Britain's best parent

[BizarreBizarre]

Anyone watching? Basically 3 different styles of parenting being shown from 3 familys

@Fleamaker123

They can wrap it up any way they want, but it's a grown man hitting a child, which is appalling parenting. They said it wasn't hitting it was smacking?! What's the difference please.

People say smacking to justify assaulting their child as it sounds nicer than hitting.

Yes you're right. The same as when people say they 'just tapped' their baby's hand.

Yes exactly Simon and Fleamaker man or woman, it's bullying of the worst sort.

If someone hit (or smacked) me on the street or at home. They could be had up for assault, why should young children not have the same basic right to safety?

Aah but the parents say it instils 'respect' . They don't respect their children and for them to expect 'respect' from their children means the children have to do exactly what they are told by any adult (which can lead to the kids being vulnerable to abuse),

I quite like the attachment parents but I'm not sure their eldest daughter wanted to be cuddled every morning. Once children reach puberty they like to be private, I wonder if she felt that she would feel mean if she said she'd had enough. The mum did say that children need their space though.

The other mum was a bit weird. Cuddled up in bed with her dog! It is a good idea to let 11 year olds have the freedom to do shopping and proper cooking not just making teas, there is a tendency to over protect . I wondered if he gets the bus to school.

It's not wierd to cuddle up in bed with your dog!

I wonder how real these parents are in these parenting styles. They all seem quite extreme in the own ways. Don't most of us do bits of all of them in a way that works for us and our children? My son has long hair like Willow but does a marshal art like the other family, and I'm quite strict with him but I give him lots of cuddles, and we go out for pub meals, and some days he gets to choose what's for dinner but others he gets what he's given. Or is it just me?

What IN the bed? it's not a toy.purp i like my cat but I don't let her in the bedroom let alone IN the bed.

The hairs and hygiene (i'm not , well I thought I wasn't! a cleanliness freak)

It takes all sorts I suppose.

I don't have dogs at the moment but I used to have 2 terriers. One slept on the end of the bed, the other tunnelled down under the duvet and slept curled up behind my knees with his head resting on my feet. If I moved he'd huff and puff and resettle, if DH moved he'd get growled at.

What's this programme called?

@yikesanitherone

What's this programme called?

Its called Britain's Best Parent.

Just watching ep2 now. I feel they've missed an opportunity here to hear from the kids who've done the swaps afterwards. They should have been given the opportunity to review the parenting styles and vote for their favourites too.

Maybe. But it would be hard to criticise your own parents if you preferred someone else. Also this week the kids were 11 but last week they were much younger so harder to get a detailed answer.

Bernadette Yes a good idea, but as Peppa says it might be seen by some of the parents as disloyalty.

I’ve been watching this. The discussions are heavily edited I think. You could tell some arguments were about to start and we’re cut (between parent led and child led).

I actually watched it with DC1 (8) and she was quite interested in the styles, saying that she loved how I’m cuddly, and always telling her I love her but that she likes that there are rules and choices too 🤷🏼‍♀️ My dd could go to the shop, follow a list and pay because those are skills that are taught, not a parenting “style”.

The food choices I think were more exaggerated than what she would have done. It’s like us saying, we’re having sandwiches, what does everyone fancy - cheese, tuna, ham? And I’d happily do different sandwiches for my family, but like someone else said, that’s to keep the peace.

Yes Where's I think the discussions could get quite heated if we were allowed to hear them. Shame!

The food thing is so interesting. I liked what the 'lazy' parents said, they said that they liked to have choices so why couldn't the children have choices of foods . They served the food in specific bowls and the kids took what they liked (I think)

. Parents who 'make' their kids eat everything seem to ignore that the kids could be allergic to certain foods or have sensory problems, didn't like the 'texture' or whatever. IMO it shows a lack of empathy and It can lead to problems, like eating disorders.

Of course you adapt your food if you child has an allergy. They'd be dead/hospitalised if you didn't.

@MashedPotatoBrainz it's definitely exaggerated for tv! It's not just you - I think we all do a mixture of things. For example I liked the 'strict' parents attitude to meal times and food but am very gentle / cuddly and also believe in rules.

But an allergy appears AFTER a child has eaten (or been forced to eat) the child's body tells him or her not to eat some things and should be respected. Fussiness is also the child trying to express its personality and control its environment, it's a normal stage that is gone through, not by every child but most. If it's not made a big deal of it passes (oh and if the child joins the family eating all types of healthy foods sitting at the table together).

Why should adults have a choice and not children? They're not robots. We don't eat things we don't like.

Sorry. So I shouldn't feed my child anything in case they are allergic to it. You don't have an innate sense that you are allergic to something. You're being ridiculous.

Sensory issues are different.

If you don't make your child eat they won't eat what they don't like , it's quite simple ; If you have fussy dcs give them choices, bowls of different types of food on the table, a couple you know they like and a few everyone likes, for them to help themselves to, why is that ridiculous?

Also they shouldn't have too much milk or junky snacks between meals then of course they won't be hungry.

Oh you didn't answer my question. about adults Sensory issues are ignored by the 'hard core' food forcers.

But they have to try foods or they won't know what they like. And they won't dislike things because of allergies. And tbh if you have time to cook three separate meals good for you.

The tone of this thread has got a bit aaggressive.

Does anyone else think Willows mum really wanted a girl?

I actually thought the presentation, editing and language used around the mum was a deliberate attempt to paint her as some sort of believer in gender fluidity and allowing kids to choose gender.

I don’t think she used “gender fluid” at all? She just seemed to be a believer in letting her kid dress and play with what he wanted to.

The kid knew he was a boy- he corrected the “lazy” parents quite firmly when they assumed girl.

ppeatfruit totally agree, we have preferences why shouldn't children.

We encourage ours to try stuff. The only thing they have no choice is they must eat fruit and veg, but which fruit and which veg they get a choice on. They also eat protein and other stuff too of course, but again, a choice.

bluebluezoo in the clip at start of the first episode Joanna says "Gender-fluid parenting" to introduce her parenting style.

Then when she is introduced in the first short introductory segment she says "My parenting style is feminist. The key element of a feminist parenting style would be to promote gender-fluidity in your children."

Then at the start of her segment 'proper' she begins by talking about a child raised through a gender-fluid approach...

Whatever she believes or thinks she very clearly identifies as promoting a gender fluid parenting style.

www.channel4.com/programmes/britains-best-parent/on-demand/67549-001