Technological Nightmares.... Predators online!

Well it has hit the headlines once again, The perils of the internet and the question has arisen once more.

Can Parents do more to protect their children from the dangers of the internet?

CEOP has released details that suggest young children are being blackmailed by SSPL (Scum Sucking Pond Life) especially here in Britain.

While the perverts are often all across the globe, the majority of Victims seem to be targets in the UK.

We should have a very careful look at ourselves in my opinion, and ask ourselves what is it that is so different here in the UK that we are doing wrong?

While my blog is normally about the issues in regards to Social Care and Social Services, this is an issue that I am very clear about and refuse to ignore. In fact it worries me that Social Services seem to be so far behind in the war against these predators and other areas of our Social care System, such as education, are CONSTANTLY ENCOURAGING our children to interact MORE with the Internet!

Social Care seems to be working at odds with itself in regards to the internet. In one respect Social Services are now showing some awareness, it is still far too little and all too often they are missing times where they could help parents and children from becoming victims.

But the question always rises as to what WE as parents can do... And can we do more...

 As I have already said above, our schools have become obsessed with placing homework online - I must say openly that I HATE this...

I see nothing wrong in schools using sites for educational purposes, in fact I feel in some respects it can be a very good thing if handled responsibly - But they are not.

I have now seen three schools in the last year that use the Internet for homework, And two of them were frankly a farce. One, The East point Academy in Lowestoft - Places homework online, but it has to be printed off and completed - Which I think is absolutely excellent! It not only encourages pupils to take responsibility for making sure they get their homework, but encourages them to WRITE!

We have a generation of children who can barely read or write now... This IS how it should be done...

The other's, Which for legal reasons remain nameless, have the homework ENTIRELY online... It is completed on websites, and marked by the program... Time saving yes, Fun yes, Practical - NO!

Why? Simple... The pupil is able to do it over and over and over again until they get it right...

Having watched my own children using the software - I can say in all honesty that the design of the program was seriously flawed... As when I asked my daughter later the same sums she had had to do on the website - She could not give the right answers.

Because she could just keep going until she got it right, she was NOT focusing on the problem... She was NOT trying to work it out... She just clicked until it was right.

Does this seem to be straying off point? Well bare with me... As we are getting there...

As parents seeing more and more homework online, it becomes tempting to trust your children to sit in front of the PC or Tablet and do their homework... And you do not LOOK at what they are really doing - So they end up gaming or on Social Networks instead...

Or, as is the case with the other two schools I have mentioned... They use the inbuilt Social Network system that seems to have made its way into schools.

Hang on a minute! Why does a School have a Instant Message System on its Websites for its Students to contact Students? With the ever present issue of Cyber-Bullying, Who the heck came up with this genius idea?

The Schools will obviously argue they monitor everything very carefully - But as any Facebook user will know, If a Multi Million Dollar corporation struggles, how the hell is a school supposed to handle the issue? Oh thats right! It can't!

So, we have a Social care System that demands we take responsibility for what our children get up to, yet then makes it all the more difficult. Brilliant!

I am sure that i am not the only parent now that has also found my children becoming more demanding as they feel they NEED a Laptop or Tablet of their own...

And then we open yet another door to danger... As they are then free to do what they want when they want!

It has prompted a lot of discussion already, It has been featured on Loose Women - Where I found myself in agreement with Shobna Gulati of "Corrie" Fame when she said we should stop our children being on the internet until they are in their teens. Sadly, thats not likely to happen and even our teens are at risk.

Shobna Gulati even suggested we do not buy our children Internet enabled phones and Tablets - Frankly, I had to agree with her... We should if we are going to allow our children to have this stuff insist they use them in the same room as us.

What did make me annoyed was when Janet Street-Porter queried why we have this idea that we must keep contact with our children at any given moment of the day - as if that was the reason why we let our children have this technology.

If only! The truth is PEER PRESSURE!

