50 years – up from 15 years under current regulations.

Ms Maitland said she was emotional when the new regulations were revealed last month. She said: “In all honesty when last week and the legislation passed I was in bits. It suddenly hit me the enormity of it all. Maybe the last year I’ve been more emotional about it all. You’ve got to get past the anger to be able to move on. I think that’s healthy because I had to be so strong for everyone else for so long.”

Up to 150 family members are expected at the unveiling of the baby elephant and accompanying plaque today.

“This is just fantastic,” said Ms Maitland. “I just don’t think the council can do anymore. They have excelled themselves.”