I don’t know what the other mums would say, but I know with cast-iron certainty what my reply would be if they did.

Seriously, why is this an issue? WGAF what anyone else thinks, they’re your kids and your responsibility to do what’s best for them. The coven can wind their bloody necks in.

We’re letting the oldest one slowly spread his wings at 8, problem is other friends his age don’t seem to have the same opportunities to do this.

Some of their parents are seriously overprotective, stressing about their kids in supervised activities.

Most recent, taster session for free running lessons that were great, but some of the lads are not going back because it looks too dangerous. It was like a gym class with a foam pit to jump into, sigh.

Things have changed and it’s a real shame. I was out roaming at 8 and we didn’t have mobile phones in case we got in to trouble. I think it’s sad that people just stay in doors and play on computers, my Mrs. Took out eldest to a couple of the neighbors houses when we moved in as she noticed they alsohad boys close in age to ours, they didn’t want to know 🙁

Parents’ attitudes have changed, not “things.”

Age aside, if it was the first time they’d ever been allowed to venture away from home alone, I’d have probably checked with my wife first and made it a joint decision.

Roads might be getting safer but it’s from a very high starting point

2412 kids killed or seriously injured in 2011 , this is scandalous and way too high

I won’t let my 8 year old out on his own unless I am confident he takes road safety seriously

Maybe these things are down because of the restrictions parents place?

Our misperception of risk is, funnily enough, killing us. e.g. by driving everywhere instead of cycling or walking from fear of getting hit by a car we’re dying of fatness instead.
I’m tired of getting talked to like I’m exceptional for cycling to work through winter because ‘it might be icy’ – it’s scary how deeply ingrained our poor risk perception has become.
There was a case in SE London about 5 years ago where the parents had to fight the council not to report them for letting their kids cycle to school… 😯

Best way to keep kids safe is for them to be exposed gradually and sensibly to risk, to ensure they build their own risk-perception capabilities and their own confidence they can deal with risky situations with their own resources…

Far too many vehicles on our roads. Any scrap of greenbelt where previous generations enjoyed now built on. No youth clubs for the young to escape to. Electronics completely hoovering young minds which in turn drains any urge to allow the imagination or child to roam. The list just grows and it’s stifling parents judgements. Its helpless for todays generation.

Sometimes you’ve just got to let your kids go. They need the adventure and you need that healthy worry in order to allow them to develop and grow.

My kids have walked ahead at first.

By 6/7 they walked to school about 1km away in quiet Highland village by themselves.
By 8/9 they walked a couple of km across Dunblane by themselves. Same age they would go to park, about 1km away.
At 12 they went on short, easy bike rides.
By 13 they went to bigger and more difficult rides with mates.
By 14 they have done overnight camps in hills with mates, and traveled alone half the length of Britain by train to visit grandparents.
By 16 they will be going on day to college.
By 17 they drive.
By 18 I expect them living independently.

Progression is important here. Next door to us tell a hilarious story of thier 16 year old who didn’t know how to catch a bus, fund his way round a bus station or be away from mum for a day without multiple phone calls.

I suspect she is used to covering her arse and overly concerned parents saying that Tarquin cannot get muddy or go out in the cold, and a local authority who do not back her up.

Children have to experience managed risk to prepare them for life, both in practical skills of risk assessing and the mental well-being of coping with risks and fear.

A colleague speaks about the day her 15 year old daughter, having barely been out of parents view, was suddenly off to first proper party, and did she have the risk management skills to avoid the many (now life altering) risks she faced? The daughter had never been able to demonstrate to mum the most simple skills of managing risks, as she hasn’t had chance…

Sadly, most people live in fear due to the media, although I imagine the world is a much safer place for a lone child now, compared to what it was in the years gone by.

There’s a lot out there though and they seem to be hidden

We were given a Pedo Meter by a friend, so I gave it to the little one to wear by the time we had walked to school it had counted over 3400 pedos. Didn’t see a single one, well hidden !! Stay safe

I don’t particularly worry about ‘stranger danger’; the schools cover it and tbh, with 2 daughters if they were ever going to be subject to abduction, etc., that won’t go away even with age (I perceive a young female is just as likely to be abducted / assaulted as a child), so unless I don’t let them out alone even as adults I’ll never lose that fear.

For me the worry is roads and traffic, and that depends on your kids. We live on a busy rat run road but we let them walk to school now – youngest is now 10 and has a couple of side roads to cross and then the main one is lollipop ladied. Eldest goes to her school about 1.5 mi away – first bit the same and then meets friends after about half a mile.

We let them walk together to the local shops, mainly because the chances of them both **** up a road crossing at the same time is lower than one of them. It’s not that they don’t know how to cross roads, just that occasionally attention wavers. eg: Youngest has just run her bath, forgotten it and now we have no hot water left in the cylinder as most of it went down the overflow.

Used to walk to school from about 5/6, which was half a mile away. Seems mental now I think about it!

I’m not sure some of the points here are pathetic. If hardly anyone had cars in 1963 as mentioned that is very very different to now. And the speed of cars was different then and roads have many more parked cars on them now. For me the only issue is on crossing or riding on fast roads these days. If some of the posts on here about near misses or idiot drivers are when an adult is involved I darent think how a young child would deal with the situation.

Mine play in rivers, climb trees and all sorts but I think road safety is a different kettle of fish from when I was young.

Except if your wife gets into a fight with the other mothers this can end up with your kids not being invited to parties etc., it’s not that easy.

OP: my kids would head down to the shop at the end of the estate (about a 10min walk) for bread/newspaper from about 8 or so. All quiet, residential roads though.

Mrs BigJohn had to wait till she was 9 to go on the tube from Kent into London with her 9 yr old friend. She went down to the shops across the main road from 6.
Born in 1955 if that makes a difference.
They still had strange men you should keep away from even then.
I should know.

I don’t get this. Everything is much safer than when I was a kid in the 80s

Yeah but when it does go wrong it gets reported.

No you are not I read that as well 😀 😀

Age old argument at our place as well. Wife wants our daughter to take the bus to school from next year age 10. I was thinking more on the lines of the fact that the buses are the least reliable around here didn’t even consider the other stuff.

9yr old daughter and 14yr old son here.

We actually purchased our house based a lot on its location. It has a big green area to the front on a newish housing estate. Over the past 15yrs our kids have been able to grow up playing out there with their friends with the feeling they had independence (Often I would be sat on the doorstep reading or their mum would be watching from the upper windows)

When they got to the 8yr old time we did have to deal with difficult questions like going to the near park (No roads and about 250mtrs) OK. or to the far park, 1 road, 500mtrs (Only with friends).

I must admit my son has taken my daughter for bike rides to local villages about 2-3mls away on A roads and we have worried but they are both very sensible. My daughter also now goes around the estate by herself (Scooter and bike) and walks to the school bus herself (500mtrs). I do worry sometimes but I really don’t want them to miss out on having a childhood rather than a prison sentence which is what I think it would feel like if I had to be there every minute of the day.