We are living in a Gadget mad society - and the more irresponsible are buying anything and everything for their children as some kind of "Look at Me!" Status Symbol... NOT because their children need them.

I have met a few families, who I do not begrudge buying luxuries in any way, that prove just how selfish we really are... One family with three teenagers I know of has a total of A Kindle Fire Each Child, Two Desktop PC's and Three Laptops. The Teens also have an Ipad EACH...

WHY!!!!! WHY IN THE HECK WOULD YOU NEED ALL OF THAT! OH WAIT! THEY DON'T NEED IT!!!!

And having spoke to mum... She did confirm that she bought most of the stuff to "keep up with the joneses" - Their mates at school had got a new Ipad, and she did not want them to feel left out...

WHAT ARE WE THINKING? ARE WE THINKING?

Much as many people will hate me for saying it, there is a lot more we can do...

As a Parent, you should be the single most important influence on your childrens lives, which brings me to the next issue...

Since I begun to start campaigning for change to the flawed Social Care System, I have met many people who are very like minded and want to see change.

But I have also seen so many people, including us who are campaigning for change - Show a complete disregard for our behaviour. I am not innocent - I have made many abusive comments in the past when someone has had a dig at me... I am not proud of it...

But it is a big issue. Obviously if someone wants to have a "Verbal attack" at someone, the first reaction is always going to be to defend yourself and rightly so... Many comments can be extremely vile. But once it has been committed to being put online, That's it! It spreads like a virus... It is everywhere!

Quite recently, Model Leilani Dowding - a former page 3 favourite - has been involved in a rather vicious attack on another former model, Nicola McClean - Even though Miss Dowding deleted her twitter comments, it was too late... The damage was done.

We are no different... We have to be aware of our online presence and how we show ourselves.

Just because we are keeping our arguments online, does not mean it is acceptable behaviour... Yet we seem to think that because it is the Internet, We can keep an attitude of "Do as I Say, Not as I do".

When we try and teach our children about the dangers of the internet, we have to think about how we behave as well. As parents, we are the single most important influence on our children - So if we do not show some form or Internet Etiquette - Why will our children?

I am now more careful about how I handle conflicts online, I have had to educate myself to be more wise and keep my personal issues with people to private messages. Its something we should all do... How can we tell our children they should be careful if we won't?

It is actually common sense!

We have to take a step back and insist that our Social Care System DOES ITS JOB instead of trying to make its own life easier by using the Internet as a go between... Teachers should teach... Not computers!

And we must start to behave as we want our kids to behave... Online or off... It time we bucked our ideas up and started to show respect to one another... No one is saying you should not have free speech and the internet should always be about that... But don't start personal arguments on Social Networks if you want your kids to behave in a better fashion as well. It is just idiocy!

Moreover, We have to STOP TRYING TO BE SO BLOODY GADGET MAD! Our kids do NOT NEED IPADS, LAPTOPS, IPODS, KINDLES, ANDROIDS and whatever else comes out in the next few months...

They do NOT NEED THEM! WE WANT THEM COS WE WANNA LOOK GOOD!

Sod Looking good! Parenting is not about looking good... Its about being responsible!

Who cares who has got what at school... Its time we reminded our children that you do not get something for nothing!

Otherwise... We may as well just hand our kids over to Social Services... As if we do not start to take control now - The next generation won't either.

Do you agree with me? Do you have anything to add? I know I may not have covered everything well... So I really want your opinions...

Are we Gadget Mad? Are we giving our children too much without any recourse? Are our Schools breeding a generation of thickos by being to reliant on technology to teach our kids? Are our kids copying our online behaviour?

No matter your views... Please Comment!

I feel this will be a most interesting discussion.

"Human Bear Baiting" gives Social Care a Slating!

Guilty Pleasures... We all have them and one of mine is "Jeremy Kyle" - May be I am sad in many respects but i love the show... Yes he is a bit of an arrogant so and so but the show is a great deal of fun.

