To report my neighbour to social services?

[Kk80]

Moved in to my current house about 2 weeks before christmas.

Next door neighbour is a drug addict, has 6 children (youngest was a tiny baby when I moved in couldn't of been more than 2 months old).

I've tried to ignore what is going on- I'm not perfect myself, I partied quite hard back in my youth before DC.

Part of me feels sorry for her- she is on her own with 6 children 24/7 one of which is confined to a wheelchair and is non verbal. So I get it....she has a tough time.

But the parties are constant until 3/4 in the morning and if the music doesnt wake my DC up the same sports car that whizzes up an down are narrow, 20mph street does. And when she has people there it comes back 4 or 5 times a night. And this is at least 3 or 4 nights a week.

The children look starving, never seem to be wearing different clothes (until recently going back to school and 2 of them at least are wearing uniforms that are too small)

I spoke to the school this morning and the head just rolled his eyes at me. I dont know who else to speak to?

Safeguarding courses would say you need to report such concerns In sad to say

@tootiredtothinkofanewname

It's England too. If what the child disclosed implied there was immediate danger then yes, they could be put into temporary foster care until it was deemed safe to return home.

e.g. 'I don't want to go home miss. My uncle come round on Fridays and gets drunk and makes me do this that or the other.../hurts me'

Would you send that child home?????

That’s not what that posted said though.

This wasn’t about a child disclosing abuse, it was about a ‘report’ from a lay person like a neighbour.

” Certainly here as soon as a report goes in the children would not be allowed into the mother's care until SS had met with her. This may mean a meeting to find out they are ok to go home but further intervention happens. It could mean they go home NFA. It could mean in a Friday afternoon that they go into a temp foster home until Monday if SS cannot contact/meet with the mum.”

I would contact both police and social services. It doesn't sound good at all.

You don't need concrete evidence, just report all your concerns and what you see happening. What you've said so far is more than enough to raise alarm bells.

I actually can't believe some of the responses on here! You don't need solid proof of her being a drug addiction to call ss. There are other reasons to get them involved, and there seems to be a few good ones here.

What a surprise you are being told you don’t know

But you do know that they appear neglected and of course she shouldn’t be having parties so frequently it will impact their routine

No doubt someone will say that is fine too

Please please report she may need support (I would have thought so) she may also be neglectful (many parents both fathers and mothers are)

Always report, always, as long as your motives are child protection

Surely the headteacher wasn't totally silent and did more than roll his eyes at you? What did he actually say?

As a human being you need to act on this. WE are childrens voices. Imagine all the druggies going into that house how do you know they are not paedophiles .please report to social services ASAP an ominously if need be. Teachers also have duty of care towards children. Think about the tragedychildrrn Avenue suffered as no one spoke out like baby P

I think for the late night nouse you need to contact the anti- social behaviour team at the council. Make sure you keep a record of this.
If the council attend and see anything worrying they can report it.

For social services mention the clothing and the fact the children look hungry. Also mention the noise as it cant be good for the children.

Sooner be the neighbour advocating for the children than the one that adverts their eyes , and a child that could be saved instead dies.

Definitely report concerns, your information could be a small part of a larger jigsaw puzzle. Everybody has a responsibility for safeguarding and you are clearly concerned. It’s never ‘our’ job to investigate or speculate, only to report the facts.

You have valid concerns, you don’t need to have proof. Children looking neglected, parties till 3-4 a.m, suspicions of drug use. Social services can investigate and determine future actions. It takes it out of your hands.

From what you've said, it really does sound like she's doing drugs. You technically have no proof.

If I were you I would speak to social services. Let them decide what is best.

Defintely report hopefully she can get support she needs be it school uniforms, food bank, respite etc.

If you are worried about reprisals then use crimestoppers, get the reg of the car if you can. Then maybe it will lead to another dealer off the streets as well.

@cornflakecritter

I would absolutely report this to social services. I work in a related area so am not naive about what happens in families in general, yet this would concern me. Nobody here is going to be able to appropriately reassure you that this is okay because they don't know the facts. Imagine if something happened to those children and you had turned a blind eye. I think the only alternative to phoning child protection is to phone NSPCC and get their advice on an anonymous basis first.

I agree.

Do contact Social Services and NSPCC. Your report will be dealt with confidentially.

From what you have said, you do have grounds for concern; you cannot be too careful where children are concerned.

We cannot anticipate what action will be taken but there will be investigations and you will have done the right thing.

By all means make a report if you are concerned but I can tell you now that it will go nowhere

Kids look poorly dressed - ss won't care as long as they are actually clothed
kids look starving - pale, scrawny kids - ss won't care unless there is actual evidence that they are not being fed at all. If they just have a bad diet, they won't care.
She has loud parties until late at night - police matter not SS
She might be on drugs because you have seen a flash ar there at numerous times. - could be anything. You might be right but again of no interest to ss unless there are other signs that she is an addict who is incapable of looking after her children.

I understand why you are concerned and many of the things yo are noticing are signs of neglect possibly but the bar for ss involvement is incredibly high. That said, you could report as that concern will be logged even if nothing else is done.

YANBU, 100% agree with what Cornflakecritter said.

Get the registration of the car & check it for legal requirements, if something is missing then report it to police

Likelihood is that if it’s not MOTed or insured then there is something more happening

Get the car sorted and then the “source” of the parties may stop coning

Are you considering reporting them to SS as a route to put a stop to the parties because you are sick of the disturbance, or are you genuinely worried that the children are neglected?

Call the council about the noise, and keep a log of the disturbance. And call the police about the noise and drug use.

Kids look poorly dressed - ss won't care as long as they are actually clothed - yes they will. It's basic training that this is a sign of neglect.
kids look starving - pale, scrawny kids - ss won't care unless there is actual evidence that they are not being fed at all. If they just have a bad diet, they won't care. - social workers check fridges, freezers, cupboards etc.. They liase with all professionals involved with the child, they will investigate that claim.
She has loud parties until late at night - police matter not SS - hmm, potential drugs, inappropriate people around the children. Potential incapacitated parents and sleep deprevation. Of course we'd just ignore those red flags..

You have got no clue what social workers would do, judging by your post.

Stick to the facts and report. You don’t know what other information they already hold. eg the school might have noticed the children always seeming tired and then you report that there are late night parties. They can build a picture of what is going on.

My experience is the same as cansu. The bar for involvement is way too high.
From experience, Poorly dressed thin kids and late night parties wouldn't meet criteria, drugs only if there is substantiation, not just flashy cars in the area! We report anyway but the response is always the same.

* Absolutely, if concerned about children we have a moral duty to report it, if its nothing then nothing will come of it, if its something then they can provide support.*

^This with bells on. Definitely report. There have been too many cases where after a child has died as a result of neglect/violence and neighbours have mentioned having all sorts of concerns that they didn’t report.