By
Neil Sears

12:31 EST, 30 November 2012


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09:17 EST, 1 December 2012

The worker claimed he was molested by married treasurer Robert Simmonds (pictured)

The worker claimed he was molested by married treasurer Robert Simmonds (pictured)

Britain is becoming a nation of ‘battery children’ whose parents are too afraid to let them out of the house, NHS figures reveal.

Statistics on the reasons why children are taken to hospital show that the number injured inside the home has risen over the past decade, while the number injured outside has plunged.

Half as many children are admitted to casualty after falling out of a tree as they were ten years ago and there has been a sharp fall in the number hospitalised after tumbling off a skateboard.

Instead, children are almost twice as likely as they were a decade ago to go to hospital for injuries caused by ‘repetitive and strenuous movements’ – such as playing on their computers too long.

The number of injuries from heating appliances, such as hair straighteners, and falls out of beds, chairs and down the stairs have also risen.

Experts say the figures show children turning their backs on traditional outdoor adventures in favour of the television and computer games.

They could also be due to schools being far less likely to take children on outdoor trips for fear of legal action if something goes wrong.

Despite the fact that the number of outdoor accidents has fallen, the total number of injuries has remained almost the same.

Sociologist Frank Furedi, author of Paranoid Parenting, said: ‘We now have a new generation of battery children who are reared in their digital bedrooms.

Stoke and District Horticultural Society, whose chairman, secretary and treasurer have all been successfully sued

Stoke and District Horticultural Society, whose chairman, secretary and treasurer have all been sued

‘The attempt to insulate children from the uncertainties of outdoor life inhibits their capacity to manage risk.

‘Ironically, children who are so
carefully protected by their parents end up far less able to cope with
life than those of a previous generation.’

The NHS data looked at the reasons for hospital admissions in England for under-15s over the past ten years.

The number admitted to hospital after
falling from a tree fell 49 per cent, from 1,796 cases annually ten
years ago to 907 cases.

An employment tribunal panel heard how the young employee of the Stoke and District Horticultural Society had been groped by the gardening club's treasurer

An employment tribunal panel heard how the young employee of the Stoke and District Horticultural Society had been groped by the gardening club’s treasurer

And, in the home, there has been a 22
per cent rise in injuries from hot drinks, while falls from playground
equipment – often in parents’ gardens – are up 50 per cent.

Tim Gill, a childhood expert, said:
‘The figures suggest that children have less freedom today but are not
having any fewer accidents – there’s perhaps even a slight rise in
accidents.

‘My guess is that children being children, they still want to play, test themselves and get to grips with the world around them.

‘But since they can’t skateboard or
climb trees as much these days, they are bouncing around inside their
homes on the beds and the furniture – and having just as many
accidents.’

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