I would argue that rather than needing more professional intervention, inspections, ratings and general bureaucracy, we need a broader public debate about how to raise the next generation. Adults are undoubtedly restricting the life experiences of children and young people by wrapping them in cotton wool. But the answer is not more Ofsted ratings of ‘the quality of school playtime’, for example, or ‘professional advice for parents and prospective parents’ that is ‘embedded into antenatal and pre-pregnancy preparation’. Instead, we need to confront the cultural obsession with safety and targets, assessments and measures. These bureaucratic measures are not conducive to developing a society in which human beings trust in their own and other people’s ability to make decisions about how to raise the next generation.