A mother who was wrongly convicted of killing two babies has launched a foundation to support other families who suffered miscarriages of justice.

Angela Cannings, who spent 18 months in prison before her life sentence was quashed, said she was outraged that the British courts were still convicting innocent people of harming their children.

The Angela Cannings Foundation was launched by Justice for Families, a lobby group that is calling on the Government to reform the way medical experts are used in court and for greater openness in family court proceedings.

The launch began with a minute’s silence for Sally Clark , who was cleared by the Court of Appeal in 2003 of killing her two sons after spending three years in prison, but who died less than two weeks ago.

Mrs Cannings, originally from Wiltshire, said that while in prison she felt as if she was the only person in the country who had gone through her ordeal, and wanted to help other people wronged by the justice system.

Mrs Cannings said the foundation would provide financial support to low income families who could not afford to appeal against their sentences.

Ian and Angela Gay, a couple from Worcestershire who were eventually cleared of poisoning a three-year-old boy they hoped to adopt, were also present at today’s launch.

Mr Gay called for changes in the law on the way expert evidence is given to juries and for the people who have been wrongly accused to be listened to.

“In our case, there were many, many experts involved and they all had different opinions. They can’t all be right and they aren’t all right all the time, but people don’t know that,” he said.

Marianne Williams, who was cleared last year of the murder and manslaughter of her 15-month-old son by poisoning him with salt, was also present.

Justice for Families, chaired by John Hemming MP, will be lobbying Parliament on miscarriages of justice as well as issues surrounding children in care, social work, adoption and the role of grandparents as well as parents and children in family life.

The campaign’s legal adviser, Bill Bache, called for new legislation, including a change to the way in which complaints against doctors are dealt with to make them more effective.

Mrs Cannings - along with Sally Clark - was convicted of her sons’ deaths following evidence from paediatric expert Professor Sir Roy Meadow.

Sir Roy was later found guilty of serious professional misconduct in relation to his evidence at the Sally Clark trial and was struck off the medical register, but later won a High Court appeal against the ruling.

The High Court judge also ruled that expert witnesses should be immune from disciplinary action, but this was later overturned by the Court of Appeal.

Mrs Cannings, a shop assistant, was convicted in April 2002 of smothering her sons Jason and Matthew. She always maintained her sons’ deaths were cot deaths, like that of her first child Gemma in 1989.

She won her freedom in 2003 after taking her case to the Court of Appeal.

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