Latest news with #RosalindLevine
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Yahoo
Brickbat: Like Being Back in School
Six U.K. police officers arrested Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine at their home in Hertfordshire after they complained about their disabled daughter's primary school in a WhatsApp group and through emails. The couple, upset over the school's headteacher recruitment process and their ban from the premises, were detained for 11 hours on suspicion of harassment and malicious communications, leaving their 3-year-old daughter crying as they were taken away. The school had reported their actions to the police, claiming the messages and emails were upsetting to staff, but after a 5-week investigation, Hertfordshire Police found insufficient evidence and took no further action. The post Brickbat: Like Being Back in School appeared first on
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
School disputes: a police matter?
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. If the story of Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine's arrest had broken a few days later, "you'd think it was an April Fool", said Toby Young in The Times. In late January, six uniformed police officers turned up at their house in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire. They detained them in front of their three-year-old daughter, then took them to a police station and locked them in a cell for 11 hours. The reason for all this? Their elder daughter's primary school, Cowley Hill, had lodged a complaint after the couple criticised its recruiting process for the new head. The school also complained that the pair had been "casting aspersions" on the chair of governors in a WhatsApp group. "Instead of telling the school that this was not a police matter – or, indeed, just guffawing", Hertfordshire Police questioned the couple on suspicion of harassment, sending malicious communications and causing a nuisance. After a five-week investigation, the couple were told that no further action would be taken. Following a recent review, Hertfordshire's chief constable found that the arrests were "lawful", but could have been better handled, said Fintan McGuinness in the Watford Observer. The school had accused the couple of a campaign of harassment, and banned them from the premises last June. Even so, teachers claimed, harassment continued via email; so the police were contacted. Officers asked the couple to desist in December, to no avail – hence the arrest. The police ultimately found no offences had been committed; but said they'd had a duty to investigate. Whatever the complexities, it is "outrageous" that the school reacted to parental grievances in this way, said the Daily Mail. And it's absurd that the police response was so "Orwellian". Hertfordshire Constabulary has "the worst burglary clear-up rate in the country". It should stick to solving real crimes. Some may dismiss this as a mere skirmish in the culture wars, said Matthew Syed in The Sunday Times. I disagree: I think it's "a symptom of a disease". We have "lost sight of the wisdom that a bit of suffering, stress and criticism is part of the human condition". These things don't require intervention by the state – or anything except a little "inner resilience".
Telegraph
30-03-2025
- Telegraph
Much is going wrong with our children's schooling
Complaining about your child's schooling can have consequences you might not have envisaged. When Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine raised questions about their nine-year-old daughter's primary school in a WhatsApp group they received a visit from the Hertfordshire Constabulary. Echoing what happened to Telegraph columnist Allison Pearson, they were detained in front of their daughter and questioned on suspicion of harassment, malicious communications and causing a nuisance on school property. After five weeks, the police concluded there was no case to answer. This is no way to handle legitimate concerns and it is outrageous that it ever came to this. The police must learn lessons and so must schools. There is every reason for parents to be concerned about educational standards. Take the collapse in discipline at schools: it has now engulfed even the youngest children. Alarming figures reveal that even nursery and reception classes are becoming battlegrounds. In 2022/23, well over 5,000 of these infants were suspended or expelled for assaulting staff or other pupils. It may stretch credulity that children so immature that many arrive in nappies could nevertheless be violent. Yet schools are struggling to deal with this explosion of bad behaviour: in one year, more than 25,000 primary-age pupils were excluded. The normalisation of antisocial behaviour is in part a legacy of Covid lockdowns. But that is not the whole story. The real issues are personal responsibility and family breakdown. Dysfunctional parents, who either do not know how to raise children or do not care, are quick to point the finger at others. Yet a child who comes to school unable to give its name has clearly not been brought up, but let down. The answer is not to impose arbitrary fines on inadequate parents, unless their neglect is so bad as to be criminal. Instead, schools need to take time and trouble to explain to prospective parents what will be expected of them. It is these types of issues that the education establishment must focus on. Parents and teachers must work together to ensure that schools are places of safety and achievement. The actions of the Hertfordshire Constabulary will only sow mistrust and serve to undermine this vital alliance which is so critical to the success of the next generation.
The Independent
29-03-2025
- The Independent
Police arrest parents for complaining about school on WhatsApp
Parents Maxie Allen and Rosalind Levine were arrested in January for allegedly harassing their daughter's primary school, Cowley Hill Primary School, through emails and WhatsApp messages. The couple, who have a disabled and neurodivergent daughter, were detained for eight hours and subjected to searches and fingerprinting, but no charges were filed. The conflict began when Mr. Allen questioned the school's headteacher appointment process, leading to a ban from school grounds and events. The school alleges the couple's communications were excessive and upsetting to staff, parents, and governors. Hertfordshire police confirmed the arrests were made based on harassment and malicious communication allegations but concluded there was insufficient evidence for further action.
