contact the NSPCC ?? advice

[busybee09]

im quite worried, my neighbour has a partner whos very larger and has the loudest mouth imaginable.
She has 2 kids and this bloke ....every single day will tell those children off. He doesn't just shout at them he'll scream and give them long lectures using words i dont even know the meaning of, but the worst is when he swears at them
Earlier he was telling the 7 year old lad off saying to him, i dont no what goes on in your f***** head but you dont care, last time you were black and blue you didnt care do you want another slap.

it really upsets me becuase this is happening everyday. Hes a disgusting man to look at and yesterday he said to the girl whos 5 oh come on pick it up it wont kill you....but i will !!

seriously disturbing, can i get in touch with the NSPCC and record him as evidence?
id post a recording on here of i could not sure id be allowed, just breaks my heart hearing him scream and tell the kids there worthless, there not even his and shes just as bad.

[Annie0904]

You could call social services or NSPCC and tell them your concerns. I hate to hear of any one abusing children and i think I would want to do something about it.

[B-Brain]

What a shame! Sounds like those poor kids have a miserable existence.

Maybe it's worth giving the NSPCC a call for some advice and to find out what they can do. You don't have to give your name, you can stay totally anonymous.

[ElizabethJane]

Dear nattynatt I really do not think that you should get involved unless you know these people personally or are related to them. It could become very nasty and the children could be taken from their parents. This really isn't the way foward. If you know the Mum have word with her first. My niece has recently lost her children to her ex husband. It is really is better if they can stay together as a family unit however nasty it might seem from the outset it really isn't any of your business. EJ

[Speranza]

I see where you are coming from but I'm sorry, I don't agree. Countless kids have died because people thought it wasn't their business to interfere. If there are actual threats and the words 'black and blue' being bandied about, personally I would do what Annie and B-Brain have suggested, ring for advice. I know from the other side of things how very hard it is to get Social Care to intervene and take children away, they do not do it lightly. However these children have no voice of their own, We all have a Duty of Care to each other. Apart from anything else, this will be a horrible strain on you until you pass it on. You can ring and ask for advice before disclosing who it is about, ask if they think it is something you ought to formally pass on to them. The family need never know it was you.

[Edie]

It's a really difficult situation. I wouldn't know what to do either.

I used to live next-door to a woman who would shout at her kids all the time, and sometimes say such nasty things. I found it really upsetting to hear, but there were never actual threats of violence like your neighbour.

Social Services cannot take any action on a next-door neighbour's say so. They have to carry out their own investigations and if they take any action it would be based on their own findings. So anything that happens would not be down to you, but Social Services. So maybe the right thing to do would be to report your concerns and let them investigate.

[Pipkin]

Natt,

Follow your instincts - I think you know what they're telling you to do. Children's Services or the NSPCC will be able to advise you better than we can and anything they do will have the children's best interests at heart. There are always two sides to every story but this sounds very one-sided.

I have to disagree with ElizabethJane. If someone had spoken up for baby Peter and Victoria Climbie, they might still be alive. The mother certainly won't thank you if you try and speak to her - I suggest that you don't give the family the opportunity to find out that it's you who's concerned or you might end up on the receiving end of this nasty piece of work.

Pip

[Speranza]

What helped me in my previous job was that there was a protocol. If a child said something to me, it wasn't my place to decide what to do, or make a judegement call. I simply had to make sure I passed that information on to the right place. It was very hard sometimes, there was one little boy who I contacted the authorities about and they did nothing. I was so concerned that I rang again and again and in the end people thought I was a real troublemaker, but nothing was done, and a few years later his sibling died in very odd circumstances. :(

The thing is, I was just about able to live with myself because I had genuinely done all I could for those kids.

Personally I would make the call, that is exactly what the NSPCC encourage, they will not think you are a nosy neighbour and as Edie says, someone will look into it and make their own decision.

For me, the clincher was always, "Would my conscience be clear if something happend to that child?"

Pip, absolutely. They are best left to others to deal with.

[busybee09]

Thanks for the advise. Its a shame because we live on a street where we all know eachother but these neighbours are just from hell.
All has gone quiet now the kids are in bed and the "monster" told the little girl if she was going to talk about the chair anymore he would burn it. :(
I wouldnt normally poke my nose in but it makes me feel sick hearing his comments asking the children if they want another smack.

Will sleep on it tonight, wouldnt want them knowing it was me who dibbed them in though

[ElizabethJane]

I just don't think you should interfere that is all. This has nothing to do with Victoria or Baby Peter. They were already in the care of Social Services and that did not help them at all. My niece has lost her children due to a false case put against her. Surely it is better for the children to remain with the Mother? EJ