Unmarried mum wins fight for widow’s allowance

“Incompatible with human rights law”. That’s the judgement of the supreme court in the case of a mother of four who’s been prevented from claiming Widowed Parents Allowance since her partner’s death because they were unmarried.

It’s a landmark decision which could have implications for thousands of other families in similar. Siobhan McLaughlin’s partner John Adams – the father of her children – died four years ago. They’d been together for 23 years but had never tied the knot.