Its hard for me to put the show down or anyone who chooses to go on there as I have been on Trisha and GMTV (where I got to meet the lovely Lorraine Kelly). But its not hard to see why so many people are now having serious issues with social services.

Just this very morning I am sat watching another family in crisis. But what horrifies me most despite the fellas lack of passion is the Violence from the mother!

It seems to be a socially acceptable thing for not only people to air their dirty laundry in public and make the children ashamed of them in the future (The re-runs will always be there...) but the number of people that stride out claiming abuse then go and attack people!

These people give a very clear indication as to where Social Services should be concentrating efforts to protect families and children... A serious and dangerous reflection of our society that seems to be getting worse. Yet does anyone pay attention?

No! In fact if you ask any Social Worker they will always make the excuse they do not have the time to watch the show... Funny that! I have located a great deal of Social Workers that are fans of the show and even follow it Facebook page. (Whoops!)

Now Honestly, If the Social Services did try and handle every family that appeared on this show - It would be a disaster! But there is a clear and present vision of our society presented on this show day after day... And shows a clear and serious problem that needs to be dealt with.

Social Care is lacking the resources to really help families before they reach this crisis point and now the governments new proposed reforms are going to make that even harder!

Its horrific that because of the new reforms, we are only going to give birth to more Jeremy Kyle shows and more kids being taken onto care... The system is failing and we are condemning children to suffer.

EDUCATION IS KEY! But we are so out of touch... It needs to be started young but NOT SEX!

Social Services main complaint with many families is they "lack the understanding of their actions" - Well, yes! Look at Jeremy Kyle every morning and you will see they are right... But what are we doing about it? NOTHING!

There is plenty of talk, but no action... We need children and parents taught Sociology and relationship education as early as possible... Not where to put their privates... Frankly! Most kids know more about that aspect already than I do... And I am 40 years old!

In fact it was only a month ago that my Sisters 22 year old friend joked about "Tea Bagging"... I was totally clueless! I am not ashamed to admit it!

The longer we ignore the issue that our society is crumbling to a new low... The more children will be at risk... Jeremy Kyle should be a one-stop shop to catch the worst offenders and start taking some real action...

Will Social Services ever do that? I doubt it! They are too afraid of confrontation...

At least Jeremy and his team are trying to do something about the rot... God knows some one has too.

When Belief becomes abuse... Are we all guilty?

Finally after 7 months! The council that removed children from a family for being UKIP supporters has said SORRY!

Wonderful! Way too late and an amazing and highly public display of what can only be described as a blatant abuse of human rights. But why has it taken so long to say sorry? Or rather more importantly why did it take politics to raise an issue that has been going on for YEARS!

In the Royal Courts of Justice Live Broadcasts about a month ago, I watched with great interest as the Local Authority involved were more or less torn apart by the judges for trying to impose a set of beliefs contrary to the parents.

One of the judges even noted "We learn from our parents, this may be true. But does that really give us any reason to say they are bad parents because they support the BNP?"

I listened to this man in awe... Not only was he brave enough to admit he had made mistakes in the past - He more or less hinted that he had smacked his child in a way he had later regretted - but he made a very fair and real point!

It does not matter if its politics or general belief... These issues should NEVER be an issues for Child Protection.

I have never hidden my Pagan/Wiccan Beliefs... Why should I? They are harmless and do nothing that would be in anyway dangerous - Yes there are idiots out there who believe its all about human sacrifice or beheading chickens, but common sense prevails now.

And I remember being met by my social worker who said very openly "Make sure you never practice you beliefs in front of the children." - How Nice!

That is exactly like saying to a Christian "YOU ARE FORBIDDEN TO PRAY!"

So we are living in a society where BELIEF - Be it political or religious is a form of child abuse? This is a DISGRACE!

No one should feel in fear to follow their religious beliefs (Well, Maybe Scientology .. Unfair! Sorry! I am not a fan of them!) and we should not have to justify our ways of worship!!! But we do!

Just as a point of note... And this is for anyone who wishes to open their eyes...

