Woops -accidently kidnaped a stray child. What should I have done?

[slambang]

Still wondering what I should have done here. WWYD?

I took ds to his routine 2 hour footy training at the town park on saturday morning to find the place deserted and bitterly cold. A quick phone call home and we find we'd missed the email cancelling. No prob. But then we spot a bedraggled figure under a tree- Ds's new team mate, J (12 yo), who also hadn't got the email. His mum had dropped him off and left. (Don't know her at all).

J had no phone so I offered him mine to ring his mum but he didn't know his home number or his mum's mobile. (new to area and didn't know mum's number). We ring directory enquiries, no number listed. I can't wait there for 2 hours as I have other appointments. Don't want to leave J on his own (very cold day). I ask him what his mum would want him to do - he doesn't know. Double .

So, WWYD? Leave him there? Give him a lift home?

I offer him a lift (asking if he thinks his mum would let him). Yes, apparently his mum is fine with him acceptiong lifts from practical strangers. Luckily J can find his house. Unluckily mum is not there. J thinks she may have gone to her boyfriend's house round the corner.

So now I'm getting very late and I have to go. I have a child in my car that nobody knows I have picked up. WWYD? Drive strange boy to strange man's house? Leave him on his doorstep? Take him back to the park and re-abandon him?

Interested to know what others would have done.

I would have phoned the football coach to see if they had contact number.

Called the football coach and ask for the mum's contact details or a message to be passed on?

X posts!!

drive to mans house round the corner - don't hand over kid unless his mums there though - her bf would at least have phone number for her.

otherwise, go back to footy training ground as it is only 2 hours and presumably you'd have been picking up your Ds up from there anyway,

I'd have scooped him up with DS. DS and this child obviously know each other, and you must have had arrangements to pick up your own DD later.

I'd be back at the park when the mother was expecting to pick her child up.

this is what we used to do before emails and mobile phones. you would be where you were expected when you were expected and noone really minded what you got up to in between.

now had you been lurking in the park on your own, that would have been a different story....

Go to boyfriends house in the hope finding mum.

I think I'd have tried the boyfriends house and if No answer I would have dropped a note with my phone number through his Mums door and then continued with my plans for the day, including j.

"
I would have phoned the football coach to see if they had contact number."

this is probably the right thing to do, now that i read it..

Called the coach and re-arranged my own appointments if necessary. Whilst driving to the boyfriend's house.

I probably would have either gone back to the park and waited in the car for mum to come back, or gone to the boyfriends house in hopes of finding the mum there, however if mum wasn't there i would have then taken him back to his house or the park.

Checked the boyfriend's house after leaving a note on the door with my phone number. Then done errands with both boys and taken them back to football ground a bit before the 2 hours were up. THEN if no luck there, taken the boy back to his house and THEN back to ours.

I'd have gone back to park and stayed with him. Other appointments would have had to be changed or other adult rustled up to wait instead.

In this order I would:
Call football coach and get mum's number.
Check the boyfriend's house first and if no one there take him back to the park in case mum had got the message belatedly.
Or take him back to mine and then return to the park at expected pick up time.

What did you do?

Can't believe I didn't think of phoning coach. Of course that's the right answer.

What I did was drive to boyfriend's house. I wouldn't have left J there unless the mum was there but he might have had her number. Boyfriend wasn't home. either.

... and then....

Decide to go back to the park and wait. On the way we pass J's friend's house and J asks if we can stop there as his friend's mum will know his mum's number.

Thank god friend's mum is there and she does know J's mum's number. I abandon J at the friend's house with great relief.

(BTW I don't think I meant 'kicks self in head.' Rather uncharacterisitically violent of me )

@ chipping

What happened next then?

X post I'm so slow