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Child magistrate delivers moving speech at UNE

May 27, 2005

holborow.jpgReasoning with toddlers, rather than saying “no”, is bad parenting and leads to confusion, former children’s magistrate Barbara Holborow told a youth forum at The University of New England on Thursday.
She said Baby Boomers were the main culprits as parents, since they held a belief that “everyone is born free from the moment they are born”.
On the other hand, that style of parenting suited some children who had grown to become “wonderfully creative”, Ms Holborow said.
Ms Holborow made her comments after delivering a talk to more than 540 schoolchildren at a national youth forum, “Step to the Future”.
“I hear mothers having a discussion with their three-year-old, explaining ‘why’ rather than saying, ‘no’,” Ms Holborow said.
“This leads to utter confusion in the child. You have to set boundaries very early with a child. Children love boundaries. It gives them an opportunity to push them a little and boundaries are also a benchmark. They can be widened once the child has earned respect and behaves.”

During her talk to the schoolchildren, who ranged in age from 15 to 18 years, Ms Holborow told stories of her time served as a magistrate on the Bench of the Children’s Court.
She told how an act of kindness, the giving of a cuddly toy, helped coax a young boy to talk after being struck speechless by the suicide death of his mother.
“Small acts of kindness mean so much,” she said.
After her talk, students told how they had been “greatly touched” by Ms Holborow’s stories.
Ms Sarah Foster and Kimberley Manning, both 16 and from Oxley High School in Tamworth, said they found Ms Holborow’s talk inspirational.
“I was greatly touched and it gives a whole new perspective to life,” Ms Foster said.
It is the first time "Step to the Future" has been held at UNE. The program engages local high-school students in organising the forums, at which prominent Australians speak about their road to success.
Also talking at the forum at UNE were Bali Bombing survivor and AFL player Julian Burton and Lieutenant Amanda Jane MacKinnell, Head of Physical and Personnel Security for Kuttabul and Garden Island dockyard.
Some of the schools that participated include Oxley and Calrossy High Schools in Tamworth, Barraba Central High School and all of Armidale’s secondary schools.
”Step to the Future” began in Sydney as a pilot project in 2002. It aims to provide 15-18-year-olds with positive role models, motivation, and an insight into the lives of people prominent in a wide variety of fields, including business, politics, entertainment and sport.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at May 27, 2005 11:49 AM