Interesting BBC story about child development and Risk Factors

[LittenTree]

Educational development, 1 in 4 children 'at risk'

Am surprised at the statistics, actually!

My thought was how much one of these factors can lead to the others so easily (teenage parenthood/poverty/depression/low skills/drug-alcohol misuse).

Well we classify as having two out of that list and we're all happy as can be. The DSs are thriving. I agree with Custard. it's scaremongering. Yet more of 'If life's not perfect your precious tinies won't survive.' It's incitement to panic.

Actually- and this is the truth: I can think of loads of families who don't seem to have any of those 10 factors. Seriously.

I know people who have 3 bedroom houses and 3 DCs, but I and they wouldn't cite that as overcrowding, not surely in the sense of the factor

I genuinely don't know anyone personally who was a teenage mother; young, yes, but married and incidentally still with their DHs

Depression- well, not as far as I know, though of course, that one could well be 'hidden', couldn't it, due to peoples misplaced feelings of shame that surround MH issues. I wonder how many of my friends and acquaintances are on 'maintenance' doses of anti-depressants or anxiety medication?

Physical disability- not being flippant, but does the odd bad back count? I have a friend on an occupational pension due to MS but luckily she is still able to walk around with just a walking stick.

Low basic skills- again, subjective. The people I actually know (and am talking about here) all appear to be in gainful employment, be it van driving or operating (in Theatres)

Substance misuse -not as far as I know.

Excess alcohol- not in a way that has impacted in a visible way on them or their families

Financial stress- I know of one family where the DH walked out having had a MLC (does that tick the depression box?)- she's had to step up to the plate and go back to work full time (from 12 hours a week) and money is tight, but they still go on 2 domestic holidays a year so maybe not what the definition means.

Worklessness- nope. Several SAHMs, but I guess that's not what this factor 'means'.

DV- well, again, that's a potentially 'hidden' one, isn't it? I can only say 'not as far as I know'.

Of course I have heard of all of these; friends of friends, in the press, the news etc but I really don't see that they exist to any measurable extent among my -I don't know- cohort? AM I living in a bubble? I wouldn't have said so. But I would say there is always a huge danger of 'extrapolation'. Where 'they' go to a sink estate in Middlesbrough, work out that out of 100 families, 40% suffer these factors then decide that means that 40% of the British population suffer them too. It isn't necessarily so.

OOI, in the List of Ten, how many do they say you 'need' in order for there to be a quantifiable 'risk' to your DC?

I'm sorry to say Litten Tree but yes you are living in a bubble. The first school I taught at (which I loved and if it was still open I would go back there ) had about 90% of its intake with at least (usually more than 1) of these factors and this was their every day life.

The whole school recognised this, worked wonders with these students academically, pastorally gave them ambition and generated school leavers whom at a different school would have been thrown to the wolves.....the school however didn't have fantastic results and the council were on a mission to close it....these kids are now in different schools were their needs/backgrounds/living circumstances are not considered and they are being failed

It's interesting because, as an example, when I was a pre-schooler I think I would have 1 risk factor, so not that big a deal. By the time I was a teenager I'd say 3/4 applied.

In terms of development I've always been totally fine, just mildly dyslexic. Does it make a difference that when I was tiny the risk factors weren't there? I have no idea.

I'd be interested to know what they're classing as over crowding, because the official definition is very strict. Sharing a bedroom is not considered overcrowding.

I probably grew up with several of them. I turned out fine, but I had an amazing Mum.
My kids really have 0 of the risk factors, unless you count a grandparent they rarely saw, with depression.

I grew up with 2 of those, but I think crucially my parents had good basic skills (educationally and socially!) and valued them, so made sure we valued them too. I can't help but think that's vital.

cricketballs- it sounds to me as though the school you're talking about has rightly identified the named factors as being real and present risks for the DCs involved and have actively sought to mitigate these factors in their lives. The research I linked to is saying 'these are the factors that ring alarm bells that can endanger a DCs future'.

I would also politely say that if I'm living in a bubble because these factors don't by any means noticeably impact on the people I know pretty well in my life- your 90% who do is a bubble of the diametric opposite! See what I said about 'extrapolation'!

Custard- yes, I'm sure 'stuff goes on' behind closed doors I can't possibly know about but I'd say the alcohol abuse one is interesting- if someone is a functional alcoholic, it's obviously not a good thing but it implies it doesn't necessarily impact on their families enormously, maybe? I mean, they still go to parents evening, help and encourage homework, hold down jobs, pay the rent/mortgage and so on, thus don't introduce the 'risk' that the original 'alcohol abuse' factor might imply? To me, that IS vodka on the coco-pops (yum...?); that's mummy passed out on the sofa at school pick-up time.

Money worries- a qualified y-e-e-s. We worry that one or other of us just might be made redundant (public service) but I guess we, like our 'cohort' would have the ability and motivation to see ways through. Loss of our jobs would not necessarily spell instant long term unemployment- I hope!

Some of the children I teach face all 10 factors

In my own family, growing up:

living in overcrowded housing yes
having a teenage mother no
having one or more parents with depression no but paranoid schizophrenia, does that count?
a physical disability no
low basic skills yes
substance misuse yes
excessive alcohol intake yes
living in a family experiencing financial stress yes
worklessness yes
domestic violence. yes

Happily, my DCs are not experiencing any of these things, but they are young, and things could change. I hope not, I quite like their little bubble. :)

Yes that's true Custard, I think as well OP that sometimes issues can be localised, if housing is very expensive then overcrowding and financial stress are much more likely to be a problem.

Some of the other things on that list could then be blown up and become much more noticable and significant because of the cramped, stressful surroundings.

the trouble with articles like that is that they are like the Edinburgh Cot Death Data Set
The top 15 factors were things that parents could not control - so everybody concentrated on sleeping positions.

this list will encourage fatalism in many of those who can see no way off the factors
surely of far greater use would be a list of intervention techniques that work to counteract each one.

And what might they be? The interventions?

I have no idea, but hopefully the researchers who compiled the list have given it some thought
otherwise what is the point of the list?

But why? Researchers can muse on the meaning of their findings but there is no compulsion upon them to find solutions is there? That's not how it works! The 'point' is to reveal to those in power that There Is A Problem That We Have Scientifically Proved. It then becomes up to them to do a cost/benefit analysis before deciding if its worth their while to react, maybe with an eye to re-electability!