I know a mother who dosn't take care of her children?
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There is only so much you can do. Obviously she is a single mother working to pay the bills but, I don't know this. Are there groceries in the house? Are they clean and behaved? Some moms don't have it easy and cope with being a single mom in different ways. Does she abuse them or mistreat them? Something should be done but, bringing in CPS is such a hard decision to make. Maybe you should be quiet observer or try and help with the small ones. Look up a # for a boys and girls club they could attend after school. They would be fed and have help with schoolwork. I would hate to bring problems into a household where a mother is doing her best. But, if you feel these children are in serious danger you will know what to do.
call the child protective service department in your area.
They obviously arent starving and a 17 year old is more than enough supervision. Depending on the state, a child can be left alone as young as 9 or 10.
She should definitely be reported. You must also ask yourself, are the children safer in another environment somewhere else. If the answer is yes, it is best that you report it and if the investigators find that it is necessary for them to move on to a better home, then that should be done. Don't be afraid to do something like this, just think about the children!
talk to the mother, and tell he honestly how u feel pity for her!!
i commend you for your concern; however, if this mothers only crime is going to work to support her children, why would you try to take them away from her? the oldest is 17 which is QUITE old enough to take care of the 10 year old. If the children are sick, perhaps there is more to the story that you do not know. taking her children away from her would be defeating the reason as to why she is even at work. i would suggest that you offer to help her or find someone who can. do not try to call cps unless there is some kind of abuse going on. could you imagine your children being taken away from you when you are out there 6 nights a week trying to support them? at least she's not leaving them so she can go party all the time and disappear days at a time. sounds like an honest woman having a hard time juggling children and a job, a lot like the majority of us out there. try to help her out. its not a matter of taking care of her children i dont think. sounds more like a mother who needs a little more help and a few less nosey people making it more difficult for her.
If you don't know this lady very well, or at all, then I would call your local welfare office for advice. Explain to the social worker that you are not reporting abuse, but seeking help for a family in need. It sounds like those children, and their mother, could use some help. If she is the only parent, she has to work. If she is a single mother she can get free child care while she works. A social worker can help her find child care, and a job that she can do during the day, so she can be with her children at night.
If you are friends with this lady, then offer advice and offer to help her get the help I mentioned. If she didn't care about them, she wouldn't be working. She would be collecting welfare checks and partying, like some other people I know.
I don't think she is intentionally neglecting her children, she's just overwhelmed, trying to support them the best she can.
She may be doing the best she can to provide for these kids. A seventeen year old is old enough to watch a ten-year-old. How do you know what they're eating and how much school they missed?
Before you start calling child protective services, understand that foster care may actually be worse than what they have now. At least they have a parent who loves them and is trying to provide for them.
But if you really see other signs of neglect or abuse, of course, call child protective services.
Call local CPS ASAP!! Don't worry about her knowing its you, they keep everything anonymous. Do it quick before something really bad happens to those kids.
I know how you feel. It is hard as a parent who loves their children more than ANYTHING, to sit and watch people do things that you don't agree with. The problem is that you have to ask yourself are they being neglected? or are they just not living up to your expectations of what you think proper parenting should be? Like one of the previous answer said, a 17 year old is more than enough supervision. While a Mac and cheese diet is not ideal it is still better than what a lot of kids eat. If the mother is at work trying to provide for her children then she is likely in a difficult situation, often made to make choices that people just shouldn't have to make. Sounds like the kids ARE being fed and they are being supervised, and i assume that they are not being beaten or molested, so i would be very careful about calling CPS.
What is your relationship with this mother?
Is there anyway that you could offer some assistance? After all the Bible says that it takes a village to raise children. Maybe instead of judging her, you could offer to help out.
It sounds to me that things could be a lot worse!! Perhaps they are not ideal but it could be worse.
A lot of people struggle to get by, and the lord knows that being a parent isn't easy!
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