Calling the police to check on a crying baby

[summermumma2021]

Just had to call the police to check on a new neighbours baby. What would
you have done in this situation?
New neighbours live down our road around 100m away from us and could hear loud very distressed crying for over half an hour.

It sounded like a newborn or young baby crying and so I assumed they’d settle or some attempt to comfort them would be made but the crying stayed at the same level for ther period time. I could also hear raised voices and car doors slamming and I asked my husband if he’d heard it too (he was downstairs) and he said yeah he was worried as well.

Anyway in hoping it was nothing and the little one is fine but it just didn’t sit right and it sounded like no attempt to comfort them was being made at all.

i have no idea who the new neighbours are as it’s quite far from our bit of the road but for it to be that loud from this distance didn’t seem right. I have also had three colicky babies so I do know babies can cry for periods of time but as I said it sounded like no attempt to help them was being made.

Anyway police treating it as a priority case and checking things out. Just wanted to share really as worried.

In every baby/toddler murder case the neighbours turn up to court with tails of prolonged/extreme crying. Then we have cases like this
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/girl-4-found-next-dead-37300630.amp
My Cousin had a stroke, the type you have connected to pregnancy/birth. Thankfully my Aunt was going there daily. Newborns die very quickly, which is why we remove them from addicts.
Unless you have X ray vision, knocking on the door wouldn't mean everything is ok, it could make things worse. People need to get their head around child protection. Stop believing the parents who have had children removed, that they wasn't given chance after chance, by the court. So nothing to fear by one knock on the door.

I didn’t mean knock on the door, although I realise I wasn’t clear enough in my post. I just meant I’d have walked down, walked past.

I remember when my dd was a few months old in the heatwave. She was screaming for hours because it was so uncomfortable for her. My husband and I were shouting at eachother because we couldn’t agree whether we call 111 for advice or not as I was super worried about her. So I think if you’d experienced that we’d have been having a visit from police.

Having said that, although I’d be mortified having police show up, I’d also feel good knowing police were taking concerns regarding children seriously. So, although I’m sure there was no issue, yoy did the right thing OP

I thought this too. I’d have gone and had a look at least before calling the police!

Did the police ever turn up? My only experience of calling them during an emergency was being told that they were overwhelmed, yes, it was an emergency and someone would be there as soon as possible. Three hours later I received a phone call from the dispatched officers, asking where we lived. They'd been sent from a station 40 miles away and had no idea how to even find us.

How would walking past the house give you more of an idea of what was going on?

How long ago was that? There should now be a designated DV team and special considerations for child concerns.

Because it’s easier to hear what’s going on from outside than 100m away

Three years ago. We had to leave the house for safety.

Well my son had colic and screamed non stop for a couple of hours every evening, regardless of what we did. It would of sent me over the top if the police were added to the mix.
The slamming doors etc is different though - better safe than sorry.

OP was 100m away. She decided no one was consoling the baby. Had she have walked past she maybe would have heard someone singing to it, or shhhing it. She might have seen someone walking round with it, through a window and some parents trying their best.

I feel so sad for the parents having a tough time and then having the police called on them 😱

I can’t imagine doing that. I had a colic baby who cried nonstop despite my best efforts and yes there were a few raised voice moments and tears from me too. Thank God we had kind neighbours who only expressed sympathy and support.

That’s true - people really did help each other on mn back then. You wouldn’t have had calling the police and “sitting right”, you’d have had 16 DBS checked women consisting of breastfeeding support workers, relationship experts and sling consultants, with a support motorcade of food and gin

Yes, that's exactly what I'm suggesting. We call the police everytime we hear a baby cry.
🙄🙄🙄🙄

Your comprehension could do with some improvement.

Most adults know when something doesn't sound right/ usual.

It won't do the baby (the most vulnerable person here) any harm if the police check on it. If there's a DA situation bc the woman can get help, even if she doesn't use that opportunity she will know people around them care & it may give her the courage to do something about her situation.

most adults can tell the difference between an unsettled colicky baby & a distressed baby.& even if they get it wrong it's better than just ignoring a vulnerable baby the police would rather check than have something happen to a baby.

Good to know.

so many poor babies have been abused - it’s worth the risk of being wrong.

people belittling OP need to check themselves.

Cobblers. Your rose tinted glasses are misleading you.

Same. I had awful times. But OP said it sounded different and her gut said otherwise.

I’d rather check and be wrong.

I called the police when overheard some horrendous stuff. I couldn’t figure out which house at the back it was but could direct the police. Due to the sounds and intensity the police did check. Turned out a child had been harmed by an adult.

I could have ignored it. I could have thought it was a standard argument. But something just wasn’t right.

So 'lesson will be learnt' us as much higwash as we assumed it would be.

@summermumma2021 You 100% did the right thing & I hope you got some sleep in the end!!

you passed on the information to the authorities , if they feel they don’t need to act you’ve done your part which is all we can do as reasonable citizens!!

I'm glad they did check!

to those saying she shouldn’t have acted on it she sounds like she made a reasonable decision in uncertain circumstances

surely it’s better to act & find out all was well than to not act & find out all was not well

Op did the right thing by calling the police. She described the situation and then there are trained people to assess if it is a police matter. General public doesn't have to decide if it is worthy of a visit. You can always call emergency services if you are unsure. They actually encourage it.

Best case scenario is that police turns up and it is just baby crying and two very tired and embaressed parents. Worst case scenario is, well you know.

These threads always go the same way. No the relevant authority is not social services. It’s definitely the police. The OP did the right thing. If there is a domestic disturbance then they are in the position to deal with it. They might make onwards referal to social services if further support is warranted.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry at the idea of some kind of social services flying squad for out of hours disturbances involving children 🦸‍♀️

Exactly.

plus it pays to remember, I can say I'm a Surgeon, doesn't mean I actually am! (I'm definitely not! 🤣)

Yeah, I guess you’d be able to hear the crying, shouting and door slamming even louder if you were closer.

Were you in mumsnet in 2008, @LittleBearPad ?

Exactly!