Sue Radford, baby 21 is here..

[FortuneFrimble]

Daily Fail story here
21 babies! That's some achievement. I cannot believe her body is still in one piece. I feel sorry for those kids though. There's absolutely no way they can all have the individual attention they need growing up. Four kids maybe, perhaps 6 at an absolute push but 21 seems like collecting trophies for a hobby to me. It'd be interesting to see what families those children decide to have when the time comes. It seems like she's putting her own want for babies ahead of her existing children's wellbeing & that isn't healthy. I'm curious that she's practically guaranteed herself an endless supply of babies as her children have children. But they're supposedly paying for everything themselves so we're not allowed to say anything against them. I don't agree with it. Tell me I'm being U.

When you get to the number of children that 4 of your daughters are Millie, Ellie, Tillie and Hallie you probably need to call it a day.

Too right.

Newspapers earn sales from exposing everyone else. Celebs, mp's, footballers and ex footballers and the top shop owner

So why would they not expose them for lying public-ally when they are so public. That's what I find odd.

They wouldn't have a confidentiality contract so seems odd

Maybe they will get exposed soon

Because they are only d list (if that) celebrities and because it is more useful to have them as this wonderful, self sufficient family. Exposed as lying about benefits? One story, that's your lot, they are not going to speak to you again. Far better the annual clickbait of a new baby. But once mum stops breeding it's open season.

They've been in more than one paper and they've been on this morning and other magazines

The thing is I don't think they have actually lied outright about any benefits. They have either skirted the questions or never if necessary corrected what has been said.

The closest is that they only claim what they are entitled to.

It may come one day, if you are on a pedestal built by the media it can instantly be knocked down again.

mumto2babyboys

Newspapers earn sales from exposing everyone else. Celebs, mp's, footballers and ex footballers and the top shop owner

😂 seriously? I hardly think the countries most prolific reproducers are going to attack the level of interest and sales as those above. What on Earth do you think they’d gain by ‘exposing’ a family for claiming something they are entitled too.

I think its ridiculous and agree with PP that the children can't be getting the love and attention they deserve with that amount of siblings to compete with. It also must be having a really detrimental effect on her health by this point. It think its madness having more than 6 max!

Drogosnextwife no not everyone is entitled at all, the cut off for the full amount is about 50k salary.

I’m sure I’ve read loads of times that they don’t claim benefits and I would think that child tax credits definitely count as benefits. It’s not about them getting what they’re legally entitled to but why they’re legally entitled to it - because they won’t stop having a ridiculous number of children.

Do you think she feeds on demand?

I only got 4 hours sleep last night due to not being able to for the last few weeks (youngest is 8 so not down to him), and I as I was stirring the dinner, sleeping while standing up, I thought that this was how I felt when my DC were all babies.

Can't imagine why they'd want to go through it again and again! All their babies can't have been 7am-7pm sleepers from birth surely?

zzzz no it doesn't matter but when the DM also publishes articles like this slating the Prudham family whilst at the same time placing the Radford family on a pedestal it seems a bit galling. Had the Radfords even been as upfront about the CB I wonder how things would have turned out for them. The media have put them there, they have no desire to expose them.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2637155/Pregnant-mother-nine-earning-38-000-year-benefits-takes-giant-family-fortnight-Menorca.html

No they don't, but I can feel aggrieved at how the media portrays the family. I can separate that from the family as a whole.

My beef with the family has pretty much always been about the role the media plays.

Wow!! The Prudhams were getting £400 per week in child tax credits for 9 children. How much must the Radfords be getting with at least 15 to claim for?

I'm also a bit baffled as to what they do with all the money? From what PP have said they claim to be very frugal - very tiny portions of food for the children, clothes and shoes handed down to younger siblings, and very little in terms of toys, extra curricular activities etc.

Their house is very large it was an ex care home I believe, so I would imagine it costs quite a bit to run.

Well before the tv holidays they were very proud of their annual holidays abroad. They would’ve been very expensive. And food bills. A new expensive pram with every baby. Large families are expensive even if you are careful. Water, electricity etc.

Presumably they don’t decide what spin the DM put on things.

But they happily pose for their photos and give them lots of quotes.

I'm clearly in a minority but this bitchy judgement is really unsettling.

Who make the rules on how many children a person can have?

If we can all do that I think no kids is best to save the planet and avoid the burden on tax payers. After all anyone with a child can claim child benefits or tax credit.

No?

Oh so how many is acceptable then?

( I have 2 who now pay more tax than I will have ever claimed).

I truly find people with kids telling another woman how many kids she should have unacceptable.

Seems I'm a minority though. I really do not see what it has to do with anyone else.

I deal with under privileged kids day in day out and I don't think the Radfords are in that league at all.

I agree they are no where near the under privileged league. This however is MN and I think the parenting standards are higher than average. The Radfords clearly have issues though. It doesn't seem to be about loving a big family, it seems to be an obsession with babies. I used to follow them on FB and she would only ever share photos of the youngest one or two. As soon as she was pregnant again the pictures would be all about the new baby (scan) what she had bought, personalised items etc. When the baby was born it would only be pictured with the next child up. I'm sure they are all loved equally but from what she shared it was very baby centric. I also remembe r someone on babycentre saying Sue used to post pics of multiple pregnancy tests way before her period was due, so contrary to her "shock" every time at being pregnant it seems as if she is/was actively TTC.
I would hate to live in a world where a woman was limited to a certain amount but I'm sure everyone would agree that 20+ children is completely unnecessary.

@coppercolouredtop no one has set (or suggested a limit) and unless you work directly with them there’s no way you could say whether they were under privileged.
The facts are a 13 yr old child was impregnated by a much older male friend of her brother and had gone on to have 21 children. That is concerning to most people and certainly not a cause for celebration,
It’s not bitchy judgement it’s a very sad concerning situation.

You know it's funny....was just saying today thatnunderage pregnancy has gone full circle.

Used to be taboo and girls were ashamed and couldn't tell anyone

Then attitude changed and girls could talk

And now ? We're back to underage sex being so taboo that girls can't talk again.

I think girls have always had sex before 16 . That's the reality. At least let them talk and access health care and contraception. Without shame.

@coppercolouredtop so there you are minimising abuse. From a different era I’d imagine. I have a 14 yr old daughter and the thought of an 18 yr old male having sex with her is illegal and abhorrent. I also have an 18 yr old son and if it was vice Versa I’d say the same. 2 underage teens having sex, yes, I’d agree with you (but I would never brush 13 year olds off as just teens having sex) 2 young people of a similar age, I’d say you have a fair point. And yes I’ve had experience of young adults being sexually active.
But you are minimising the sexual abuse of a 13 year old child. The subsequent birth of her baby and ongoing sale of every child she produces. This isn’t being able to have underage sex without shame, this is 13.

Not minimising abuse at all. I work with abused kids a fair bit and I take their abuse through to prosecution. But they should have able to speak about it without fear .

I'm 46. In my day many of my peers were having underage sex and I cant imagine that's different now . The difference is in our response. It will out girls off talking. I'd prefer sensible discussion than knee jerk reaction because girls won't talk much as they didn't in the bad old days.

coppercolouredtop, no there are (sadly) no rules on how many children a couple can have but come on what if we all decided to be as selfish as this pair?

It's not good saying "but we wouldn't all". What if we did? The country would never cope with the expense of the births, the schooling, the benefits etc.

I think 2 children is enough when the world is already overpopulated and, for your information, me and DH chose not to have any.