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Original poster

What age did your child walk home from school alone?

93 replies

HelloGoodbye92 · 03/09/2023 18:46

This is the cause of a bit of debate in our house. The school is a 7 minute walk away.

what age did you let your child make their own way home from school?

OP posts:
MotherofPearl · 03/09/2023 18:51

In Year 6, so from 10. It's about a 12 minute walk.

cptartapp · 03/09/2023 18:51

Year six. The term before high school.
A 25 minute walk with the last ten minutes along a busy rural road with no footpath. Then home alone for two hours.
No neighbours.

Digestive28 · 03/09/2023 18:52

It’s usually the school that dictate it. Ours is from year five but our DD didn’t really want to do it until year six

clary · 03/09/2023 18:52

Year 5. I’m slack tho.

clary · 03/09/2023 18:53

Incidentally I was never picked up from school, but walked the mile home from age 5 with my then 7yo sister. It’s OK tho bc as we all know, there were no nasty pervs about in the 1970s.

DinnaeFashYersel · 03/09/2023 18:55

Our primary school was too far to walk but both of mine got the bus home and walked home from the bus stop from P1 (age 5)

Where I live in Scotland it's very common for children to walk home with older siblings from P1 or by themselves from age P3 or P (age 7 or 8)

LittleMonks11 · 03/09/2023 18:55

Year 7 age 11 - meeting a friend halfway (after about 5 mins) and tracking her on Find my Phone. That's just me though.

Hellocatshome · 03/09/2023 18:55

DS1 was 8 or 9 but there was 3 of them who lived within a few houses of each other so they did it together. The walk was only 5 minutes and 3 roads to cross. Also the majority of people walk their kids to and from school here so plenty of parents around as a bit of a safety net.

NillyNoMates · 03/09/2023 18:56

Year five, and then was home alone for a couple of hours until I got in from my school.

BakedTattie · 03/09/2023 18:56

DinnaeFashYersel · 03/09/2023 18:55

Our primary school was too far to walk but both of mine got the bus home and walked home from the bus stop from P1 (age 5)

Where I live in Scotland it's very common for children to walk home with older siblings from P1 or by themselves from age P3 or P (age 7 or 8)

Yep. My 9 year old ‘supervises’ my 7 year old. One mile, no roads to cross.

DelilahBucket · 03/09/2023 18:58

Year six, approximately a ten minute walk. One main road to cross with a school crossing patrol and then several minor side streets.

BogRollBOGOF · 03/09/2023 18:58

9 (y5)
5 minute walk quiet suburban road.
In the house about 10 minutes before I return home with sibling that needs collecting from secondary school.

Pepperama · 03/09/2023 18:58

Age 8 in P5. Walked with friends and only had two major roads to cross, both with lollipop men. Also lots of other parents and kids going that same way so it felt safe.

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 03/09/2023 18:59

Year four, one road to cross.

JaninaDuszejko · 03/09/2023 18:59

Our school lets them walk home from Y5. The eldest two didn't walk home alone till they were at secondary though because we were taking the youngest to school anyway. The youngest is about to start Y6 and has made noises about walking home alone but I don't think DH is quite ready to stop the school run yet 😁.

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 03/09/2023 18:59

**15-20 min walk

Cotswoldmama · 03/09/2023 19:00

When he just turned 9 halfway through year 4 it takes him about 15 minutes and there's a few roads to cross one with a zebra crossing and then a one way road and then ours so we did it gradually me meeting him a bit further each day, for maybe 3 weeks. We live very near a town centre so I feel he's quite safe and my husband works from home so there's always someone home to meet him.

littleducks · 03/09/2023 19:00

Year 5. For older one at different school was walk 15 minutes, bus walk 5 minutes

For younger one is only 10 min walk

supermamio · 03/09/2023 19:00

My 8 year old often asks to walk home by herself, which is fine because in reality she sets off before me as I have to wait to collect her younger brother and we walk home about 5 minutes behind her. There is only 1 road to cross and that is the one in our street and is only a 10 minute dawdling walk.

Echobelly · 03/09/2023 19:04

School didn't used to allow it before Y6 (which I thought was dumb), so that's when oldest walked home (about 1mile/20 minutes, a few small crossings), youngest started end Y5 because it was COVID time then, so they allowed it then to reduce number of people on school grounds.

Kids went to corner shop (literally 50m away) from age 8.

I think all kids should experience walking home from school by Y6 if possible as they're likely to have to make their own way to and from secondary school, and experiencing it beforehand means it's one less new thing to deal with.

Sneezingmywaythroughsummer · 03/09/2023 19:04

Dd1 was 8 y4 she started last summer
School is a 20min walk 30 if she dawdles with friends she's got to have her phone on her and tell me which of two routes she is taking
Both routes she walks at least half way with friends

I pick up her younger sister so check in with her who she's walking with as I leave, both routes are also peppered with other parents walking kids home.

I don't pick up every day so she can only walk two or three times a week as dgps house is too far to walk

elizabethdraper · 03/09/2023 19:05

My 9 year old will by cycling home about 2 km from next week

A few roads to cross but most have traffic lights

BringOnSummerHolidays · 03/09/2023 19:06

Summer term year 5, 10yo. Our primary has a consent form for year 5 and 6s to walk home alone.

Soubriquet · 03/09/2023 19:07

7/8 and 9/10.

It was one long road about 15 mins walk away. They used to walk to and from school together but no adults.

They would still be doing it now but we live a lot further away and will require a car

museumum · 03/09/2023 19:07

Age 8 (Scotland)