King's Lynn parents' cruelty arrest over obese child

[Bald Bouncer]

A couple have been arrested by police on suspicion of cruelty and neglect of their obese child.


Police said arrests were "very rare" in such cases

A 49-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman, from King's Lynn in Norfolk, were questioned by officers over the child's care and released on bail.

Police said intervention at this level was "very rare" and only occurred where other attempts to protect the child had been unsuccessful.

A spokeswoman added police were working with health and social services.

The Sun reported the couple's 11-year-old son is 5ft 1in (1.5m) and 15 stone, with a body mass index (BMI) of 41.8.

It alleged concerned teachers and doctors prompted intervention by social services and then police.

Police and Norfolk County Council said it would not discuss the "victim" or the circumstances of the case.

'Protection from harm'

The couple were arrested in March on suspicion of child neglect and cruelty under section 1 of the Children's Act 1933.

"When dealing with sensitive issues such as obesity and neglect of children, officers from the force's Child Abuse Investigation Unit work closely with partners, significantly with both health care and social services, to ensure any response to address them are proportionate and necessary," police said.

"Any action taken by any agency will be subject to a joint strategy and will always be taken with the welfare of the child and their protection from harm as paramount."

Norfolk County Council spokeswoman said: "Our priority will always be the health, well-being and safety of Norfolk's children and we will always do all we can to support families to meet their children's needs."

Source: BBC NEWS

[Raptor]

Seems a bit harsh ?

I'm a right fat cunt - if they took me away from my mum that would be well out of order.

[neilb]

Loved the quote from the parents.....

The woman explained that they encouraged the boy to play active games on his Wii console.

[CzarJunkie]

Jesus Christ. In sub Saharan Africa a child runs the real risk of starvation. In the West we are arresting parents because their tubby little off spring are eating too much. What kind of world do we live in? My brain is about to explode.

[Raptor]

[Itsme]

tbh we do have more depressing matters such as kids not getting food that we should be more concerned about.

[Chubbs]

Jesus Christ. In sub Saharan Africa a child runs the real risk of starvation. In the West we are arresting parents because their tubby little off spring are eating too much. What kind of world do we live in? My brain is about to explode.

Are those parents also neglecting their children bringing them
into a world where they can't be adequately fed and nourished?

Just a thought.

[CzarJunkie]

Are those parents also neglecting their children bringing them
into a world where they can't be adequately fed and nourished?

Just a thought.

I wish my world was as simple as yours. Here's four reasons why your question is ridiculous.

Number one, the mortality rate in 3rd world nations is high therefore to have as many children survive to adulthood as possible they need to have more children, on average, than we do in the West.

Number two, children are usually needed to work for the family, either growing food or working to support their family. So, they need more children than a family in the West because it's simple economics. More children = more people working to provide for the family.

Number three, education. Westerners usually have at least 11 years of free education, in 3rd world countries, especially in sub Saharan Africa, they are lucky to get any at all.

And finally, number four. They haven't got a Tesco's to go to to get their food from. They invariably have to grow it themselves with no expensive irrigation systems, pesticides or combine harvesters. They use rudimentary tools and are powerless to stop climate change (caused by our overconsumption in the West) which brings drought and ruins crops, sometimes for years. This leads to starvation on a massive scale. And they are not clairvoyant, they have no idea if a harvest will fail until it does.

[Chubbs]

I wish my world was as simple as yours.

Thanks for your response, I'll have a different view next time Children In Need or similar is on, no one has ever taken the time to explain their situation like that before.

[dpSparhawk]

Jesus Christ. In sub Saharan Africa a child runs the real risk of starvation. In the West we are arresting parents because their tubby little off spring are eating too much. What kind of world do we live in? My brain is about to explode.

Just feed that fat little fucker to one of the Saharan kids. Problem solved on both sides of the world (temporarily) j/k.

*Although your point is valid

[Bald Bouncer]

I wish my world was as simple as yours. Here's four reasons why your question is ridiculous.

Number one, the mortality rate in 3rd world nations is high therefore to have as many children survive to adulthood as possible they need to have more children, on average, than we do in the West.

Number two, children are usually needed to work for the family, either growing food or working to support their family. So, they need more children than a family in the West because it's simple economics. More children = more people working to provide for the family.

Number three, education. Westerners usually have at least 11 years of free education, in 3rd world countries, especially in sub Saharan Africa, they are lucky to get any at all.

And finally, number four. They haven't got a Tesco's to go to to get their food from. They invariably have to grow it themselves with no expensive irrigation systems, pesticides or combine harvesters. They use rudimentary tools and are powerless to stop climate change (caused by our overconsumption in the West) which brings drought and ruins crops, sometimes for years. This leads to starvation on a massive scale. And they are not clairvoyant, they have no idea if a harvest will fail until it does.

I would also add they have no state pension or any sort of pension scheme so it is the norm for children to be raised by grandparents and parents work full time, the grandparents are supported by their children it is a system that works well as opposed to the western world children seem to run to parents all their lives for financial support or leave home only to see them once a year for Christmas dinner.

The obligation is reversed and children are expected to support parents in later life because if they don't or don't have children they starve to death it really is that simple. This also makes for a greater bond between children, parents and grandparents a bond that is sadly missing in most of the western world.