YES, make it illegal to hit children, No-one deserves to be hit but people need to think before phoning social services without concrete evidence that a child is being abused.

This can lead to devastating consequences for the parents, including having children taken away.

I also think social services should handle cases more considerately and make sure they know what they're doing.

Yes, they have a right to protect children, but parents have the right to tell their story and be believed.

No parent, or child, should be put through the grief of having their lives ripped apart without thought or reason.

So think carefully before picking up the phone because if the family is innocent their lives will never be the same again.

S McNEILL (Miss), London Terrace, Darwen.