To find this mum's behaviour very strange

[Galaxy88]

Yesterday, myself, dh and 2dd were out walking in the woods when we heard a really loud cry, we ran over and a boy about the age of 8, had gone over his handle bars and landed face first on the concrete. He had made a good mess of his face and was naturally hysterical.

While DH attended to his wounds (he's first aid trained) I attempted to get some info from him as he was all alone in the woods. I asked for his name, which he gave. His address and if he had a mobile with him.

He didn't have a phone, didn't know the street name or number but knew he lived in the next village- which is a 15 minute bike ride away. Based on this, we had to call an ambulance. While waiting, we started to ask where his mum was, is she close by? He replied no, and that his mum was at work all day and had left him aged 8 and his older sister aged 9 alone in the house and he'd gone out.

Eventually, a woman walked by who recognised the boy (her dd attend the same school) and was able to call the mother's place of work and let her know.

While on the phone, the mother became highly irritated and started shouting when we said we'd called an ambulance. Saying we were wrong to do that and we should cancel asap as it was a huge over reaction. I explained it wasn't, he'd banged his head, was confused and didn't know where he lived or any contact info, let alone the mess to his head, nose and teeth.

(If the mother had been around, or if the child had a phone we probably wouldn't have called one, we couldn't leave him there screaming with blood pouring and a bump to the head)

While waiting, we cold compressed his head and applied pressure. A friend of the mother turned up first picked up the bike put it her car, grabbed the boy and made a comment about him not needing an ambulance. Moments later the mum shows up, but didn't get out of the car, the boy was placed in her car by the friend and they both drove off.

I'm sat here afterwards really confused, we weren't asking for gratitude, it wasn't necessary. But she didn't even come and ask what had happened, his injuries, what we'd done so far, based on his injuries I imagine she'd require a trip to a&e and would probably need all this info to pass over.

Am I being U to think this is just poor parenting? Not only to leave two young children, but to scold the people trying to help your ds.. dh thinks we should pass on her details to SS, as the woman from before mentioned where they lived in passing after she had gone, shall we just let this go?

Guessing, it’s possible that the mum has no option but to leave her children at home. She’s already feeling guilty and anxious, and is possibly concerned that officialdom will intervene

And so they should. She's putting these children at risk, and failing to seek medical attention when one of them sustains a possibly serious head injury. You do NOT mess about, or take any risks, with this type of thing.

Yes, there should be social services intervention. If you know who she is, I'd not hesitate in reporting her.

Just because she got angry does not mean you did anything wrong. I wish the poor kid had made it to A and E...

She may not have left them home alone.

They were 5 minutes from her work. She may well have taken them into work and they have went to play from there and have to keep checking in, just as they do at home.

I've had to take my kids to work many times, sometimes they go out and play, sometimes they stay in and colour or whatever.

Given how she was acting I would probably call the school and tell them what happened, but I wouldn't automatically assume they had been left home alone for 8 hours.

OP you did the right thing!!

Ffs, PLEASE REPORT TO SS. Safeguarding is everyones responsibility, yes maybe the mother is stressed or it was a one off but you don't know that it is SS to investigate.

I would like to think if my DD was in the same position as this boy, someone like you would have helped her (and I would have been very grateful for the care you displayed).

pessimisticstateofperception the boy told OP his sister was at home alone while the Mum went to work, so that's why she thought they'd been left at home.

I do see your point about proximity to work, but it doesn't explain her reaction either on the phone or in the car.

For what it's worth, I'm a nurse with A&E experience and you did exactly the right thing calling the ambulance. He should have been medically evaluated.

Sorry you're catching so much grief on this thread Galaxy, it makes no sense to me either.

The grief you're getting here op makes no sense to me either.

You did exactly the right thing and you should definitely contact local authority/ safeguarding officer to discuss the incident.

He had a head injury and was confused. That is enough to call an ambulance, I don't know what anyone else is talking about in regards to that. You had a perfectly legit reason. He needed to go to the hospital, and presumably you wouldnt want to walk an unknown unwell child to your house and bundle him in your car.

Judging on responses, I more than likely won't report

Please please do report.
Nothing the Mother did was normal. I'm sure SS would rather waste an hour and find nothing than you not report and this child come to more harm.

I think you should report, at least to school, but preferably to ssd. They can check if he saw a doctor and arrange it if needed, contact school for other concerns etc. All may be well but if not it builds a picture where family needs support.

But a kid falling off their bike without a backstory wouldn't mean an automatic referral to SS.

when I triaged paed patients with an injury we would want a very clear backstory. It would have also been important to ascertain if the fall was what we call 'witnessed' or 'unwitnessed', at which point it would start to unravel a bit that these kids were in their own.

Prequelle that's what I was trying to explain!

If the backstory is dodgy or concerning, of course it would warrant a referral.

But if a backstory could be provided that explained it, it wouldn't.

My point was that attending A&E with an injured child wouldn't automatically mean SS involvement. It would be dependent on circumstances.

You reacted how I would have reacted. Better to be safe than sorry and have then something serious on your conscience.

The others were rude and unappreciative but then that's probably why an 8 year old boy was alone in the woods 15 minutes away from home.

Just be satisfied that you did the right thing and then feel sorry for the boy having to live with a mother that behaved as she did.

Thank you for helping the little boy. I am so sorry that people on here are questioning your truthfulness and motives.
I think, from my experience, that an email to the school will probably have the best effect. They may not have any direct authority but it will add to any " picture" they may have formed to date..

Certainly, no good deed goes unpunished!

You did the right thing OP.

I think either contacting SS or his school would be a good idea.

Another response here saying you should report it.
Were his teeth loose or ‘only’ chipped?
Glad the nearby house was well equipped for first aid - I must check my FA stuff.

You did absolutely the right thing to call an ambulance. He had a head injury, he was showing signs of confusion and was alone.

You did the right thing. Report it. The thought of any child injured and hurt on their own is horrible. Thank you for taking care of him when no-one else was there.

His teeth looked okay, but bloodied. I'm the same, I need to top up my first aid kit. I only have a few stray plasters and a few bandages.

Please contact the school or SS

You don't know if the child received any medical attention - probably didn't, if his mother is concerned about avoiding SS -

• and he may be left at home again today with a sister too young to know what to do if he becomes ill.

Some posters here are more worried about a fellow mother getting into trouble
than whether a little boy needs medical treatment now, or for future injuries

I will look at speaking to the school either by phone or email once they open tomorrow.

I don't know why people are being rude to you, I'm a hcp and I'd have called an ambulance in circumstances where a child couldn't identify themselves and had a head injury.

Please report to ss. Let them decide if it warrants further intervention. The fact he was saying to you "please save me" worried me.

You did the right thing. Heads do bleed a lot but how are you to know if an injury is serious or just looks bad? Confusion is concerning on its own and it sounds like a medical review was warranted. Whether or not an ambulance was needed is debatable but you didnt have another option with the limited information you had. Even if you had driven theres no way you would be bundling an unknown child into your car.

Please report this to the nspcc or childrens services. There is at best a lack of supervision and adequate safety for these children and it may be that its reviewed and not taken further, it may be that support is required.

What is actually wrong with some of you replying here? The OP did everything right and based on the fact the kids were left alone (I don't care if she had to work, she should have provision's in place to ensure they are cared for by an actual adult not another young child) then didn't even ask for information on her son's injuries makes this a clear concern for informing SS. If this is a one off the woman has nothing to be concerned about. But if it isn't, and it's not reported her kids sure as hell do