Have you ever noticed the lack of Sheikh Families that end up on the CP registers or how few you hear of?

Now I am not down crying the Sheikh beliefs - In fact I think we can all learn a lot from them as they do encourage from a very early age "Respect" for the family... So it is very obvious why we do hear so little... But of the few I do know about - No one would ever DARE turn around to them and say "You cannot do that! That's could be abusive or dangerous!"

It is part of their cultrure to carry a Sword and a Dagger during set religious ceremonies - Fair and good! We should respect that! But why is it OK for them but NOT for other religions that share similar?

If I were to follow many of the so called "Traditions" of my beliefs - I would have a hand crafted Knife and Sword, and be using them daily! But its is considered WRONG!

Why? Obviously the idea of a sword being used these days is dumb - Though the "Swords" were more the length of a kitchen knife and used for cooking really (I know my history - Ignore these silly book where you prance about naked waving some elaborate "Blacksmiths Masterpiece"... Thats nothing but Pop Culture rhetoric!).

We should not discriminate with ANY religion, Any Political Belief...

My sons foster carer did say to me that there have been a lot of changes in Social Services since he first arrived with her some 10 years ago... Well obviously they have not changed their views on bashing minorities or imposing "their political views" on people.

Whether Social Services like it or not - Nationwide... THIS IS ABUSE! And they are GUILTY AS CHARGED!

Why is sex always a MAN thing?

Given that I normally write about how Social Services get things wrong and how I feel there is a need for change in the Child Protection Services, this may seem to be going off topic.

I also know this is going to be a touchy subject - I know there will be some complaints... Hey! Feel free! Thats what Blogging is about... I am ready for it!

But bear with me because I think you will find that this post exposes serious issues with regards to sexism in our very culture that probably accounts for a great deal of the many issues we deal with these days.

I decided that this issue was right to raise as so many public figures who should know better are calling for the age of consent to be lowered? What the...

The issue I find myself worrying about is that of underage sex... And how it is mishandled.

You may all recall a few years ago that there was the revelation of the apparent 12 year old father to a 14 year old mother. OK! In the end he turned out not to be the father but none the less...

The way the law currently stands is that any CHILD, and lets face it - They ARE CHILDREN, engaging in under age sex is committing a crime - Good!

BUT Only the MALE will ever have to face a prison sentence??? WHAT???

This has never sat well with me, It takes two to tango and in the majority of these cases - BOTH PARTIES have engaged willingly! So why is the man always the evil one?

The case I have referred to above was very widely covered by the media, and there was an apparent discord in the family who seemed to have no real interest in stopping their daughter having underage sex. They were actually ready to help and support her with baby... As Jeremy Kyle says so often "Kids Bringing up Kids" - It just WRONG on so many levels.

Worth noting that we seem to have heard little follow up on this family since that date despite the obvious factors of Emotional and Mental Harm that Social Services SHOULD BE acting upon...

We have a serious issue with teenage pregnancies, thankfully most are of a "sensible" age - OK! 16 years old is not actually sensible but it is as the law states... But there are those still engaging in sex far younger.

And if discovered, it only the MALE that will face going to prison? Why not the dirty little slapper that was willing to spread her legs, lie back and think of England as well?

Honestly, I do not even see prison as the solution - This is one time where I do believe that it will do far more harm than good... But I do feel they can do more to turn this tide. An end to the sexist behavior for a starters would be a great help.

Both parties should be punished for their idiocy and flagrant disregard for the law and life... Why is it that so many of these Girls get to just carry on? They have a child and that's a responsibility!

It is good to know that many families will help support the babies born in these situations, but it sets a bad precedent... When any female becomes a mother at any age - They have a DUTY!

They bought this young life into the world, they should be there for it... Not dropping baby on Gran and Grandad and buggering off to a local party with their equally underage mates and getting stoned out of their faces on several cans of Stella!

