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Child abuse, A unique protector.
Added: (Sun Jul 08 2007)
Press release, immediate, 8th July 2007
The NSPCC has just been given 30 million pounds from the government towards its full stop to child abuse programme. A very worthwhile cause the more people that are aware and can prevent harm to children the better.
But! There is still a gap that even the NSPCC admit they cannot cope with, is the number of calls they receive. A further gap is that all the agencies in the world can only spot child abuse after it has happened, when it has reached the point of really damaging the children. In these gaps who is there (with the exception of a fly on the wall) better to spot this abuse early on because of their unique relationship with children. These unique protectors are called grandparents and they are an untapped source of protection, an army of more than willing helpers that have always been available, who since time began have been a natural protector of children. Grandparents that are devoted to their grandchildren�s welfare are hindered by the law and social services as irrelevant persons in their lives. Who is there better to know their own children (parents) and grandchildren than grandparents. Who is there better to know their families strengths and weaknesses, they know if a child is suffering abuse or not but when they report such signs they are ignored. When their son or daughter is told of their concerns the grandparents are then banned from the family with the backing of the law. The children then have no-one and the abuse goes on.
Grandchildren need this legal protection of their grandparents especially in one parent families where a different partner comes and goes. Also in drug and alcohol homes where child abuse is on the increase.
The contact grandparents talk about is a couple of hours a month more by negotiation, the legal right to send and receive birthday, Christmas cards and presents, phone calls, texts, emails which could be an outside line to someone they know and can confide in, filling the gap NSPCC admits to.
The government after much persuasion are now recognising grandparents as unique in kinship care. Surely they must now look at this uniqueness in the early detection of child abuse.
Ends
Grandparents Apart Self Help Group Scotland
22 Alness Crescent
Glasgow G52 1PJ
0141 882 5658