Would you give your child a Valentine's Card? The 'creepy' new trend is dividing opinion

30 January 2019, 09:32

Valentine's Day has been gaining many new meanings in recent years, with many opting to send gifts and cards to their family and friends, not just their partners.

Gifting Valentine's Day cards to children has long been a debated issue, with some branding the act of giving your kids cards as 'creepy' and should be reserved for romantic relationships only.

Despite the issue being divisive, it does appear the trend is on the rise, with one in 20 UK adults claiming to have sent a card to their child in a poll of 2,024 adults on behalf of Clintons.

What's more, the research found that more cards are sent mums rather than dads, and parents aged between 45-54 most twice as likely to send a card to their child.

The growing trend was also noted by customisable card provider Moonpig, who claimed their top 20 photo upload cards in 2018 were 'Love You Mummy', and 'Love You Daddy'.

The platonic Valentine's Day cards are what they claim to be a societal shift towards more inclusive ways to celebrate February 14th.

Anne-Marie O’Leary, Netmums editor-in-chief told Huffington Post that more parents are beginning to see the occasion as a family affair: “Love, in whatever form, is something to be celebrated, so we’re all for families sending each other cards and using the day to celebrate their love for one another (and if you can get the kids to make the cards as a way of keeping them quiet – even better).”

However, not everyone agrees that Valentine's should be celebrated with the children.

Simon Ragoonanan, who blogs at manvspink.com, who has a six-year-old daughter, disagrees with the idea claiming Valentine's is about 'romantic' and 'sexual desire' which should be kept very separate.

“I have no doubt it’s done with the purest of parental intentions, but I find it a bit creepy,” he explains.

“To me Valentine’s Day, in all its commercial glory, has always been about romantic love, even sexual desire. Never about the very different kind of love between parents and children."

The father-of-one also argues schools and nurseries should ditch the tradition, adding: “If my daughter decides to send me a card, that’s lovely. I imagine it’s especially welcome if you’re a single parent. But I do wish playgroups, nurseries, and schools would stop encouraging this.

"It’s contrived to involve kids in it in this way. If we want kids to be into Valentine’s Day, then I think they should be sending them to each other.”

Will you be sending your child a Valentine's Day card? Let us know in the poll below.