Our granddaughter

Go to social services immediately and tell them. Your granddaughter is at risk and needs help. Contact NSPCC is social services don't respond. Please do it asap.

Also she’s sleeping on a mattress on the floor

I will be 1st thing tomrrow morning..I did try and phone tonight but there closed..

have the school not noticed the flea bites etc.
i'm surprised they haven't reported a safeguarding concern already.
this doesn't sound like a sudden new situation.

All County Social Care have 24 hour emergency cover Kevin. If you still cannot get through have you considered calling the Police to get an emergency Safeguarding referral made immediately?

lots of people sleep on mattress on the floor.
order your thoughts before you speak to children's services. jot down some main points.
beware of diluting your complaint by including minor things like the mattress. they might think you just don't like the parents or their life-style.

If this is a genuine message then every area social work team has an emergency duty desk 24/7.
If you cannot find the number then the Police should be able to help.

was there not a recording to re-direct to out of hours.
but remember, the test for removing children from their parents' care is v high.
this may not be considered an emergency situation.

I hope you can get this sorted Kevin and that your darling granddaughter can come and live with you. She is at risk at home and you can offer her a better life.

Yes your right lots of people do sleep on the floor.but not in the conditions that this poor child is..as for the social service if I do it now the parents will know it’s us and stop us seeing her completely…they were involved with the other child and nothing was done even after she beat her mother up and threw boiling water over her..

I agree you must contact social services, but it also sounds as if the dog is also being mistreated, so please contact the RSPCA as well.
This situation is heart rending, I do hope you can help your little GD.

I've nothing to add to the advice already given Kevin but just wanted to say I hope you can get this sorted. It would be great if you could let us know how things go.

I would contact social services and also get in touch with the granddaughter’s head teacher when term begins.
Good luck with this all.

I am sorry but if things are as bad as you say, I would rather social services were involved and lose some contact than risk a child being unsafe for the sake of occasional visits.

The parents need support and classes at the very least.

This is a safeguarding risk, anyone in contact with the child could be the ones reporting. If there is evidence of neglect you must report this, that is your responsibility to the child.

If it were me, I'd probably have a confidential word with the school and see if they can talk to the child. You have to remember that children do triangulate and whilst you have genuine concerns they may not be enough to cause the social services to act.
The NSPCC will also be an organisation you can contact in confidence. If they feel there are specific problems, they will ask for your permission to pass it on to Social Services. They will allow you to talk anonymously if you wish.
If Social Services do get involved they will usually work with the parents to try to put things right rather than removing the child. I am sure that if you could see your grandaughter in a more settled, happier, cleaner environment it would be a better thing rather than being without her parents. Believe me, I know how tough it is when you watch your grandchild in a volatile environment so you have my deepest sympathy. It must have been hard for your grandaughter too to have such a confusing scenario about where she was going to live and I think that this is indicative of the parents not putting their child's emotional wellbeing first.

I wouldn’t be making a story up like this trust me..what’s really annoying is the social have been to the house several times over the last year about the oldest child so they must know how bad the house is and the welfare for the youngest child..
So first tomrrow I will phone social and the school to speak with the head..as for the dog it’s blind so I think it’s scared and when they argue the dog goes for them.but I agree the dog shouldn’t be there as it might bite our granddaughter next..

Oh Kevin what a terrible situation, it would take all my strength not to go around and take her home with me.

But these ladies are correct, they clearly have professional knowledge and are advising you wisely, do everything through the proper channels, but do it now, unbearably sad to think of your little granddaughter.

So is her dad your son? Have you spoken to him?

No he’s my stepson and it’s impossible to speak with him he just goes off on one in a fit of rage.we have tried many times in the past they have even stopped us seeing her for several weeks because we’ve stuck our noses into their business.

I agree with welbeck if the school is suspecting something is not right

Looks like social workers need to get involved and help this family

The child is living in a dangerous environment, calling SS is a MUST assp!

Kevin The school will not speak to you, they are only allowed to discuss the matter with the parents/guardians of the child.

Please ring social services now. Your GD deserves better than this , I know it's hard but if she were to be removed from her parents and you lost contact with her ( don't think it would happen though) that is far better than nothing changing! Your GD is the priority here and needs protecting at all costs.

Sago

Kevin The school will not speak to you, they are only allowed to discuss the matter with the parents/guardians of the child.

The school will not speak to you about the child, they will usually listen about a child. As long as you make it clear that you are not expecting them to talk about the child, they will normally be receptive.