To put my 11 year old on the train alone

[olgafromthevolga]

Ds is going to spend a few days with his grandma and I am considering putting him on the train alone to go there. It is one and a half hours with 2 stops and she will collect him at the other end. He is a very sensible boy and is happy to do it, but I am not sure whether it is reasonable or not.

It depends on the route and when he is going, only you can decide that.

I live in Liverpool and avoid trains around the Grand National and Football match times, i have been caught up in to many fights and drunkeness, where the train is stopped for the police to make arrests, etc. The trains arent staffed enough, on my routes.

Generally speaking at his age it's fine.

You can tell him to pick a busy carriage and have his wits about him.
I think the fear of the risk is greater than the risk IYSWIM.
Oddballs on trains are not the same thing as serious threat and I wouldn't have thought it was any riskier than letting him walk / catch bus to school from that point of view.

Definitely yes... what could actually happen?

You know your son and how responsible he is better than anyone on this forum. If you feel he can handle it, that's completely your call.

god yes, he will be fine! and will probably like the responsibilty, fwiw my 12yr old has been doing similar journeys from that age to visit relatives and friends.

go over the basics ie to speak to the conductor or someone that works at the train station if he has any difficulties, pick a busy ish carriage, it will be fine :)

Excellent idea

Absolutely I would, especially if he is willing to do it. I wouldn't put him in First Class, though. I would put him in a carriage with loads of other people. I think the defining factors are that he is willing to do it and that you think he is sensible enough to do it. He'll feel fantastic after he's done it, won't he?

Well done for not wrapping him up in cotton wool.

As long as he is happy with it I cant see a problem. Especially as he is being seen on and off the train.

Do it. Granny should have a contingency plan in the unlikely event she can't pick up I suppose.

Yes. LEAs expect 11 yos to make much more complicated journeys on public transport travelling to school each day

I used to catch a train to school daily from 11, so see it as normal.
I live in outer London now and see plenty of school aged children on trains and the tube.

YANBU.

When DS1 was that age he got the train back from a holiday on his own (he had to come back early for school) was also about 1.5 hours. I got him a magazine & some food for the journey, and sat him in a carriage with lots of families. His dad met him off the train in London, it was all absolutely fine.

I would - happily. I would even expect an 11 year old to manage a change or two - so one with no changes... no problem.

I wouldn't book First Class either. I'd prefer he was in with other people and felt free to move around the train if there was any bother.

I would have a look at the route/day and avoid any times there was likely to be hassle (ie football game coming out).

Just remind him not to flash his phone, ipad/pod, money around etc but stress that if there is any bother he's to hand them over and not take on any bigger lads (just in case).

Yes, of course it will be fine.

Yes, my DS started regular visits to see family alone from the South Coast to Wales from age 11 - and that involved a change. We went with him the first couple of times so he could get the hang of the change. After that he went on his own with no problem. Any issues with platform alterations etc he'd ask the guard. Is grown up now and very independant.

I travel by train most days - 'too many weirdos on the train is one hell of a paranoid generalisation' and possibly says more about the poster than the real world (put the Daily Mail / Express down!!!). I believe most kids are snatched by car drivers not train passengers. The OP has also said that there are two stops but no changes - I think a confident 11 year old would be fine to do this. You can also ask the steward to keep an eye on them (perhaps easier to do if they are in first class?).

I think this is fine if he is sensible and happy to do it

Fine but do get him a phone - trains break down, gran could, heaven forbid, get hit by a bus on her way to station and mobiles are a godsend if plans go wrong.

Not a problem with that. My Dad put me on a train aged 8 on my own once (back in the day but no mobiles!).

A friend sent her daughter up north from London on a three hour journey. They put her in first class, near the guard. But the bonus was it was no stopping, so no-one else got on. My mum is down on the south coast, and unfortunatly that line seems to have it's fair amount of quite scary drunk/ druggy types getting on. If it was no stopping, no problem.

I looked this up last year on the national rail website, and it says somewhere that you can't go on the train alone until you are 14.

In reality, this cannot be adhered to, because I know kids that get the local trains to school every day from year 7 without an adult.

I would be concerned though, if it were on big trains like the East Coast, that the guard would refuse to let the child on at the last moment.

I've just looked it up on the East coast website and the minimum age is 12.

We have never had a problem on the East Coast trains although our daughter is now 15. First Class is preferable to standard imo, it is not empty but it is less crowded.

It also means that the stewards do the rounds very regularly with the food and drink cart (usually every 20 minutes) so can provide more supervision than in standard class.

Thanks so much everyone. I checked with First Great Western and it is fine with them. He has a fully charged mobile, a brand new book and will have a bag of snacks. The ticket is booked (did go for first class because I figured the host could be asked to make sure he got off at the right stop) and I will call him 5 minutes before. He is beyond excited and I will report back.