[GordonUK]

Like so many other people (not just those in this forum) I see the true 'rights' of children - i.e. the right to BE children - being eroded constantly by so many factors. We are the wealthiest generation the UK has ever seen: my own adult experience as a 'middle class' parent compared with my upbringing on a council estate as part of a working class family is fairly representative of the changes in 'wealthiness' that our society has undergone. Personally, I would happily go back to just having enough money to eat reasonably well, be adequately clothed, have a house in good repair and have a little extra disposable income for the occasional treat (which really would feel like a treat, like it did when I was little) if the pay-off was true quality of life, particularly for my child. In other words, I'd rather have less money and more confidence that my little girl could wander safely, play in the street, walk to school, go out with her friends, camp in the woods, etc, etc than the other way around, which is what I currently have.
Is New Zealand my answer??