Dundee Council said that they always acted in the best interests of children

In a shocking case four obese children are in danger of being permanently taken away from their parents by social workers and placed with foster parents because of a failure to bring their weight down to a normal level despite repeated warnings.

The four children between the ages of eleven and one have been earmarked for fostering without contact with their real parents or permanent adoption which means they won't be able to contact them again till they are eighteen.

The parents who are distraught by the potential separation ordered by the Dundee Social Services Department said that they have done their best to try and get their children to eat healthy but despite monitoring from social workers the children continue to put on weight.

At one point the the social workers set up a Big Brother type house which involved constant monitoring and supervision which was then written up in a report saying that there had been no improvement in the diets of the children and that the parents lacked parenting skills.

The mother of the family said that she and her husband loved their children and the idea of not seen them again was just terrible. She said that the social workers had singled them out because of their weight and made unrealistic demands which they could not meet. Their lawyer said that they had not broken the law, committed any crimes and were not accused of cruelty or abuse and said therefore that Dundee Council were not acting in the best interests of the family and children.

The older children of the family are also very angry and upset and said that the social workers have no right to interfere and that the parents were good people and that the four small children had no idea about what was going to happen to them.

Dundee City Council said however that they always acted in the best interests of children.

The issue about whether social workers should be allowed to take away children because they are obese from their parents is an extremely controversial one and one which arouses intense and extreme emotions.