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Petition: Give legal right of contact between grandchildren and grandparents

(508 Posts)

GNHQ have commented on this thread. Read here.

PunkWomble Mon 01-Apr-24 12:17:56

It's not widely known that grandchildren and grandparents have no automatic legal right of contact. I run the Worcestershire Grandparents' Support Group, one of about 14 such groups throughout the UK, for non-contact grandparents. We currently have a petition on the Petition Parliament website with the aim of getting enough signatures to obtain a parliamentary debate: -

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/655143

This is a huge issue affecting around 2 million grandparents in the UK but nobody ever thinks it could happen to them. People tend not to talk about it for fear of a negative response. Please sign and share as widely as possible. Many thanks.

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 15:19:47

One of the reasons smoking may be decreasing in children is because of the use of vapes. The constant news items and reports I see on tv disagree with you VS that mental health issues in children aren't worse, with an increase being attributed to lock downs due to Covid.

If there is a generational parenting competition going on, it is just as likely to be because some of today's parents are of the belief that everything they do is right, and a lot if not all of how their parents parented was wrong.

From it's first existence in 1889, the Children Act has always been focused on protecting children from harm.

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 15:30:53

Oh dear lol

Well that just proves me right really doesn't it

It's not today's parents that are in competition by that comment. Common sense dictates that every generation does what they feel is right but like everything else, time and experience teaches us what was wrong and we avoid it

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 15:44:02

No it doesn't prove you right VS lol. I said if, I didn't say there is a generational parental competition going on and at least I can see that if there is, it wont be entirely one sided.

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 15:46:29

Oh ok, those are just random words that happened to formulate an opinion when placed together by accident?

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 15:49:53

Well I wouldn't have described your post 15.30 that way VS but it's your post so if you want too, that's OK with me.

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 15:50:47

Smileless2012

Well I wouldn't have described your post 15.30 that way VS but it's your post so if you want too, that's OK with me.

Wed twisting

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 15:51:44

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 15:56:35

There's no need to be offensive VS if you don't want to respond then don't, but don't refer to my posts as immature and of being on a level of playground interaction.

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 16:00:47

I will when I need to

It is very off-putting and makes it hard to engage when people clearly just want an argument

I'll come back if anything relevant is added to the discussion

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 16:08:46

You will what when you need too *VS?

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 16:10:46

Speak truth that makes people uncomfortable due to their own cognitive dissonance

DiamondLily Fri 05-Apr-24 16:14:11

And yet the real experts say different:

One in six children aged 5-16 are likely to have a mental health problem. This figure has gone up by 50% in the last three years. Between 2021 and 2022 alone, the proportion of older young people aged 17-19 in England with a probable mental health disorder jumped from one in six to one in four.

www.actionforchildren.org.uk/blog/is-youth-mental-health-getting-better-or-worse/#:~:text=One%20in%20six%20children%20aged,six%20to%20one%20in%20four.

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 16:27:40

I think you mean your truth VS which thankfully has no bearing on mine.

Thanks for the information and the link DL which supports what I posted earlier.

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 16:31:25

In what ways do you think current parenting is making mental health worse in children?

Personally I would say it is the impact of real world issues, not how they are parented...

VioletSky Fri 05-Apr-24 16:32:42

Why do you believe that the generation before the one currently raising children had less negative impact on children's mental health?

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 16:42:18

I don't think there's a definitive answer. In all likelihood it's a combination of a variety of factors not just parenting but parenting in some cases is relevant.

I don't believe that my generation had a less negative impact on our children's mental health and I don't believe it had a greater one either.

Germanshepherdsmum Fri 05-Apr-24 16:42:50

Oh dear, is this descending into a re-run of yesterday?

DiamondLily Fri 05-Apr-24 16:48:55

Whatever the causes, which can be various, mental health issues are increasing. In both adults and children.

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 16:51:29

No I don't think so GSM smile

I agree DL and the fact that there is an increase is concerning.

DiamondLily Fri 05-Apr-24 16:54:33

The Children's Society have worked for and with children for many years. I think they know what they’re talking about.

Sad that children and young people now have so many issues though.

DiamondLily Fri 05-Apr-24 17:00:56

Smileless2012

One of the reasons smoking may be decreasing in children is because of the use of vapes. The constant news items and reports I see on tv disagree with you VS that mental health issues in children aren't worse, with an increase being attributed to lock downs due to Covid.

If there is a generational parenting competition going on, it is just as likely to be because some of today's parents are of the belief that everything they do is right, and a lot if not all of how their parents parented was wrong.

From it's first existence in 1889, the Children Act has always been focused on protecting children from harm.

It seems that child aimed vapes are having an impact:

digital.nhs.uk/news/2022/decrease-in-smoking-and-drug-use-among-school-children-but-increase-in-vaping-new-report-shows

Smileless2012 Fri 05-Apr-24 17:18:13

It comes as no surprise though as they're so readily available and the flavours and packaging are going to be attractive to children.

DiamondLily Fri 05-Apr-24 17:20:06

Smileless2012

It comes as no surprise though as they're so readily available and the flavours and packaging are going to be attractive to children.

Many shops aim them at kids with the packaging and the flavours. Those disposable vapes are dumped all over the place🙄

User138562 Fri 05-Apr-24 22:03:03

An increase in diagnoses could be because of an increase in mental health issues. It could also mean more people are seeking help for their children now than in past generations. This makes sense because there is less stigma surrounding the idea of having a mental health condition.

There is more than just the surface layer of a statistic to consider.

MercuryQueen Fri 05-Apr-24 22:40:12

I don’t think the actual incidence of mental health issues are on the rise in children, so much as parents are seeking help for their kids, not hiding them, tossing them into institutions or denying there’s a problem the way it was dealt with in previous generations. It wasn’t long ago that being deaf was considered to be a reason to institutionalize a child, or promiscuity could have a teen girl locked away. Or homosexuality.

Can’t diagnose what parents deny, hide or try to beat out of their kids.