What age do you allow baby sitting?

[Theodoreb]

Ds 15 is desperate to baby sit his younger sisters aged 11 and 8, only issue is DS has ADHD but is quite responsible and his symptoms are mostly well managed. DD1 has ASD and DD2 has possible epilepsy. DS has had to administer care to dd2 during a seizure when I was driving and was so close to hospital it was quicker to drive her there. I know your supposed to wait and call ambulance but it was her first and I just panicked but anyway DS administered excellent care.

Up till now I haven't left DS look after his sisters alone at all but he is 15 and really wants to so wondering what ages others allowed this?

Like most of these "What age" questions, you build it up.......

-Leave them for 10 mins whilst you pop next door to ask your neighbour something or to post a letter
-Leave them for 1/2 hour whilst you go to the post office
-Leave them for an hour when you go to the supermarket
-Leave them for 2 hours whilst you go for a meal in a very local pub

etc etc

I think 15 is fine for babysitting in a normal situation, but there's no way I'd leave a 15 year old to care for a child with epilepsy.

Thanks both @Stompythedinosaur that's my fear as well but I leave her with their dad who refused the training to administer medicine and first aid training, I am frightened I have left them for ten minutes while I ran to the shop with DS on the phone the entire time but DS feels I'm being unfair. I have a appointment with dd2s epilepsy doctor on the 10th I will ask him for advice.

Until a sitter is 16 they are not held legally responsible you are as their parent. So I would explain to DS on his 16th birthday...

15 is fine or even a bit younger to babysit siblings with no medical needs.

I wouldn’t leave the DC with epilepsy with anyone who hadn’t gone through the training, WTF re their DF?!

If the 15 year old had had the training and was confident and mature I’d possibly start allowing short stints of babysitting.

I would run through scenarios with your DS if DD was having a seizure so he knows how to respond. E.g check her, phone you, phone ambulance etc so that if it did happen he won't panic.

If you feel he understands then I would let him but not go to far so you can get back quickly.

I can remember when I was 18 I had to phone an ambulance for my sister and I didn't know what to say to them as I hadn't done it before and panicked. The more you practice with him the easier it will be in the future (hopefully he'll never need to)

Theodoreb that's a hard situation.

Personally I'd say that it doesn't matter if your ds feels you are being unfair - seizures can be really dangerous. It is too much responsibility for another child. How would your ds feel if something happened to his sister while he was in charge?

Personally I would not be sending my epileptic child to their other parent if they had declined medical training either. Children can and do die from seizures.

Their father refused to take time of work and refused to acknowledge how serious her seizure was he actually told me of in the hospital after visiting on day 3 after her seizure saying there was nothing wrong with her and that I had called him out of work without good reason. Me the school and my mum all had training DS has basic first aid training as he asked to come along and as he doesn't attend full time school owing to his adhd he was able to attend.