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.

Autocorrect keeps changing Sue to She

A classic example of why any more than 4 children should not be free on the NHS - she’ll have cost hundreds of thousands in maternity care alone.

Xenia you cannot compare having 5 kids and doing well to someone having 21...

Some of the earlier programs they featured in were distressing. Several kids to an unmade bed, upside down all over the place. Children saying mum just kept having babies.
There definitely seems to be something amiss. I watched that vlog tour of the house. I’m sure 2 of the little girls shared a bedroom with no window. They also have no space to ‘be’. There’s a lounge and a (this week being refurbed kitchen) assume they have a deal with at least Zanussi based on their Instagram, but there’s no space for kids to have their own space.

A classic example of why any more than 4 children should not be free on the NHS - she’ll have cost hundreds of thousands in maternity care alone. yy to this.

I dont know who they are but feel immensely sorry for the children. Horrible.

I'm sure growing up in care has something to do with them bothwanting to build their own large family but I don't think that means she must have any more mh issues than any mother picked at random who we would support being a 'good enough' parent. That's all we expect of anyone.

A woman stuck at home with 1 or 2 children is common now but doesnt mean its the only way or the best way.

Many grown up children might bemoan having to look after younger siblings but growing up with some responsibilities isn't a bad thing. Many grown up children bemoan being an only child or being eldest or middle or youngest. There are pros and cons to all family arrangements. There is no one right answer.

I don't agree at all re charging for maternity care. Another stick to beat possibly vunerable, abused, marginalised women.

I watched the last documentary and the younger kids didn’t care when a new baby came along because it was all they knew. But the older ones know it is not the norm and resent the media attention, not having any space or time to themselves, and having to muck in and help with the younger ones. The only time one of the teenage boys had his own space was on his top bunk (out of 3) playing computer games or doing homework. Sad.

The parents obviously have issues and I’m sorry for that and also the stillbirth they suffered but it’s pretty obvious that their kids are not having all their needs met.

@Whisky2014 I’m pretty sure in the past that due to fast labours she was admitted to hospital at 38 weeks for induction. Which sometimes took days (waiting) and then a stay after. How on Earth they managed at home (oldest daughter Sophie) and yes it will have been expensive to the nhs.
She’s clearly addicted to the attention it all brings, medical and social media

She's been pregnant her whole life that's her identity it's really sad.
Her children have openly expressed they find all these siblings stressful,lack of privacy less time with parents yet sue still goes ahead and gets pregnant.
I don't think their selfish because I really believe sue has a mental illness and doesn't comprehend what she is doing.
But I think noel is fully aware but either goes along with Sue or likes keeping her tied with children.

For me the NHS should be free for all If the mother who has 5 children has to pay then for the fifth, then what about alcoholics or binge drinkers? The extreme sports fans? People who accidentally overdose when out clubbing? Obese people? Far too complex.

The fact is that the older children parent the younger. I have a friend who was the oldest in a large family and she is very bitter indeed about the fact that she had no childhood to speak of.

Hubby Radford apparently had a vasectomy at one point but they had it reversed as they wanted more. When I worked in maternity, it was clear that many youngsters who were adopted had a strong desire to create blood relatives. I think the Radfords have done enough on that score.

If nature had its way she simply would not have survived and she and the children are still with us because of excellent maternity care. But, even with good care, I still feel that her uterus and the rest of her body must be showing the strain of all this - I have piles and a bad back after having just 3!

The media have a lot to answer for here - the more media coverage they get the more likely they are to have more. I can see that the media are an important income stream for them.

I have nothing against large families but this one is so large that proper care is impossible. How do they fit in all the parents' evenings etc.? I am not a fan of all this over-parenting that seems to go on (in which parents feel forced into over-stretching their resources in every way) , but neither do I feel that parenting that is so diluted is a good idea.

When I said 15 was more common I meant more common than now and more common than 21. I have a very large extended family and have done a lot of family tree research. The largest family I have come across is 7. The most common family size in my tree was 4.

I agree re there being much more problems caused by charging for maternity care for 4+ births than solved. It is likely to mean that women go through high risk labours and births unmonitored and unsupported, without any or adequate medical care. It is a barbaric idea, frankly.

Those 21 kids who are such a "drain on the system" will grow up to be 21 taxpayers who contribute to it.

Sophie has already got 3 children and she's 23 or 24.

Chloe went to university for about a term but came back because she was worried how her mother would cope without her and now works in the bakery.

I think one of older boys works in the bakery too.

They make me feel sick, I feel so sorry for all those children. I don’t know how Noel (is that his name?) can keep encouraging Sue to repeatedly give birth, it’s so risky and he first got her pregnant when she was 13. Plus the cost aspect. Really grim.

Neither of them grew up in care, they were placed with their parents at weeks old. I'm sure I read on the old blog that Sue's BM had 7 or 8 dc removed, so her knowing that she was from a big family that she then lost probably had an impact. Remember though that having babies is all that Sue has known, a huge part of her identity is probably tied around that and the thought of 'this being the last time we bring a new baby down the driveway' is probably quite daunting. Noel said in one programme that one of the dc was nursery age but S ue couldn't face having only 2 dc at home during the day so they didn't send him.

You can't compare you having 5 children to their 21 Xenia

I feel incredibly sorry for the children. I’ve only ever watched one programme about them and the older children looked miserable! Their rooms were like dorms and they said they didn’t get any privacy. The oldest daughter gave up her place at university to be near the family.

All I will say is it must be a flipping magic bakery they are running considering it employs them and some of the adult children. I don’t buy it.

Didnt they used to lock their children in their rooms?

Didn’t Sue say she doesn’t really bother about things like homework?

Already a video on YouTube announcing the birth. Obv.

Even I could at a push a very big push have managed 5 children if I'd started when I was younger.
21 is inconceivable

I think that is so harsh & you can’t possible know that.

It may be harsh but it's a not entirely unreasonable assumption. The children who perform best at school have higher levels of parental involvement in their education. There's only so much time that one person can give, and having even 10 school age children will spread that person spectacularly thinly.

You could have 5 kids if you didn’t start till 35.

Interesting that some of those children say they don't want children of their own or will only have 1 or 2.