Calling the police to check on a crying baby

My DC had horrendous colic from about 4 weeks and it lasted until they were about 12 weeks. I felt so bad for my neighbours as DC screamed until the early hours when they would eventually settle. We followed all the tips re meds to settle their stomach, baby massage etc etc but it still happened EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. I’m talking 25+ years ago and sometimes I could hear my neighbour’s baby crying over our baby monitor so I’m sure she could hear mine too. I’d have been devastated if anyone reposted my child and I wouldn’t have reported my neighbour either. There’s a difference between a poorly baby crying and eventually settling and a child who is hurt

Why don’t you get Nuby RapidCool? The flask cools down freshly made bottle in less than 2 mins.

OP you did the right thing! ❤️

OP feels something could be wrong though, safe guarding is everyone’s responsibility but what use is that if the call handler won’t listen because it’s hot tonight? A welfare check isn’t a crazy idea at all.

Also it might've helped the gp/heath visitor take our concerns more seriously as he was eventually found to have silent relux that actually ended up causing him to stop breathing.

Really? Babies cry. Some babies REALLY cry, and it's the hottest night of the year so far.
I may have been in the job too long and got too cynical here, but is a parent not consoling their crying baby really something you think the police should be dealing with when there are crimes in progress that there aren't enough officers to attend?

Is that a standard protocol or just what you would have done. Worrying if that is a standard Police response.

Duty Social Worker wouldn't have responded immediately. In some situations, baby could be dead by the time SS routinely follow up.

My son used to cry very loud as a baby. Nothing would settle him sometimes it he would cry for hrs hrs until he ended up falling asleep exhausted. Tbh I was expecting someone to knock on the door or socal services to be called as it was non stop and like I said very loud. No one did which looking back it's actually quite shocking no one thought to call someone .

I don’t know. People can have wild imaginations. The WhatsApp group for my estate went nuts earlier in the week after a few houses had visits from plain clothed police officers looking for a missing girl. Even though the police had badges and gave the crime reference number, there were many posters who insisted it was fake, that the badges were bad copies made using AI and that police from a neighbouring borough would not be allowed into ours. One Googled the name of the officers and because there were no results, used that as evidence that it was fake.

Six hours later, people were still going on about it and wanted to call 999…

Luckily someone with common sense called the police force and verified that it was genuine.

So quite often, people don’t just know something isn’t right. They get carried away and encouraged by others.

Yes I’ve spent loads time in the MASH and I can’t imagine police or EDT in social care will pick this up

Several hours/ all night maybe ?
so if you are concerned keep an ear out and if same now call EDT children’s services

*Emergency Duty Team

Some babies and loud without being abused. We are back in UK on holiday this week.
The C is intense. Our youngst cried at bedtime yesterday. It's not unheard of.

That sounds like poor judgement on your part in the middle of the night to be honest.

DS cried up to 6 hours a day non stop for the first 3 months of his life. So glad I didn’t have neighbours who thought I was neglecting him. I think it would have broken me to know police had been called when I was exhausted and almost broken with the non stop daily crying.

As a police call handler - we wouldn't have dispatched officers to this. I would have advised you to contact social services though, and think that you should.

You did the right thing, babies do cry differently depending on if they’re angry hungry etc. and poor thing must have been very distressed to be so loud

That doesn’t take over half an hour. It’s probably innocent but OP did the right thing

Sometimes you just 'know' something doesn't seem or sound right. Better to be safe than sorry.

My adopted son was left for hours on his own by his birth mother and it only came to light this was happening and he was actually alone in the house overnight, cold, hungry and in dirty nappies when the neighbours reported that he had been crying and sounding extremely distressed for over an hour. That level of neglect has had a major impact on him.

You did the right thing.

One of my fellow social workers is off on mat leave with a 3 month old.
she texted earlier ( while I was in the pub ) thankfully with 6 grown up kids and 4 DGCs now 5 and above ) to say her little man is fractious and won’t settle in the heat and is crying and all over the shop can’t be settled or consoled and is worried about the noise bless her.
I imagine what her neighbours are hearing is more intermittent with soothing gaps and being in arms etc rather than full
on screaming. I told her not to
worry.
but she will
thought of someone calling the law on her is chilling the poor old stick but I guess in my service we rely on the public picking up
on these things

police won’t touch it though I wouldn’t imagine ?

This!
Crying babies and lost cats are so common. Ask before calling police.
The police must be crying.

I've done the same thing before OP. I have no regrets.

Sometimes I think MN is a bit over the top.

I hate this new thing of calling the police on everyone over every little thing. We got a kitten and it got lost and we couldn’t find it so we thought it had got out (it hadnt). Me and my TEEN sons were out on the street at night looking for it and instead of being asked if we are ok or needed any help a neighbour called the police on us! It would have been obvious we were looking for it as we were calling for it! What happened to just asking people if they are ok?

Is this the first time you’ve been concerned?

as a second time mom of a 6 week old my baby could cry for that amount of time because of boiling the kettle, making the bottle, changing nappy whilst waiting for it to cool down…