Reactions to the Policy of Evacuating Children During the Second World War

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Reactions to the Policy of Evacuating Children During the Second World War On the 31st of August 1939 evacuation was introduced to the British population. Evacuation was a process the government took to protect children and vulnerable groups from getting harmed. The government set up a program where children, pregnant women and the elderly were transported to safer parts of the country. Such as Wales, and the countryside. When evacuation was introduced there were several reactions to take notice of - Host families, the parents of the evacuees and the evacuees. In this essay I am going to analyse the differing reactions of the people who would have been affected by evacuation. The parents of the evacuees were unsure of whether evacuation was the solution for keeping their loved one safe. Some parents sent their children without any enthusiasm and when it became apparent that the war wouldn't lead to the major cities being bombed, parents took their children back from where they had been placed. Although some parents were against evacuation, other parents were keen to send their children away, as it would keep them out of harms way. When their children had been evacuated this gave parents at home (who were at home because they had to look after their children) chance to be involved in the war effort. It was natural for parents to be concerned about their children. They worried about things like "where would they go?" "Would they be safe?" and "When would they see their children again?" Because of these thoughts parents were dubious about sending their children away, but when the bombing on major cities had started the parents were relieved to know that they had made the right decision as to send their children to somewhere safer than where they was now. All the children reacted to evacuation in different ways. Some children had to change their lifestyle dramatically because of the evacuation process. Some children came from large busy cities and weren't used to the country life. Some of the children wet their beds

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