"and it's just what you would expect an English mum to take some pride in saying, partly because it says a lot for the gumption of the girls in a difficult situation."

where are my hipboots? It is getting deep in here.

"the real significance of this being as a kind of (unflattering) litmus test of the quality of an aspect of social services in New York."
or anywhere for that matter. Why is there reason to believe it is better in the UK?