Nearly all children are victims of crime.

[Callisto]

Link to the not terribly in depth article here: uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20071009/tuk-uk-britain-children-crime-fa6b408_2.html

It's depressing how little this report suprises me.

My ds2 was mugged at knife point in a park in tottenham on a sunday afternoon a few weeks ago. The police don't have the time or the manpower to even take a statement.

A 17 year old boy was stabbed to death in a park in south london a couple of days ago in an identical incident.

Presumably when the kids who mugged ds2 do kill someone, the police will have time to look into it then.

I wrote to Ken Livingstone about ds2 - as my sons have been mugged/attacked numerous times - didn't even get an acknowledgement.

The gang who attacked and robbed ds1's friend are on U-Tube, doing a really horrific rap about what they like to do to their victims. Is anybody interested? No.

I am going to work now, and hope that all my family are safe today while we are all out at work and school. I don't feel as if there is any law and order any more.

Oh 3littlebats, that is horrifying.

"better solutions on dealing with child victimisation and crime can be found in expanding and developing conflict resolution and mediation-based techniques into educational programmes for schools"

I hate the way they always trot out these inane solutions. Where is the evidence that such soft techniques actually work? That they really protect our children from violence and intimidation?

The saddest part of the loss of discipline in schools and generally is that children themselves are no longer safe. at your story 3littlebats

Upwind - I thought exactly the same thing. It is just a bloody soundbite.

Callisto, it is an easy answer. Rather than having to face difficult questions of how to impose discipline on badly behaved children, authorities waffle on about more programmes to teach them that it hurts when they attack another child.

They know, that is why they do it. Teach them that they will be punished for bad behaviour and their boundaries will be set at a more acceptable level.

Both my children had all sorts of things stolen from them all the way through school, from pens and crayons to jumpers, coats, lunchboxes and schoolbags and dinner money. My son was also assaulted in school, two older boys held him down and cut his face with a pen knife.

I don't know what the solution is but something needs to change and make it stop happening.

I was very interested in this as the BBC reported that 90% of this crime takes place in school. I started a thread the other day about what pro-active strategies schools have for "lost property" and aside from a lost property box, most schools have none.

Where there is a strong probability that property has been stolen, that probability is absolutely resolutely unaddressed. It's just avoided. The most common response is that the victim of theft shouldn't have brought the stolen item into school. (Which is true of course. It's the same principle that says you shouldn't leave your sat-nav/ mobile phone on visible display in your car.)

Partly I can see why, because they don't have the resources to deal with it, and after all, what are they supposed to do, frisk the kids every time they leave school, to ensure they haven't pilfered stuff? But otoh a part of me is uneasy that school seems such a fertile breeding ground for the thieves of the future. Children are effectively being taught that petty theft is no big deal, really. And common assault is only a problem if your victim has a really pushy parent.

The 'shouldn't bring it to school' arguement doesn't really stand up for stolen dinner money/pe kit/coat etc. I'm sure if dinner money had been stolen when I was at school there would have been an almighty fuss and the police would have been called in.

I think the 'zero-tolerance' attitude should be used for all petty crime - it worked in NY which became a much safer city as a result.

more guilt tripping of parents and teachers in today's papers

blaming children's anxiety on tests...

A guilt trip or common sense? Surely testing young children is pointless and can only have a negative effect?

If they include stuff being stolen in school, then I suspect the figures aren't very different from when our generation was at school! I remember having my precious Harrington jacket pinched from the cloakroom which was extremely irritating as I had to beg my mother to allow me to have one!

my ds was punched in the nose - for what later turned out to be a mis undertanding.

i called the police.

they took a statement

they said his word against my sons it wasnt a fight it was one punch knockout!

my other ds and two notorious children of notorious drug dealers up the street often hit my ds - my ds being 13 these kids being 10 & 8

i called the police and insisted it was assault - with eyes rolled they went to see drug family took kid into police station and gave him a warning.

told the other kid as soon as he hit 10 years old to be careful becuase one hand on my son and i would call the police.

sure enough that time came - and i did - and i warned him again that he was old enough to be arrested

THE POLICE WORK FOR ME