Social workers have warned her against leaving her 11-year-old son alone at home while she is at work.

But Madam Nadia, 28 (not her real name) claims she has no choice.

She has to work to support her children. And there is no-one to care for her son when she's out.

She works from 8.30am until 5.30pm on weekdays as a customer service staff. Her husband, a supervisor in a bread company, also works long hours.

She has four children between 18 months and 11 years old. Her two older children are from her first marriage.

Three of her youngest children attend infant and childcare centres, but her eldest son has been staying at home alone because of the school holidays.

She is undergoing a bitter divorce from her husband, claiming that he is abusive. The couple live in the same second-floor one-room rental flat at Telok Blangah Crescent but they do not talk to each other.

Social workers told Madam Nadia they received complaints last Thursday that she was neglecting her eldest son.

QUARRELS

Said Madam Nadia: "I know (her eldest son) is affected by our quarrels. I ask myself whether I'm doing the right thing by going to work. Should I just leave this job?"

She earns $1,200 a month and cannot afford to hire a maid. Estranged from her own parents, she claims she cannot rely on her neighbours.

"There are loansharks around here, and sometimes at night drug dealers roam around selling their goods to people here," claimed Madam Nadia.

For now, she gets help from a friend living at a nearby block to look after the children. But she knows it is not a permanent solution.

She intends to enrol her son at the Henderson Student Care Centre during the holidays.

"I have no choice. I just have to keep my windows locked and give him some revision so he can stay out of trouble."

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