I'm a parent at a parent-run playgroup/care facility where kids attend with parents but those >3yrs can be left with the paid staff member.
Every year they typically get a couple of students in from the local place that offers childcare degrees, doing a practical placement. The arrangement is typically pretty informal as the local institution expects the students to set things up themselves.
Late last week someone sent an email to the playgroup saying they were a local student looking for a placement.
She came in on Monday morning to talk to the president and paid staff member. I had a brief flash of déjà vû when I saw her face but put it down to (me) having lived in 9 towns in the last 18 years.
She showed particular interest in the older children, saying she has a 6 year old of her own, and giving quite a lot of detail about being a young teenage mother from a big family in an identified town. She seemed inept in dealing with the older kids though, and walked through groups of younger children like they were furniture in the way. Among the questions being asked were "can you drive?" in case an emergency trip for a child is required (it occasionally happens that a child needs to go to a doctor, parent has no car, taxi won't take child without car seat, bus route too far, etc). She said yes, she can drive.
On Tuesday she called up to say that her daughter had been in a terrible car crash and was in an induced coma. Thus she was unable to take up the placement.
I thought "how dreadful, poor woman, poor daughter, poor family". Looked up the news for the town expecting to see something about the car crash. Nothing, and indeed nothing about a car crash with the details given, anywhere, on Monday or Tuesday. I thought "odd, but either the news hasn't covered the crash, or at worst, this is probably a teenager being fanciful after getting a better offer".
Last night I remembered where I'd seen her face - in the garden of a local rather dodgy house, standing round chatting with the bunch of dodgy men in hoodies who stand round there all day apparently not doing much (but disappearing quickly if, say, a police car drives past).
I looked up her name - instantly retrievable on Facebook, with photos of her that are absolutely recognizable. If what is on there is correct, she gave birth for the first time in December last year, she is late twenties; and the next hit when searching for her (pretty identifiable) name, is that she is currently on bail for numerous pretty serious charges of drink driving.
Should this be being reported to the police?
Or do I just think lucky escape?