To report to social?

[notsurewhattodoforthebest]

I'm not sure what to do for the best. I'm concerned about a neighbour and their child but I'm also not in the business of reporting people and spilting up families.

This particular child was outside last night (they are 8 by the way for context) playing with a sharp kitchen knife stabbing rubbish in the street. I saw what was happening and asked if there mother knew. She shouted out the window "it's fine I said they could."
When I say kitchen knife, I mean a very sharp one that could easily kill someone.
This child is allowed to do whatever they like, regularly plays with air soft BB guns in the street, climbs on peoples cars and damages them (has damaged mine in the past - yes I made their mother pay and rightfully so!) Basically just never supervises them at all can't even do the school run so they are known to the local police as the child does regular dissapearing acts.

AIBU to report this to social? I'm shocked and felt sick when I saw them to the point I watched from my window incase they stabbed them selves.

We're Viking reenactors and our DC can use eating knives, they can also cook at home, but no way would I let my 10yo play in the street with a knife.

How do you know the knife was very sharp? You cannot actually tell that unless you feel it, or use it to cut with things

Er..... because the OP has eyes and could SEE it was a sharp knife How on earth do you think people go and buy the knife they want? They LOOK at it - you dont see opened knives and blood everywhere in Tesco home appliance section with people having to check for themselves the sharpness on their own fingers

ffs!!

@TheLovelinessOfDemons

We're Viking reenactors and our DC can use eating knives, they can also cook at home, but no way would I let my 10yo play in the street with a knife.

Not even if you were in earshot?

@WhaleyAwesome

My point was that a lot of children know how to handle knives properly without harming themselves or anyone else.

The mother was aware what she was doing - and was close enough to hear the conversation with OP via an open window (and could therefore probably see the child too).

Are you high? People talk a lot of shite on MN but this takes the fucking biscuit....an 8 year old known to the police, who is wandering around the streets at night stabbing rubbish with a kitchen knife, and you're wittering about valuable knife skills as if they are in Mummy's kitchen extension chopping artichokes for the quinoa for supper? FFS.

Yes, definitely report. It doesn’t matter if the family are already known to social services. Things like this are recorded and enable better planning and intervention to occur. As crazy as it sounds, some parents genuinely don’t know that it’s OK to give your kids knives to play with, and they need to be told.
I recall a couple who had no idea that it wasn’t safe to lie in bed asleep till midday while their baby and toddler were playing in the kitchen/living room. Once they were told, they stopped doing it.

@WhaleyAwesome

If you were genuinely worried that a child was going to stab themselves then you should have, of course, called 999 as well.

Knife skills are taught in many families a lot sooner than 8 - that was my point.

I am OK with everyone disagreeing with me though; the kids mother was in earshot via a window, the OP has curtain twitched rather than doing anything to actually stop this incredibly life threatening situation where she was worried a child would be stabbed or someone would be killed.

If I genuinely thought a child was going to stab themselves, I would have removed said knife, phoned an emergency response team, rather than watching out the windows.

But, maybe just me?

given the background I would not have gone anywhere near a child with a sharp knife!

You can take knives to birthday parties as long as you don't threaten anyone with them along the way! There are numerous reasons why knives may be in public

These are the good reasons you can carry a knife in public in the UK

• Good reasons for carrying a knife or weapon Examples of good reasons to carry a knife or weapon in public can include:

taking knives you use at work to and from work
taking it to a gallery or museum to be exhibited
if it’ll be used for theatre, film, television, historical reenactment or religious purposes, for example the kirpan some Sikhs carry
if it’ll be used in a demonstration or to teach someone how to use it*

I don’t really think a young child playing on the street with a knife fits any of these criteria. Also, it’s a child. No child that age should be left unsupervised with a knife, let alone taking one out onto the street.

This poor child

Please report and then report again op xxxx

@WhaleyAwesome

they also do not know the child’s skills when using a knife.

Yes but the Mother does... And the mother clearly responded it's fine.

@Fncottonrrrrgh we don't have a single Montessori safe knife in this house - they've all learnt through our kitchen knives.

Anyway, regardless, SS "The Social" will be aware of this family if there's been so much police contact.

Would your opinion on this be the same if the child was 11 or 15 ot whatever?

Definitely report OP, I think I would probably ring the police in this instance. Apart from anything else if someone got hurt with the knife now you’d never forgive yourself.

I am actually flabbergasted that someone has come on here and said that an 8 year old might have knife skills! What the fuck! Even if this were the case, this is a kid who climbs on peoples cars for fun, hardly someone demonstrating a safe attitude towards risk by either child or parent!

@Ahhhhhbisto Yes - because the child is not threatening anyone with the knife. If I saw a teenager walking away from home with a knife and I thought they were going to use it to stab someone, of course I would phone 999. Likewise if I found a discarded knife - it would be reported.

