The papers are full of two new publications - a book by childhood expert Tim Gill and a report by the Royal Society of Arts - that argue society's overprotective attitude to children is causing them real harm.
Then turn to Newcastle's Evening Chronicle. "Children as young as five were allowed to come and go from council-run play centres in Newcastle without supervision," shouts the paper. We don't actually hear of any five-year-olds that have suffered as a result of an open access policy at five council-run centres registered for five to 13-year-olds. Nevertheless, the councillor who raised the issue is quoted as saying: "Children have been put at serious risk and it's only a matter of luck there hasn't been a tragedy." Meanwhile, the Dorset Echo reports residents are "living in hell" because some young people have built a den in woodland near their homes. Thank goodness for police community support officer Clive Joyner who's been down to see what's going on (and confiscated saws and axes). "They're not bad kids, they're just playing," he says. "What they're actually building in there is actually quite impressive and you've got to admire the energy they have put into it."
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