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When 13-year-old Alfie Patten made headlines around the world after being labeled Britain’s youngest dad, it was a life-changing moment.
He and his family couldn’t go anywhere without being recognized and his parents were being accused of being the “U. K’s worst parents”.
Chantelle Steadman gave birth to a daughter, Maisie Roxanne, in 2009, at Eastbourne Hospital in East Sussex, near Alfie’s and Chantelle’s hometown.
At the time the child was conceived, Chantelle was 15 and Alfie was just 12.
The story, originally published by the British tabloid The Sun, quickly gained worldwide attention. A major reason for the story’s massive spread was Alfie Patten’s youthful appearance, with his boyish looks and unbroken voice, which contrasted sharply with the serious responsibility of fatherhood.
The Sun proudly claimed that the story set a new record for online traffic – that says a lot about how huge the story was.
Hadn’t yet gone through puberty
Alfie first met Chantelle in 2008 when he was 12, while playing in the streets of Lower Dicker, a village in East Sussex where they both lived. His mother, believing their friendship was harmless, didn’t worry about them being alone together, especially since Alfie hadn’t yet gone through puberty.
The case also sparked protests about Britain’s ”under-educated” and ”over-sexualised” society, according to The Independent. The teenage pregnancy rate in England is still relatively high compared to other developed countries; the only Western nations with higher rates are the United States and New Zealand.
High-ranking politicians expressed their concern, with Nigel Waterson, Member of Parliament for Eastbourne, stating, ”This is a very sad story… which raises huge questions about sex education rather than relationship education in schools, and also about the sexualisation of our society.”
In a memorable YouTube interview, Alfie was asked if he could support his family financially. His response: “What’s financially?”
Surprising details
Looking back at how this story was reported a few years ago, there are some pretty surprising details that come to light. For instance, the couple didn’t even realize Chantelle was pregnant until she went to the doctor at 12 weeks. She claimed to have missed just one pill. They kept the pregnancy a secret for another six weeks, until Chantelle’s mother noticed her daughter’s swollen belly.
Alfie said, ”I thought it would be good to have a baby,” but admitted he had been too scared to tell his parents. According to Alfie’s father, his son was determined to be a devoted and responsible dad, and was eager to be the first to hold his daughter. ”He could’ve just shrugged it off and stayed home playing on his PlayStation. But he’s been at the hospital every day,” he said.
The daughter, Maisie Roxanne, was born in February 2009, weighing 7 pounds 3 ounces, and Alfie was suddenly thrust into the role of father.
The pictures of the 13-year-old and his baby looked almost comical – it seemed more like he had a new little sibling than a child of his own.
”It was a crazy time. Holding Maisie for the first time was amazing. I was too young to understand the consequences of being a dad but I liked holding her and immediately loved her,” Alfie said, according to Daily Mail.
Too unbelievable to be true?
The story seemed almost too unbelievable to be true, and soon enough, the truth would come crashing down. Just six weeks after ”his” daughter was born, Alfie received a bombshell revelation that would turn everything upside down.
A DNA test revealed that Alfie Patten was not the father of the baby. Instead, the true father was another boy and Alfie’s friend, 14-year-old Tyler Barker.
It was Alfie’s mother, Nicola, who started to suspect something was amiss, as she couldn’t believe her son was sexually active. And just like that, Alfie was no longer the youngest father in the UK.
Alfie shared that he cried for days upon learning the truth, and his heartbreak was deepened when Chantelle and her family moved away, leaving him unable to see the baby anymore.
After all the heartbreak and chaos in 2009, Alfie and his family hoped they could return to some sense of normality. Yet the headlines still followed him, and he was even mentioned in U.K. parliament; his name became a symbol of the unruly youth of the day.
The controversy
By now, we all know how huge the Alfie Patten case was, with the media coverage being relentless. But did you know that the UK’s Press Complaints Commission (PCC), the country’s press watchdog, also looked into the case?
The PCC, a voluntary regulatory body for British print newspapers and magazines, wanted to investigate whether the papers had paid Alfie Patten’s parents to share their story.