Marina Fogle has revealed that she and her husband, Ben, were wrongly reported to social services for ‘shouting at their children’ amid the ongoing controversy involving Kirstie Allsopp and her son’s inter-railing trip.
The Countryfile presenter’s wife empathizes with Ms. Allsopp, stating she understands the ‘feeling of nausea’ experienced during such a distressing situation, having gone through a similar ordeal herself while raising her own children. Last week, Kirstie Allsopp faced criticism for allowing her 15-year-old son to travel across Europe, with social services now investigating the matter.
Writing for The Times, Mrs. Fogle expressed her understanding of the distress Ms. Allsopp likely experienced when social services reached out. She stated, “I know the feeling of nausea that would have welled in her stomach and the fury of being accused of failing your children because the same thing happened to me.”
Mrs. Fogle recounted her shock upon returning home from a family holiday in the summer of 2013 to find a letter from social services. Initially believing it to be a mistake, she was alarmed when social services arrived at her door that same morning. It was revealed that a neighbor had reported her and her husband for allegedly ‘shouting’ at their children—described as ‘sustained verbal abuse that was simply unacceptable.’
After providing evidence that they were on holiday at the time of the reported incident and undergoing further questioning, social services concluded there was no issue. While Mrs. Fogle acknowledged that many tip-offs are genuine and essential for child safeguarding, she felt ‘tarnished’ by the experience. She remarked, “Even though I was completely innocent, my interaction with social services rocked me.” Her husband, Ben, was so taken aback by the situation, given their non-confrontational household, that he suspected the report might have been made to cause trouble.
