This is a quote from a piece of legislation that is the centrepiece of English and Welsh childcare legislation: The Children Act (1989) as updated in 2004 under the Every Child Matters guidance.
The Children Act (1989) sets the legislative framework for a number of childcare policies that were already established case-, statute- or common-law.
It brought together and formalised a number of assumptions regarding childcare rules – and went on to establish diverse standards that would be applied within a regulatory framework.
What was new was the one simple statement which became a pivotal, doctrinal mantra for childcare: ‘The welfare of the child is paramount’.
Unfortunately this statement of imperative has been continually eroded since it was enacted; as if it were a large block of cheese persistently nibbled by an ever growing mischief of mice (details on request).
But one Rotherham-based GP – Dr Matt Capehorn – wants to put the welfare of the child back at the forefront of parental and legal thinking.
Dr Capehorn, who runs a paediatric obesity clinic, feels that parents who allow their children to become obese should be removed from the job.
Have their children taken in to care.
Dr Capehorn argues that obesity is a child protection issue; believes that parents who allow their children to become obese are killing them slowly.
But obesity is a growing problem.
So shouldn’t we be treating the cause of the problem?
Hmm…
What to do?
How about…
* Reinstituting competitive sports in schools
* Putting phys ed back on the compulsory timetable
* Forming a national programme of sporting disciplines
* Ensuring children have six-monthly weight checks (not BMI, that system is plainly broken)
* Compulsory six-monthly fitness examinations for children
Yes, let’s start there.
Of course then we’ll have to deal with the parents who think feeding crap to their children is a good idea.
Off with their heads?
B.
I despair!
How about:
~ Tackling all food manufacturers so that they’re not allowed to include excessive fat/sugar/salt et al in their foods?
~ Enabling family allowance to include a fresh fruit and veg voucher for all families (rather than be spent on fags and shite and never seeing the children in any way shape or form!)
~ Getting children to earn vouchers by exercise sessions at the local gym to redeem for stickers/non-foody rewards
~ Showing people how cheaply they can live if they provide their own home-grown produce
~ Improving standards (and inspections!) of take-aways so they are permitted to use only healthy fresh ingredients again within the limitations of the permissible healthy standards.
Somebody stop me!
OK, I’m going to be realistic about this because I think that more people need to appreciate the scale of the problem.
And Sooz is just the man (!) for the job – helping get the message out.
As long as food manufacturing is an international business there is nothing we can do.
Food vouchers – I used to work in social services where we would give food vouchers to families who presented themselves as destitute. In giving them food vouchers all we did was create a secondary market in booze and drug payment. People gave the vouchers a notional cash value and traded them for goods/services on the street.
Children’s vouchers – same logic applies.
And so on…
Physical exercise though… that’s a key part in the plane. You just wait and see what hapens when I’m Supreme Ruler of the Universe.
The only enforcement oversight point is regular checks. The only person to ensure the enforcement on a daily basis is the parent – backed up by unbelievably harsh penalties when the parents (and the children) don’t do their job.
String ’em up. It’s the only language they understand.
🙂
p.s. I’m really sorry Sooz. I like your ideas. I just know what a bunch of devious bunch of b’stards people can be.