There has to be a better way. I feel that it should be more of a case of the hammer being thrown down on ANY kids deciding to engage their loins before they are ready and being MADE to face the responsibility of the life they have created. Simple!

But what makes me all the more angry - When I hear of Kids in school being bullied for still being Virgins!

Can you imagine the trauma that goes through a youngsters head when everyone around them is bragging about having sex and how low they feel when more or less the whole school has been "doing it" and they seem to be an outcast - Because they want to be sensible? Because they do not want to risk an STD or unwanted pregnancy?

We sit back and pretend its not happening and yet we hear of suicides down to bullying - This is Bullying and we are doing nothing to prevent it!

When I was at School during the 1980's, Underage Sex was not unheard of but the majority of people you could guarantee were not actually doing what they said they were - The lads especially! We were all arrogant and wannabes - Trying to stand out and look good...

OK! I did not fit in with that crowd, Half the time I did not even understand what they meant when they would turn around to me and shout "Hey! Are you a Virgin"... I would always answer yes or no and be greeted with roars of laughter... Never knowing what I had done wrong - Yes I admit its strange at the age of 12 or 13 not to know what a Virgin was but frankly it had never been an important word in my vocabulary.

This teasing was regular when I was young - But very few, if any of those who Bragged had EVER even thought about sex... The closest any of us came was trying to get a sneaky peak at a top shelf magazine.

Many of those braggers even went on to prove themselves when they were of an age by sleeping with older women to look good...

Nowadays, its far different, it seems that our young generation is practically encouraged to engage in sex. That no one cares, because at the end of the day if they do get caught they can just blame the male... They must be the sexual predator because that's just the way it is.

So we now have schools full of children, especially the girls and I defy anyone to say different on this one... I may be 40-something but i have seen and heard the way they act... Splashing around their sexuality and bragging and making anyone who hasn't feel uncomfortable or useless.

The lads are no better, but the girls are far more blatant.. Oh yes it is happening! More and More! And what do we do?

Our society turns a blind eye... NO! WE SHOULD NOT! Underage Sex is a CRIME and it should be treated as such for GIRLS AND BOYS! Lets end this sexist behavior now and maybe we can turn things around.

Underage sex is a CRIME and we MUST TREAT IT AS SUCH! NO MORE KID GLOVES!

Lets be honest... He is my kind of Scumm

A "Facebook" group called LETS GO HUNTING has taken the media by storm after securing SEVEN arrests of suspected paedos.

The secret group is formed of three dads and a mum who do not feel enough is being done to counter the problem of grooming over the internet so pose as children and arrange to meet the potential perverts before catching them on video camera and exposing the truth before handing their discoveries to police.

With tip-offs in Leicsetershire, Warwickshire and Birmingham, the group has already shown it can achieve a great deal. All of the groups members are known martial arts experts though their identies are a closely guarded secret.

The group leader, who calls himself Scumm Buster, has been quoted as saying "We want to protect our children from Paedophiles, we're coming for you".

Personally, I LOVE IT! Scumm Buster may not be the first to take this kind of stand, but the more that do the better. Sadly my point of view is not shared by the Police.

Warwickshire Police have said "It could compromise investigations, spark and abuser to harm a child or themselves and could be breaking the law".

So what do the police think should be done then? Well, We should be fair shouldn't we...

In the very same issue of the SAME NEWSPAPER, Warwickshire Constabulary has been condemned as one of the SOFTEST FIVE COUNTIES on offenders in the UK. Just 1.5% of offenders that are convicted will serve a prison sentence. Compare and contrast South Wales who will hand down custodial Sentences on 4.6% making them 5th hardest force in the UK.

How do the police expect to be taken seriously when there is such a postcode lottery as to how crimes are handled and punishments handed out? Not that dealing with paedophiles will ever be easy.

Statistics suggest that in the UK alone, there are over 30,000,000 members - This is including criminals as well who, despite the best efforts of the security services manage to get online via smuggled mobile phones, let alone any number of potential perverts out there.

