To report two infant age children walking to school alone

[ThePosieParker]

... to the head of the school.

This morning I saw two siblings (I assume) walking to school alone, the oldest looked about yr2 at the most and the youngest a reception child. I wanted to phone the school as there could be a number of reasons these children are walking alone, not all sinister but in my mind none good enough,. This is Bristol, a busy city, not the place to allow children to cross roads and negotiate traffic and people at the age of 6 or below, surely.

Um...I am not sure about 'phoning social services...if the parent is ill and they have walked to school - possibly just this once - it would be horrendous for social services to descend upon them...the head of the school would have been enough, as he/she could ask them their situation delicately.

Still, it is done - I just hope it is OK

I am on the other side of things - I part-walk my daughter at 13 across a horrendously busy road - it is dark at that time of the day. I have to drag myself out of bed because of chemo side effects - but I would be more stressed if I let her go on her own - and stress isn't good for me. I like to know that she is safe.

I am sure that some children are perfectly mature but you do still have the issue of judging distances. I also feel the same way to see very young kids on bikes, without helmets, playing chicken across the roads - they seem very mature but after all, they are still very little....

Agree that calling SS is totally over the top.

If they are capable of walking alone, why shouldn't they? I am sure a 6 and 4 year old can manage it if their parents deem them able to and it's not far.

I'm not sure I'd be happy just shrugging it off and assuming that represented a sane parent's rational decision, knowing that there's at least a chance it might not.

You could apply that to every parenting decision any of us make.
I bet social services play mumsnet bingo.

YANBU. I know how busy Bristol is.

We had this situation in Belgium last year; a 8 year old picking a 3 or 4 year old up from school. The headmaster told the parents it was not allowed, and that the younger child would not be allowed to leave the school premises with the 8 year old. The parents had not planned route etc; they were just parents who could not be bothered to pick up their child.

Children are allowed to walk home on their own from the age of 8 or 9, and many of them do.

Punk....I did say to Duty of Care team, that I didn't assume feckless parenting but maybe m,other was ill or something.

maybe the mum has flu,and can't go out or younger child at home ill.When my daughter was 7,I let her walk on her own,when her sisters were ill,because I didn't want to drag vomiting child or children up to school.Sometimes your youngest can get sick just before school starts,and you don't have time to sort out someone else taking other children to school.It could be something like that.

So what are you expecting social services to do if the mother is ill, pop around with a lemon sip ?

you called social services

That's very over the top.

Fair enough to call the school.

TBH, I think you're a bit of a net twitching busybody.

Well, I still think it's well out of order to report.

If said children looked neglected, dirty, afraid, unsure of where they were going, then yes, by all means.

Otherwise I am quite horrified. It doesnt mean they have lazy parents at all. Years ago we all walked to school at a young age. I know there wasn't the traffic about then, but we all have to learn how to deal with it.

"You could apply that to every parenting decision any of us make."

Yes and we do. It's part of living in social groups and in a community, we don't just ignore what's going on round us.

Most parenting decisions have no danger associated with them either way. The ones that might do, get more scrutiny from other parents. And sometimes they're not good decisions and it's good that they get a bit of scrutiny.

There are probably five year olds who can be trusted to fill a kettle, boil it and make a cup of tea. But if I saw a five year old I didn't know going up to a kettle to do that I couldn't just walk out of the room and leave them doing it assuming that they wouldn't be doing it if their parent didn't think it was OK!

Just because a parent might have made a rational decision to send a five year old off to school by themselves does NOT mean every five year old walking to school by themselves is safe and meant to be doing that. It just doesn't follow.

I think it is nice that you care.

Actually, I'm ill today. I shall call SS to come & give me a lemsip & put the baby to bed.

11 & 8 year olds took themselves to school & will be walking back.

Lock me up now.

you could have waited and spoken to the Head when she/he was available. Phoning SS was way over the top - school would know whether it was neglect or otherwise. I take it you know who these children are then?

Phoning SS way over the top, but i guess going by your thread name you already know this.

Straw man G&T - 11 and 8 is very different from the age the OP thought the children here were and you know it.

LadyintheRtor Other side of the coin. i walked from 5 and loved it! i could slide down a grassy bank everday on my coat and not get told off ;p

I think you did things with the best of intentions - because you care.

Social services will assess and dismiss if no harm has been done.

Of course many of us as children walked to school as a child, but the OP states it is a small child responsible for an even smaller child, in a very busy city.

I would also have referred it to the school.

I think SS was over the top - school would have sufficed I think. School would probably have had an idea which children you were talking about and have known if there was a greater issue, or if you'd been correct in your age guessing. There is a girl in DS1's school, in YR6, who could quite easily put on an infant school uniform and slot into a YR1/2 class and not look out of place.

FWIW - I let DS1 (10) walk DS2 (7) to school, he's been doing it since DS2 started reception (as at the time we lived next door - DS2 being the type of boy who, if we'd had a friend living next door, I would have let go and knock for his friend on his own so I didn't see any difference to walking next door tos chool)@.

We moved last year to the next street and I told them they couldn't walk together anymore because of the 2 smalls roads........all hell nearly broke loose . So after a week or so of walking DS2 over to the infants, and then another week of watching them cross the first road from the front door I let them do it again.

DS1 also walked just under a mile to school when he was in YR3.

So - obviously I'm not one for walking my kids to school .

However, I do think that calling the school would be the right thing to do. Being well dressed, clean, "not looking neglected" are not a sure sign of no issues at home..........

belgo - it's a busy world.....not just a busy city. We have to learn to live in it and cope

The OP had absolutely no reason to suspect these children were neglected, afraid or unaware of where they were going.

She also had no prior intelligence about why they were alone or anything about their family at all.

It isn't nice to report them to ss as some kind of criminals. We all have different views on parenting policies and standards and unless we notice children victims of violence, neglect or abuse, we should NOT assume anything.