Council bans parents from play areas

October 29, 2009 by Infowars Ireland

www.telegraph.co.uk

Parents have been banned from supervising their children in public playgrounds, because they have not undergone criminal record checks.

Only council-vetted “play rangers” are now allowed to monitor youngsters in two adventure areas in Watford while parents must watch from outside a perimeter fence.

The Watford Borough Council policy has been attacked as insulting and a disgrace by furious relatives who say they are being labelled as potential paedophiles.

It will further fuel concerns over a growing nanny state amid the deepening row over the Government’s new national anti-paedophile database.

That will see at least 11 million adults have to be vetted to work with children or vulnerable adults, including parents who give officials lifts to and from social or sports clubs.

Councillors in Watford claim they are only following Government guidelines and cannot allow adults to walk around playgrounds “unchecked”.

But Osfted dismissed the ban while parents branded it “a joke”.

The rules have been imposed at Harwoods and Harebreaks adventure recreation grounds.

Activities on the half acre sites include a skateboard half-pipe, a zip line, rope swings, den building, arts and crafts, plus a wide range of indoor and outdoor sports activities.

Play rangers currently patrol both parks – which are specifically for children aged five to 15 – and are fully qualified and have been cleared by the Criminal Records Bureau.

Parents already have to ‘register’ their child on arrival at the free playgrounds so staff have their contact details in the event of an accident.

But now only those who have been CRB vetted by the council can enter the sites, which are surrounded by six foot high steel and wooden fences.

Mother-of-five Marcella Bergin, 35, has been visiting with her three eldest children, Christy, 15, Seamus, 12, and Chloe, 11, for many years without any problems.

She said: “It’s like they are branding all parents potential paedophiles which is disgraceful – 99 per cent of people are great parents and certainly not child abusers.

“The whole thing is just a joke and I will certainly not be adhering to the new rules which frankly are crazy.”
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