Baby Elsa, the youngest of three siblings abandoned in East London over an eight-year period, is set to be adopted and will remain in regular contact with her siblings, in what a judge has described as a “quite extraordinary” case.

Elsa, who was named after the infamous Disney princess, was discovered in a Boots shopping bag on the coldest day of the year in Newham on 18 January 2024. She is the last of her siblings to be adopted. Elsa’s siblings, known publicly as Harry and Roman, were found in the same part of East London in 2017 and 2019.

Scotland Yard has said its extensive inquiries to find the children’s parents, after the siblings were confirmed as kin by DNA testing, have been “exhausted.” Following widespread media coverage, police intensified their efforts to trace the children’s parents. Working alongside the National Crime Agency, officers identified several hundred homes where they believed the baby’s parents may have lived. They knocked on doors, spoke with local residents, and collected DNA samples. Investigators also used the baby’s DNA to search for relatives across the UK, tracing and interviewing those identified. Despite these extensive inquiries, police have said the parents have still not been located.

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On Thursday, East London Family Court heard that Elsa was flourishing, already settled with her new family, and shared a loving bond with them.

After reviewing Elsa’s story, Judge Carol Atkinson said it was “fundamental to her existence that she shares that story with two full siblings.” She added: “No one they will meet in life is likely to understand what it is like to be a foundling. But they each know and understand.”

All of the children’s adoptive parents have agreed that Elsa, now almost two, along with her brother Harry, eight, and sister Roman, six, will have regular contact as they grow up. The children will share photographs and have playdates twice a year.

Only 10 children were registered as abandoned between 2008 and 2018, with the case of these three children garnering huge media attention. Scotland Yard continues to reiterate its plea for anyone with information regarding the children’s biological family to come forward.

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