Michelle Hickman, 33, had an emergency hysterectomy six years ago after giving birth to her first child, Robert. Afterwards she underwent fertility treatment in the hope that, through surrogacy, she and her husband, Martin Hymers, 34, could still have the big family that they wanted.

They stored six embryos at Manchester Fertility Services while they looked for a surrogate. Although friends volunteered for the role, they were deemed unsuitable on health grounds and so far the couple’s search has been unsuccessful.

Embryos intended for surrogacy can be kept legally for five years, compared with ten years for those intended for the mother herself. The deadline for the couple ran out in May. Since then the clinic has been storing their embryos in breach of its licence.

Now the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has exercised discretionary powers to award a new licence to keep the embryos and export them, probably to an American or Finnish clinic.

Ms Hickman’s son Robert had to be delivered by Caesarean section. There were complications and, despite her protestations, her uterus was removed.

Ms Hickman, of Heaton Chapel, near Stockport, said: “We began thinking about surrogacy before I had even left the hospital after the hysterectomy. We have always wanted a large family and, under other circumstances, would probably have gone on to have five or six children. Feelings for having a large family just do not go away.

“I do not know who makes these rules about storage deadlines, but they should be people who know what they are talking about. If I had a working uterus I would be able to have had embryos stored until I was 55. Why should I be discriminated against?” When the licence ran out in May, Ms Hickman and her husband applied to the authority for permission to export their frozen embryos.

She said that the initial response suggested that they would be given until this week to find a clinic to take them. The couple have since received a letter from the clinic informing them that the time limit is “open-ended”.

Ms Hickman said: “We have been in contact with a number of clinics but the only ones to have responded so far are in the United States.”

A spokesman for the fertility clinic in Manchester said: “The embryos can remain in storage until a clinic overseas can be found.”

The HFEA refused to comment on the case but indicated that in “extremely extenuating circumstances” the storage time limit could be extended.

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