Former S Club 7, Rachel Stevens Leaves Children Unattended in the Car for 10 Minutes, Faces Criticisms

Witnesses were alarmed to discover 4-year-old Amelie and 18-month-old Minnie Blossom locked in the car on a street in North London for more or less 10 minutes that afternoon. The mother of the children was former S Club 7 star, Rachel Stevens. She has left her children in the car unattended while she ran errands.

A witness has told Mirror, "At first I didn't realize they were in the car on their own or how young one of them was but when I did, it was quite shocking. I suppose I think about the worst-case scenario but what if they took off the handbrake or managed to get out of the car? Or if someone managed to get in?" Mirror has also posted some pictures of the children while the car was parked in the side of a street.

According to Mirror, she parked the car at around 12:30 in the afternoon and after she went out of the car, her 4-year-old daughter could be seen playing in the front seat occasionally checking on her sister at the back.

A writer for the parenting section of Mirror, Tanith Carey said, "It would have felt like a very heavy responsibility for Amelie to be left in charge of her little sister."

"Ten minutes - the time ­witnesses say Rachel was away - may feel like the blink of an eye to a grown-up but to child of Amelie's age, it would have felt much longer. According to official NPSCC guidance, babies, toddlers and very young children should never be left alone."

On the other hand, according to the UK Government Guidelines for leaving children on their own, "The law doesn't say an age when you can leave a child on their own, but it's an offence to leave a child alone if it places them at risk. Use your judgment on how mature your child is before you decide to leave them alone, e.g. at home or in a car."

Rachel Stevens, 37, ambassador for charity Caudwell Children, has not made any comments yet regarding this matter.

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