No matter how good a job CEOP tries to do or the police, there is no way in the world that they can manage to investigate and prevent any kind of grooming alone. Even with the proposals that were powered through by the US government for the controversial CISPA program are only going to be able to cover the most "serious" issues... There are billions of emails sent each day, How are you supposed to investigate every single one? It near impossible.

People like Scumm Buster and his team are essential to keeping the world a safer place, and they have got things just right as well. They investigate and hand over all the proof to police. They do not act like Vigialantes and go on the all out attack as many people would like to do, They get the evidence and arm the appropriate people to minimize risk.

Instead of condemning Scumm, You should be giving him and his team a bloody medal!

We are about Justice... NOT JUDGE AND JURY!

A lot of stories have made headlines this week, from the tragedy in Suffolk of a young mum feeling so depressed she not only took her own life but that of three children, onto the news that television favourite, Rolf Harris, had been arrested in relation to sexual abuse allegations.

I was horrified when I heard about the Lowestoft suicide, not least because I used to live there, but also because I did know the family involved even if it was just through passing.

Needless to say it was not long before "friends" of the victim were talking to the Media to condemn social services and the police for not acting sooner. One quote from a member of the public even suggested that the police had seen Fiona Anderson walking into the city centre gripping a teddy bear and demanded to know why they had done nothing.

It all sounds very horrifying, but due to the deaths of the children being treated as suspicious - The truth will take a while to be heard.

Then on Thursday came the news about Rolf Harris, Once again an arrest not related to but stemming from Operation: Yewtree - The Jimmy Saville investigation.

And already there are many calls across the internet for the 86 year old entertainer to be strung up...

I find for once I am in a very strange position, especially with regards to the Suicide in Lowestoft - As I am actually DEFENDING Social Services! How did I come to this position?

If you do not live in the Suffolk area, you may not have seen the local media reports nor the people who claim to have been the victims friends, but I do know them well - And though I am not saying they are lying, I am a little concerned as to how quickly they shot forward to get their views across when even the father of the victims had maintained a dignified silence.

More or less just 12 hours after Miss Anderson had died, Suffolk County Council were under "Trial by Media" and the children were forgotten as the public tried to find someone to blame.

While I do have very serious concerns and can and will pick issues with Suffolk County Council, I feel this is just abysmal behavior, but it is not limited there...

From Michael Le Vell of Coronation Street to Dave Lee Travis, and now Rolf Harris, there seems to be an all out effort to become the "Executioners" for our country.

This beahvior is getting very worrying to me, we seem to be striding towards an anarchic state and that is not the kind of world I want my children to be growing up in. Yes, we should be worried as there is clear evidence now that there were people at the Bleeding Bodge-Up Company (BBC) that KNEW for YEARS what Saville was up to... This is indefensible.

But that does NOT give us the right to become Judge and Jury until all the information is heard.

Le Vell, Travis and Harris should be presumed "innocent until proven guilty" - We must stop these wretched hate campaigns that are polluting the internet until we know otherwise. Why? Because if we do not stop this - Then we have NO CAMPAIGN!

I have already been approached by families who claim to have lost their children to the state because of false information or misrepresentation by social services, and we treat each case with that merit of "evidence" - I am more than willing to work with my team of experts to ensure every case has been investigated correctly.

We have had people come forward who have had children taken from them because they are considered to be a "High Potential risk" who protest their innocence over and over and shout that they have been unfairly treated.

And for many, we do agree... But then these same people go online and start demanding that men/women who have not actually been convicted of any crime be "dealt with" - Excuse me? IF YOU WANT THE WORLD TO SEE YOU HAVE BEEN TREATED UNJUST - THEN STAND FOR JUSTICE YOURSELVES!

If we allow ourselves to become "Trail by Media" then we become as corrupt as the system we are standing against... Think about it!

Until the truth is heard, we must keep our opinions in a safe place...

Just Cause the Mrs. T Virus has gone... Does not mean we are safe.

Baroness Margret Thatcher has died, and I for one will not be shedding any tears.

