A SELF-confessed “lazy” mum has been slammed by viewers of Britain’s Best Parent after she let her sons tuck into six mini rolls for dinner.
Former police officer Kevin and his wife Kerry, a sales director, from Crewe, say they do as little as possible for their sons, Zack, eight, and 11-year-old Gabriel.
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And the couple have been blasted by fellow parents on Twitter after appearing on the Channel 4 show tonight.
They believe children should know how to stand on their own two feet, so in their household rules go out of the window with the mum claiming there are “no boundaries.”
Taking to Twitter one raged: “Parents forgetting it’s your job to be a parents.”
“Lazy parents kids are in for a big feckin shock when they start work & find out they can’t do what they want eh….” tweeted another.
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The mum and dad claim that there approach to parenting will help their kids become more independent.
Speaking to The Sun Kerry said: “I don’t want to raise snowflakes. I want them to be proud of the decisions they make, to be confident in them and to not blame somebody else when things go wrong.
“So we coined our parenting style as lazy parenting, which could be deemed a negative. But what we actually do is encourage our children to make their own decisions and their own mistakes.
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“Our style really came out of necessity because we are both full-time working parents so we wanted our children to be independent and responsible for themselves.
“Of course we keep a watchful eye on them but it’s about honesty and trust.”
But viewers were left baffled when they realised just how much freedom Zack and Gabriel had, especially when it comes to meal times.
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Kerry continued: “The boys help themselves to what they want, when they want.”
“Zack can sometimes substitute an actual meal with a chocolate mini roll and not just one, it can be packs of six.
“It’s about us giving the child the decision on what they want to eat. We have no boundaries at weekends – Zack won’t even get dressed until mid-afternoon.”
One shocked viewer said: “I agree with kids should have treats. But like one treat a day. Not help yourself to 6 mini rolls.”
A second added: “And how to create fussy eaters.”
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But the pair received further flack when Kerry was left to take care of fellow Britain’s Best Parent contender Joana’s child.
Willow, who has been raised in a gender neutral home, was left in tears after taking a tumble but received no sympathy from Kerry.
She said: “Willow was told to be careful and told not to jump down. Willow chose to jumpdown. I didn’t try to catch him because he chose to jump down.
“He bumped his chin and he was upset as a result which is the consequence.”
Horrified, a viewer tweeted: “If someone was looking after one of my kids and let them hurt themselves and didn’t give them a cuddle and comfort them when they’re upset I’d be livid!!!!!”
But while the parents might be critical of her approach, Kerry thinks that they’re envious of her parenting.
She explained: “I think other parents we know do feel frustrated because the boys have no rules so their friends love it at our house.
“But we are all individuals, everybody’s circumstances are different and this style fits with us.”
The new Channel 4 show aims to put parents under the microscope in a bid to finally answer the divisive issue of how best to raise your child.
Over the next five weeks, the channel will show a dozen confident parents welcoming TV cameras into their homes – filmed pre-lockdown – as they showcase their household rules, or their lack of.
Kerry and Kevin’s “lazy” approach is pitted against home education, pushy, eastern influence and gender neutral parenting,
Britain’s Best Parent? airs on Thursdays on Channel 4 at 8pm, catch up on All4.
In other parenting news, we told you how lying with your kids until they fall asleep is good for their mental health.
And meet the new fans of ‘gentle parenting’ who ask their kids permission to touch them and never punish them when they’re naughty.
Ever wondered what your parenting style is? Find out with our quiz.
