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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think its not appropriate to let their kids run riot unsupervised?

5 replies

Frustrated00 · 27/07/2018 21:39

The family I'm talking about live just off my street, I live near a busy main road and about half a block down there is a long passageway leading to a courtyard where there are multiple flats. Our street isn't visible from their flat windows. Its not an affluent area by any means and you do get undesirable types locally.

A couple who live in one of these flats mentioned have (I think 5) children, two of them are little girls aged 6 and under and they are effectively left to their own devices to wander around on their own. They often venture onto the part of the road where I live, completely out of earshot and sight of their mum and dads flat. They're very chatty children and will talk to anybody, ive seen them talking to random strangers (men and women) who are coming along the street, many times.

They often ask my neighbours if they can come into their houses to play with their children (mine included as they've taken a shine to my baby) I tell them no but some other neighbours do allow this.

They talk to strangers, are free to walk down the road to the shops unsupervised irrespective of the time, play outside on the street until way past dark on their own and I never see their parents coming to collect them or checking where they are.

They are a Romany gypsy family and I did wonder whether in their culture this was normal? I'm not bashing these people, just unaware whether certain values differed in terms of raising their children.

With it being hot weather I have been spending a lot of time in my front garden so do keep an eye on them if I see them out on their own late, I just can't help but feel uneasy seeing such little children running riot with seemingly no shits given by the parents.

From what I can gather they buy and sell cars, one of their older children (a boy of about 9) actually had the keys to one of these cars and would sit in it turning the engine on and off, again unsupervised.

There is no parking round the back in the courtyard where they live so its not unusual for them to park in our parking spaces. The car the kid had the keys to was leaking oil all over my neighbours parking space and the negligence of it all didn't go unnoticed. I digress..

Aibu and should I just mind my own business or is this absolute negligence on the parents part?

OP posts:
Maelstrop · 27/07/2018 22:02

I think I’d be phoning SS. Those children are at risk roaming round unsupervised at that age. Not sure what their nationality has to do with it, I’d be concerned regardless of that.

Clairetree1 · 27/07/2018 22:07

call the NSPCC for advice

Frustrated00 · 27/07/2018 22:11

Nationality is irrelevant in the grand scheme of things but I did wonder whether it was "normal" for them in their culture.

OP posts:
WorraLiberty · 27/07/2018 22:16

Yes it is normal in their culture. My neighbours a few doors down are the same and their mum told me this.

Some of the littluns are still in nappies and roam up and down the street regularly.

How they haven't been hit by cars is beyond me.

Frustrated00 · 27/07/2018 22:55

I'm not usually one to stick my nose in other peoples business and I haven't said anything it just seems so wrong and I can't imagine allowing the same for my own, or any of my friends doing the same

OP posts:
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