There is no law in Britain, currently, saying when a child can be left at home alone; but the N.S.P.C.C. recommends that they shouldn’t be left alone if under 12 years of age.
This got me thinking:
Although I believe that there should be some kind of law to safeguard children, I know that some children will be more mature and responsible earlier than others. Meaning that they could be left alone for short periods of time.
I never left any of my children alone until they were older teenagers and then only for a few hours, but I do understand why some parents may have no other choice but to trust their children to be alone; it can be difficult for working parents to juggle long working hours with school days and holidays.
Leaving children now is much safer than in previous decades- we all have mobile phones and can be contacted if needed.
When I was a girl , my sisters and I were left alone during the school holidays. my parents worked about 20 minutes walk away. a neighbour would be there for us, if we needed anything, My dad popped home for lunch and as mum only worked part time she would be home by mid afternoon.
We were pretty happy watching television and playing together.
So if a parent is only away for a short time, has a phone and explains about not answeing the door or turning on the oven, surely this is not a problem?
I would be interested to hear what others think.
As always questions and comments are welcome.
Until next time.
Karen
x
Great post Karen , but l just couldn’t leave Megan for even 5 mins in the house alone, l know she is sensible, but at the same time she is a 9 year old child, and as her parent l could never live with myself if anything happened if …..‘l had just popped out ‘….. why risk it ?
I’m sure my views will change as she matures in her teenage years, but until then , she is stuck with me watching her !
Thanks, Sarah, nobody knows a child better than the parents, so stick with your instinct
I think my kids were in their early teens before I left them home alone, but by then we had cell phones and they could reach me at any time. My parents left me home alone at about age ten. I was fine by myself, but I had younger siblings. I think that’s too young to babysit without an adult nearby. Thankfully nothing happened except one time I accidentally stabbed my hand with an ice pick while trying to poke a hole in a juice can. :-0 Thankfully my brother ran and got the neighbor to help. That’s another aspect–there used to be plenty of people nearby home in the daytime, but that’s not true any more.
Thank you, Barbara, for dtopping by and sharing your thoughts and experiences.
I think this one is very kid-dependent. Maturity and trust levels are going to vary greatly. Mine is 8 and I left her alone once, just to run around the corner to market. I was gone 11 minutes but she was very excited that I trusted her. #anythinggoes
That is exactly right and what I have mentioned, all children are individuals and therefore mature at different ages
I remember getting kicked out the door in the morning and not coming back until the street lights went on so we didn’t get much time inside on our own until we moved from the neighborhood and I prayed to be left alone and usually was from maybe age 10 or 11 on. I was already babysitting by then and started to cook meals a few years after that. I guess it’s a different world but think kids need some kind of responsibility.
My husband had the excact same childhood as you, very different from mine
I don’t know the right answer or even if there is one. I do know it is tougher if you do not have a strong and close support network in place or have financial limitations. It should not be that way! I still feel like I am neglecting my son who is now overseas living with my brother and he is aged 19. I guess they always feel like our babies. I do wonder if me and my OH could have a night away from my older teenagers now but it still feels that would be wrong to be honest. #StayClassyMama
I once read a check list that said they needed to know the answers to ‘What if there’s a fire?’ and ‘What do you do if someone breaks in?’ and I thought I don’t know the answer to what to do if someone breaks in???!! So the child I think needs to be old enough and confident enough to have those discussions…I think 12 is a good rule of thumb…
Like you, I was cautious about leaving kids at home. And I even had “forumulas” for combinations of kids that simply could not be trusted at home together.
It’s a completely different world to when I was growing up. I remember my Mum leaving me home alone at the age of 11 from early evening til the early hours (she worked in a bar). There’s no way I would allow mine to be home alone at 11, even for half an hour, let alone several. Its one of those things, you need to trust your gut instinct and go with it. #TwinklyTuesday
I think it is all child dependent. My teen is very sensible and has been since she was 11. I leave her at home, she enjoys feeling grownup and the peace and quiet. Not all day, but I can go shopping or pop to work for an hour and I know she is fine. My mum worked when I was that age and my brother and I were often alone all day, and we loved it. It’s common sense, I guess. Some kids are not safe to be left alone. My reality is that she takes herself to school on a bus every day, and to activities by herself, she is fine at home. Younger kids would not be. Thanks for sharing with #stayclassymama
Regardless of age I could only leave certain combinations of my 4 boys together home alone, otherwise there would be fighting and my phone ringing none stop with silly complaints. Thanks for linking up with #pocolo
I think 12 is ok to leave for a few hours but not really the whole day. I would be able to trust my 9 year old for around 10 mins but certainly no more than that. #StayClassyMama
Agree that it’s child-dependent, and that’s very hard to legislate for. Thanks for joining us at #PoCoLo