A study by the Institute of Education at the University of London found children in the care of their grandparents struggled to socialise with their peers, had more behavioural problems and were behind at key developmental stages.
However, there was a backlash among media commentators. Anne Diamond, writing in the Daily Mail, said she did not believe the findings. "The obscene implication that our children are better off at nursery undermines a vital human resource and the very foundation of family," she wrote. Yorkshire Post columnist Jayne Dowle said her children benefited from the one-to-one attention of their grandparents and "a great sense of security and love". "I got in from work the other day to find my mother being operated on in the living room," she wrote. "My three-year-old daughter was the doctor. Granny has been instructed to lie on the floor ... while Lizzie and her friend removed her gall bladder. I can't think of anyone who would give up their evening to play hospitals so willingly."
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