Mail & Guardian
Mail & Guardian

Child Neglect

latest news & developments
Kelly Smith, mother of missing girl Joslin Smith, takes notes during the trial on Tuesday.
CHILD NEGLECT

Kelly Smith threatened to stab her son in 2016, social worker tells court

Siliziwe Mbambo also said that according to the case file, the mother of Joshlin Smith threatened to assault her own grandmother

  • Des Erasmus
5 min read
Black and orange are the colours which all the teachers wore to the memorial of the children who died when flames engulfed their home in Alexandra on Sunday. (Renata Larroyd/M&G)
CHILD NEGLECT

#AlexFire: ‘The mothers were very involved in their children’s lives’ – teacher

The teacher of one of the four children that died in a fire in Alexandra says the mothers loved their children and that should not be forgotten

  • Mashadi Kekana
3 min read
The four children – Mbalenhle Fihlani, 5, Nonhlanhla Ngubeni, 7, Sandile Ngubeni, 4 and Amukelani Ngubeni, 2 – died in the early hours of Sunday when their two-bedroomed house burnt down as they were sleeping. (Renata Larroyd/MG)
ALEXANDRA

Parents neglect kids to care for themselves

The four children who died on Sunday after a fire burnt down their home are being remembered by the community and their schools in Alexandra

  • Mashadi Kekana
4 min read
More than 26 000 cases of child abuse and neglect were reported in the 2024-25 financial year
CHILD ABUSE

​Child abuse can be curbed if the will to keep our children safe is tangibly realised

South Africa is on its way to being a pathfinder country in the realm of preventing violence towards children – but more can and needs to be done.

  • Staff Reporter
5 min read