(And I don't believe every child known to social services / the police is going to turn violent or commit a heinous crime)

If I thought there was something immediately life threatening I would have dealt with it there and then - either myself, or by phoning 999.

[quote WhaleyAwesome]@Ahhhhhbisto Yes - because the child is not threatening anyone with the knife. If I saw a teenager walking away from home with a knife and I thought they were going to use it to stab someone, of course I would phone 999. Likewise if I found a discarded knife - it would be reported.

(And I don't believe every child known to social services / the police is going to turn violent or commit a heinous crime)

If I thought there was something immediately life threatening I would have dealt with it there and then - either myself, or by phoning 999.[/quote]

I agree with you and I don't believe every child known to social services / the police is going to turn violent or commit a heinous crime either. But....I cannot understand how you think children or teenagers carrying kitchen knives is fine as long as they don't threaten anybody!

.I cannot understand how you think children or teenagers carrying kitchen knives is fine as long as they don't threaten anybody!

Because the child is outside their home with a parent there - they aren't going further away - the fact the OP could be heard when asking the child and the mother was OK with it, it was a innate object (rubbish) - it doesn't ring alarm bells for me.

(I mean one of ours regularly has a saw outside - what would you think of that?) It's one of those flip gardening saw things - they are building (yet another) something or other for wildelife out of collecting sticks.

Maybe I need to check my neighbours aren't reporting us?

[quote WhaleyAwesome]@Ahhhhhbisto Yes - because the child is not threatening anyone with the knife. If I saw a teenager walking away from home with a knife and I thought they were going to use it to stab someone, of course I would phone 999. Likewise if I found a discarded knife - it would be reported.

(And I don't believe every child known to social services / the police is going to turn violent or commit a heinous crime)

If I thought there was something immediately life threatening I would have dealt with it there and then - either myself, or by phoning 999.[/quote]
It gets worse!

I bet every parent of every single child ever affected by knife crime wishes that someone had intervened if they’d spotted those children/teenagers with a knife! The fact that he wasn’t using it to hurt someone at that exact point in time when the OP noticed him is entirely irrelevant!

My point was that a lot of children know how to handle knives properly without harming themselves or anyone else.

In response to a child 'playing' with a knife in the street. Possibly one of the most unbelievable comments I've read on MN and that is saying something.

If the OP was worried she should have intervened or called 999

Which is what I would have done if I thought there was a risk.

(And also you don't know that I haven't been affected by knife crime so I would keep your comments to yourself on that)

Anyway, said my bit, enjoy your days all !

If the police are called and a child is involved a PPN automatically goes to Children’s Services and a decision is made about where that goes (usually to Early Help unless involves impending death and then it will go to Social Care).

That aside, rather than everyone placing weight on struggling services why don’t people engage in more dialogue with each other, you addressed it with the mother (kind of) but you could have expressed your concerns further and said why you were concerned etc, this would then not result in some poor fucker in a duty hub (me) having to spend an hour dealing with this.

@Fncottonrrrrgh

It's also a public nuisance if he's splitting open rubbish bags. Little tearaway poor kid!

Yep.. Massively antisocial

I don't think that using a saw to build something for wildlife is remotely the same as using a kitchen knife to stab rubbish!

why don’t people engage in more dialogue with each other, you addressed it with the mother (kind of) but you could have expressed your concerns further and said why you were concerned etc, this would then not result in some poor fucker in a duty hub (me) having to spend an hour dealing with this.

To be honest, if a mother thinks it's ok for their child to be playing with a knife outside when it is brought to their attention, not sure I'd want to engage any further. Handing it over to the professionals (or the 'poor little fuckers in a hub' as you describe them ) would seem the appropriate course of action. Though stretched or not your response makes me question that.
A group of teenagers were arrested recently for being in possession of a BB gun in a public place (passers by didn't know it wasn't a 'real' gun). Maybe the police would be the best PoC in this case as the child is brandishing a weapon in a public place.

The child is not “brandishing a weapon” the child is stabbing rubbish with a knife.

This could be something and nothing (cultural even as mentioned before upthread).

The child isn’t threatening anyone nor saying they are going to and we do not know if the knife is sharp, we are assuming it is.

“Can you explain to me why you think it’s ok for your child to do this? It’s making me feel a bit uncomfortable” - is it that difficult to communicate with each other?

@Besswess88 exactly. Thanks for sharing some sense.

Knife skills

Playing with knives is a no, is it not?!?
I'd be reporting this, especially as you've highlighted this to the parent and they are unfazed.

The mother sounds really neglectful. It's messed up. It's so 1970's slum-like. YANBU.