Last weekend, as I was making my way home from a dog walk, a man fell to the pavement in front of me. I rushed over to help him get back to his feet and it quickly became apparent that he was blind drunk. No sooner had I helped him up than he was face-planting the pavement again. He had his 7 year old child with him. The child shut down completely, and wouldn't look at me or talk to me. Obviously a trauma response. But he didn't look shocked.
I phoned the police, saying that I had a welfare concern about the child. They replied that they'd marked it as a priority but couldn't say when they'd get someone out. They were busy. They asked me to phone them back if the man became violent towards his child 
I stayed with them because I work with vulnerable kids and couldn't in good conscience walk away.
The man sat on a step trying to phone a taxi, but was too drunk to use his phone. He started getting tetchy with his son, because he expected him to phone the taxi! Son started feeling a bit more comfortable with me. I had some sweets in my bag which he enjoyed, and he showed off his jumping skills. Over an hour passed and the man stood up and declared himself able to walk home. He literally staggered home with his son. I followed at a distance to make sure they got in ok.
The police phoned me later for a statement.
I'm not naive and I know they're stretched, but bloody hell ... the poor kid 