I had not been working long
when the file arrived on my desk of John
I was new to the social services scene
But this looked like the worst case i'd ever seen
He was 12 and he lived with his mum and dad
They lived in East London in a working class pad
reports of beatings and unnatural feelings
towards mother and son
i kept my opinions down, although i thought they were scum
i went to see John, to see the situation
the parents were unaware of his malnutrition
he lived upstairs in a house that kept rats
it was noticeable that this was the worst of the flats
the kitchen was overflowed with rubbish and cutlery
the only thing that hang on wall was a poster of the royal family
the father was drunk and laid on the couch
his stained t-shirt and beer in his mouth
i felt very scared and angry inside
i was new to the job and i just wanted to hide
all those feelings of hate and anger, how could they destroy
with such shameless neglect to a 12 yr old boy
John was upstairs his tears they had dried
but with bruises all over him no wonder he cried
i issued the report right there and then
i needed some help and called the policemen
the parents said that they had done nothing wrong
that the boy was at fault, the boy they called John