Ruth Tierney reports on a ground-breaking scientific study which controversially claims surrogate children may actually be better cared for than conventionally-conceived kids.

JILL Hawkins loves being pregnant. She adores the natural high it gives her, the kick of the baby inside and the feeling of confidence she has when she buys new maternity clothes.

But the legal secretary has to admit, although she likes children, she does not want any of her own.

So far, the surrogate mother from Brighton has had four babies for different couples. She has carried them for nine months, given birth and then handed her babies over with no more difficulty than an initial pang of hormonal sadness.

Jill regularly sees each of the children but does not look at them through the eyes of a proud parent. She sees herself as more of a family friend, happy to see their development in the caring environment of the recipient parents' home.

Her feelings are mirrored by the findings of the first scientific study into the long-term effects of surrogacy.

The results indicate mothers of so-called "donor babies" display a higher-than-average level of warmth and emotional involvement, that both mother and father seem to have better parenting skills than those in non-surrogate families and the babies themselves show no signs of abnormal behaviour.

In almost all cases, there were none of the feared problems when surrogate mothers have to hand over the babies they have carried.

Fiona MacCallum, one of the researchers from City University in London, said: "It is often assumed that surrogate mothers will have difficulties handing the child over following the birth.

"We found only one instance of the surrogate having slight doubts at this time, with all other mothers reporting no problems.

"The surrogacy families seem to be characterised by warm relationships and high qualities of parenting."

Jill, 38, agrees with the findings. She thinks the parents of the children she has borne are more caring than ordinary families because they have desperately wanted a baby for such a long time before coming to her.

She said: "What the parents have to go through first is a lot more than the average couple. A couple with fertility problems will go through years and years of in-vitro fertilisation before turning to surrogacy so of course that child will be the most precious thing to them in the whole world.

"I would agree with the study that there are no problems with surrogate mothers handing the baby over.

"Hormonally, you are programmed to look after the child and you're a bit upset it is leaving you but only because you have such a strong natural urge to look after it.

"From a mental focus it is not your child and you don't want this child for yourself. You know it is going to a good home where you trust the parents.

"To be honest, I'm more of an animal person. I'd rather have a cat than a baby.

"I love babies and spending time with them but I like being able to give them back at the end of the day and get on with my life."

Jill gave birth to her first donor baby at 28 after hearing about an organisation called Childlessness Overcome Through Surrogacy (Cots).

She was introduced to a childless couple and paid £6,500 to carry baby Lucy, who was born in 1992.

Euan, Jill's third son, was born nine months ago at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, while her sons Bertie came along in 1994 and second son Jamie in 1998.

There have been worries that surrogacy arrangements may psychologically harm children and families.

The study, led by Professor Susan Golombok concluded, such concerns were unfounded.

Prof Golombok's team studied 43 families with a child born through surrogacy. They were compared with 51 families which had a child conceived through IVF with donated eggs and 86 families with a naturally-conceived child.

Findings from the first phase of the study, which looked at families when the children were aged nine to 12 months, were presented at the annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Vienna on Monday.

Ms MacCallum, based at City University's family and child psychology centre, said: "No mothers described any major conflict or hostility between the commissioning couple and the surrogate.

"The concern about the commissioning mother's feelings about the surrogate's involvement with the child seems unfounded, with 90 per cent reporting no anxieties about this aspect.

"The researchers found that for four of the five different aspects of parenting - warmth, emotional involvement and mothering and fathering qualities - it was surrogacy and egg donor families who rated higher than those in which the child was naturally conceived.

"For the fifth aspect, the sensitivity of a mother's responses to her child, there was no significant difference between the three family types."

Jill is confident the couples she has been surrogate for will have no problems as family units.

She said: "I see all the children every year. They know my name and know I gave birth to them because mummy's stomach was broken.

"Me, my mum, dad and sister all get together with each family and it is great to see them. I act like a family friend. The couples are my friends and the kids are like my friends' children.

"I don't feel any bond with them. I have never looked at them and seen myself in them. They are lovely kids and I'm very proud of them but not as a parent.

"I never want children myself. I love being pregnant and love meeting new people and helping them because they become lifelong friends.

"Giving a child to the families completely changes the parents' lives. The first couple I was surrogate for had tried for 15 years with IVF and there was an overnight change in the woman when I handed her the baby.

"She softened in front of my eyes and all the heartache she had been feeling just went. She melted. That's what I like to see."

Ms MacCallum said the findings were "generally reassuring". She added: "There is no evidence, so far, to support the concerns that have been voiced about the practice of surrogacy."

Although surrogacy is lawful in Britain, it is still a legal minefield.

Until the paperwork is complete, the child is still legally the surrogate mother's and, if the surrogate mother is married, her husband is legally the father.

There is a proviso that no fee can be paid to the surrogate mother. The only money she can be paid is to cover "reasonable expenses". It is also illegal to advertise for a surrogate or for a surrogate to advertise.