A scene from Honeymoon in Vegas which sees James Caan attempt to replace his dead wife with a look a like Sarah Jessica Parker, started me wondering whether people have a specific ‘type’ or are perhaps narcissistic when it comes to dating. The media (with it’s fixation on celebrity couples) would suggest that some people … Continued
There has been a serious issue highlighted recently by Tristram Hunt, the shadow education secretary, regarding children of primary school age with profound language deficits. Typically a child of four or five will have a vocabulary of approximately 1500 to 2000 words. Some children are arriving at their first school with as little as 30-50 … Continued
Okay, so I’m just going to throw it out there. Boarding school is an abdication of responsibility. I challenge anyone out there to convince me (should they want to) that this is in the best interests of any child? And please don’t say it builds character. This is a peculiarly specious kind of reasoning. After … Continued
So let’s talk about Gina Ford. No self-respecting blog on parenthood can avoid her completely, even if it is to suggest that she should be ignored. Where do I start? Gina herself is a good place to begin. Well, we know she was a maternity nurse, she has written a clutch of books, sold millions … Continued
The last blog entry regarding the effects of maltreatment on brain development reminded me of a documentary I’d watched as a teen. It was ostensibly about a wild or feral child (i.e. those recognised as living with little or no human contact) and the impact that this had upon language acquisition. The term wild … Continued
I read an article recently on the effects of maltreatment on brain development in children. It was such a concise and informative overview of recent developments in this area that I decide to reproduce the article (with the kind permission of the Child Welfare Information Gateway) in its entirety and make it available below. Click to … Continued
There has been rising tide of activists, politicians and charitable bodies whom strongly believe that there is a fundamental failure in this country’s social care and legal system to protect the young victims of emotional abuse. The new Cinderella law, mentioned in the Queen’s Speech last year, was hailed an important step forward in rectifying this … Continued
Did anyone catch the debate on addiction and crime with former friends star Matthew Perry and Peter Hitchens on Newsnight at the end of 2013 ? I just happened by it recently whilst pottering around on YouTube. If the personage of Peter Hitchens has passed you by, he is a journalist, Christian apologist and brother of the recently deceased polemicist and secularist Christopher Hitchens. Perry is apparently a … Continued