But at the same time I am horrified and sickened by the way so many so called protesters have acted since her passing. The blatant bloody vandalism in Brixton was not a protest, it was plain simple "Hooliganism".

But what really annoys me even more is this... Yes she was a bloody nightmare! She screwed up so much of this country and we are still suffering her legacy, but lets face facts for a moment.

Among the mourners going to her Funeral is Former Prime Minister, Tony Blair... Hang on a minute?

Labour are supposed to be the party of the people, so WHY is he GOING?

While everyone is celebrating her passing and having a good old knees up we are missing the most fundamental tragedy of her reign, Her sick ways have corrupted the entire Political System. Labour are not Labour any more... You may as well call em the Conservatives Mk. II.

Thatcher may have been an arrogant, sick, elitist scumbag, but she was at least one of the LAST real politicians we ever had. Labour's last good leader died before he could lead them to victory, Paddy Ashdown - A damn fine Liberal Leader was ousted for being human... With Maggie gone, There are no genuine ones left.

Thatcher may have screwed us over, but at least she had the dignity to do it to our faces and say "Get over it!"

Now, they all hide behind spin doctors and rhetoric, and while we are all having a damn big party they will be slipping in the next steps to seel the country off to teh next bloody bidder who wants to buy us out.

Celebrate if you want to... But don't say I did not warn you, Take your eye off the ball and the Cancer she left behind will destroy our country.

Popping out for benefits... A shameful state!

So jobless mum of 10 children Iona Heaton, 44, wants another baby after her benefits were cut.

You can already guess I do not agree with this in any way shape or form... But what make it even worse is she is hoping to get pregnant via IVF paid for by the ever generous British taxpayer. How Nice!

Her husband is not sure about having another baby but she is determined to twist his bollocks talk him around in to agreeing. In total her monthly benefits budget after the cuts is £1,800 and with the children it would be unfair to dispute that especially as one has epilepsy and receives disability benefits which is fair.

But you have to ask HOW she manages to give these children the amount of time and devotion they really deserve? It was hard enough for me as a father of two children and working. My wife at the time found juggling their needs was a struggle so how does a parent cope with 10?

Before I was made redundant in 2003, I would work up to 13 hours a day to provide for my family and did not receive many of the benefits I should rightfully have claimed. I never once complained or blamed anyone else and we defiantly never considered having another baby just to try and boost our income.

In 2004, I took over full time care of the two children and while we had social services involvement I had some major hurdles to cross that should make this woman feel truly ashamed and the Social Services as well.

My Wife had left me with the children but she was STILL claiming the Child benefit, Child tax credit and Income Support for another 6 weeks after she left... I asked for help trying to get the right money that should have been coming to me and the children, but was greeted with "Take her bank card off her" - Some nice Social Services advice there.

So for 6 weeks I struggled and succeeded to provide for both the children and myself on just £70 a week... Job Seekers Allowance. Even after the 6 weeks were up it was another 4 weeks before I finally got the money that was due.

And herein lies my entire point... Social Services took my children from me after leaving me in a precarious situation but IGNORE the benefit scrounging ilk like Heaton who basically are only having kids to have a free ride! Its sickening!

I know that this government has got things very seriously wrong with its benefit reforms, but here is a very straight fact that many will not like. I managed... 2 Children and myself - We did OK... It was not a life, god knows no family should be expected to live on just £70 a week... But the sad truth is that our benefits culture is paying far too much to people and serious reform needs to be made, but not hitting those who want to work or improve the lives of those they care about, but these feckless, idle, baby machines that think they have some god given right to pop out children to fund their own lavish lifestyles.

OK! There is no proof she has some kind of lavish lifestyle... But i bet you if you walked into her home you would find a PC, maybe a Ipad or two, A games console, flat screen TV... I guarantee it!

I had none of that for my kids, we made do with what we could afford... This is where our society has got it wrong and our politicians need to pull their heads out of their backsides and deal with it!