Watching my daughter change her baby boy’s nappy, I tried to ignore the gnawing worry in the pit of my stomach. It was November 2018 and Ann*, then 29, was a single mum to Grace*, nearly eight, and Daniel*, 11 months. Not for the first time, I prayed that Ann would finally step up to her responsibilities as a parent.
While I had happy memories of raising Ann as a single, working parent, baking fairy cakes with her and playing hide and seek, I was constantly disappointed by the way she cared for her own children - or, rather, failed to care for them.
‘I’D HIDE MY DISMAY AT THEIR SMELLY CLOTHES’
There were no baking sessions or fun games at her house, with rubbish and
