General Chat

Judges in the case of a girl who was kicked and slapped by her parents have drawn a line at which disciplining children becomes physical abuse.

The couple's three children had been placed with foster parents and care proceedings begun by Swansea council.

But at the High Court in Cardiff earlier this year, a judge dismissed the care proceedings.

In a landmark judgement, the Appeal Court upheld this ruling and the children will be going home.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/8179613.stm
Brian(i)

A quote from that article...
"Reasonable physical chastisement of children by parents is not yet unlawful in this country."

Since when is kicking a child considered 'reasonable' ?
Never in my eyes.

Gwyn

Kicking??!!!!

A gentle smack is one thing ,at the right time ,i will go with ,it never hurt my children ,but ,a kick is abuse ,pure and simple not allowable in my book.Fred.

It does seem strange unless there is something we are not being told

"On an unspecified occasion, or occasions, "M" was slapped on her hand by her parents, she was slapped on her face by her mother, kicked by her father, kicked by her mother, hit on the side of her face by her father, hit to the right hand side of her face, kicked and pushed by her father.
"It sounds terrible. It could speak of a persistent campaign of abuse causing real suffering.
"But it could equally amount, in fact, to no more than a handful of isolated minor acts of chastisement forgotten as soon as administered."
The judge added: "Yes, it amounts to ill treatment, and therefore to harm.
"Yet, despite intensive outside intervention in this family's life, no one ever saw a mark on that little girl and the stark fact is that she appeared to be well nourished, well cared for and with close attachments to her parents.

Maybe there is reason to doubt the child's evidence.

""some tales that children tell would get you hung"",

as My gran used to say...

Bob