Parents encourage their children to play truant, and go shopping

Some Edinburgh parents have been taking their children out of school classes to take them Christmas shopping, police officers on “Truant Watch” have revealed.

Judith Gillespie, development manager at the Scottish Parent Teacher Council, said: “This is in the same trend as parents taking their children away on holidays, and there seems to be less of an understanding these days about the importance of keeping your children at school all the time.

“It is a growing social trend and taking children out of school to do Christmas shopping is another example of it. The parents are simply looking at what is easiest for them. They are not thinking about the importance of school.

Read the full article: Parents taking children out of class to do Christmas shopping

Columbus parents charged after kids found living in filth

A Columbus couple were arrested Thursday for not enrolling their four adopted children — ages 5, 8, 9 and 10 — in school and keeping a house filled with vomit and feces and black spray-painted windows.

Columbus police went to 6462 Yellowstone Drive to assist Department of Family and Children Services officials in executing a court order to take custody of the children who weren’t enrolled in school and because the home wasn’t licensed for home-schooling of the children, Columbus Police Sgt. Rick McMahan said.

Read the full article: Children removed from home

Scottish save least for their children

A new study has found that parents in Scotland save less money for their children’s future than anywhere else in the UK.

Parents in Scotland put less cash away for their children’s future than others elsewhere in the UK, a study has found.

Less than one in five children in Scotland have a lump sum put aside for their future, compared with a quarter of children in other parts of the UK.

However, the research also found Scottish grandparents were more generous than those in the rest of the UK, spending more on gifts each year.

The survey of more than 2,000 people was conducted for the Clydesdale Bank.

Read the full article: Scots ’save least’ for children

Children may inherit obesity from mothers

A new study published in Pediatrics magazine suggests that the children of overweight mothers are at greater risk of becoming obese in early life, and maintaining that weight.

This is also believed to be true of those born to mothers who smoked during their pregnancy.

It’s another reason for prospective mothers to be aware of their own health, and for pediatric nurses to be aware of as a risk factor.

Read the full article: Children of heavy moms tend to be overweight

Young children get too little sleep, study suggests

A new study by the Bradley Hospital Sleep and Chronobiology Research Laboratory in Providence, Rhode Island suggests that very young children may not be getting enough sleep at night.

Adults can often deal with temporary lack of sleep by other methods, but for children, sleep deprivation can be a real problem.

The study followed 169 healthy children aged between one and five years of age, for up to seven days. Monitors (called actigraphs) were attached to the wrists or ankles to measure their activity, and parents kept sleep diaries.

On average, children slept for 8.7 hours, with younger children taking more naps during the day.

The study also showed differences in sleep patterns between children in different social groups, though neither were believed to be unhealthy.

Given the findings, parents with small children should be on the lookout for sleep deprivation in their kids, she advises. “We need to be very alert to watch for signs of sleepiness in children. I think both parents and teachers need to watch if their young child is yawning during the day or kind of falling asleep when they’re watching TV. That’s a sign that they’re not getting enough sleep.”

Read the full article: Very young children may not get enough sleep

Does UK degrade value of marriage?

A comment article in the Express and Star questions Britain’s government for failing to uphold the uniqueness of marriage.

Marriage is good for couples, families, children and the nation.

So why does the state do nothing but constantly undermine this most ancient and precious of bonds?

Read the full article: Marriage undermined by Labour

What do you think?

Tougher punishment for parents refusing to grant access?

Scottish Members of Parliament are considering whether tougher measures are required for parents who refuse to grant access for an ex-partner to see their children.

It could cause a change to the Family Law Bill.

Read the full article: Action call over children access

“Living Apart Together” - new demographic signals new social models

The UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) has defined a new social category: Living Apart Together.

Bravely, the ONS has attempted a definition. A true LAT, its report says, is “the existence of a relationship, which is understood to include a sexual relationship, between partners who each have their own separate address. They recognise themselves as a couple and are recognised as such by others. The partners in a LAT relationship may be of the same sex as well as of the opposite sex.”

The qualifications don’t end there. LATs must be unmarried, “monogamous” and in a relationship that is more than “temporary, fleeting, or casual.”

An article highlighting this in The Scotsman looks at the once-again upward trend of marriages and ‘committed co-habiting’.

It attempts to explain why “LAT” relationships are on the increase: changing employment patterns, distant relatives needing care, financial motivations, and more.

It’s quite a lengthy article but worth a read to begin to understand how relationships in British society continue to change.

Read the full article: At home with separation

Technology tips to enhance family relationships

BabyLounge have published a press release outlining ways that technology can improve family relationships, particularly during holiday times when family bonding can be strained:

New technologies, properly utilized, can, as never before, bring families together, enhance family relationships and bridge the “digital generational divide,” reports BabyLounge, a shopping and community site for parents and expectant parents.

“As research shows, new technologies are more easily accepted and embraced by younger generations, which can drive a perceived wedge between children, parents and grandparents in a family,” says BabyLounge’s Shawn Collins, who is also a father of three children. “The proliferation of instant messaging, e-mail, text-messaging and gaming technologies can indeed create an intergenerational rift since they are unevenly embraced. The good news is that there are a range of new technologies out there that can have the opposite effect and actually help bring families and generations closer together and enhance family relationships. This is especially important during the holiday period when many family members may not have the opportunity to gather in the same location.”

Read the full release: Home for the Holidays: BabyLounge Provides Tips on Technology That Enhances Family Relationships

Child welfare may be redirected to most responsible adult

It has been reported by the Daily Telegraph newspaper that the British Government wish to overhaul the way that child benefit payments are made, so that the most responsible adult carer receives the payments.

This could mean that payments are redirected to a responsible grandparent, or the legal guardian.

This is sure to raise a debate about the Government’s right or ability to determine the suitability of parents.

Source: Govt wants welfare cut from bad parents

Celebrity parenting news

There always seems to be some news of celebrities’ families, and this week is no exception.

First off, Christina Aguilera is reported to be desperate to start a family with music executive Jordan Bratman.

She has admitted to feeling broody, and wants to start trying for a baby at the end of her next world tour.

Meanwhile, tennis star Lleyton Hewitt is quite prepared to take his fair share of the parental responsibilities, according to his wife Bec. Their first child, a daughter, was born this week.

And, as female celebrities show off their pregnant bumps, The Age looks at “the strange world of celebrity offspring”.