To be furious that the kids were left alone?

[Therearenonamesleft]

My OH got home late last night after drinks with friends. He got a taxi home and this am forgot that his car was still parked at the station. I leave for work earlyish in the morning and he is responsible for taking the kids to school / holiday club most mornings. Today he suddenly realised his car was at station after I'd left for work so he gave the kids breakfast (DS is 7.5 and Dd is 5) and told them to be sensible and not go upstairs or open the door etc and that he had to go and fetch the car. He claims he legged it all the way and was back home in 8minutes.
I feel furious and sick with worry and unease. AIBU? I think they're too young to be left alone even for this short amount of time. I shared my concerns and husband said he sees my point of view but disagrees as he thinks the risks are minuscule. I've asked him not to do it again - at least until DS is competent at making a call on the landline should some problem arise. They are both very sensible children and I often leave them playing upstairs etc while I'm in the garden etc but they are always close enough to call me. Should I take this any further? Is this a safeguarding issue I need to be worrying about? I don't want to over react but I feel uncomfortable about his inability to guarantee it won't happen again.
Thanks for reading all this! Any sensible advice welcome.

I think you are over reacting. I also think it's an issue the 7 year old can't use a landline in an emergency. I also don't understand why the car was at the station if it's less than a ten minute walk away.

Bigger issues here than two children being left in a safe environment for 8 minutes.

A lot can happen in 8 minutes between siblings.

A 7 year old is far too young to be left in charge of a 5 year old.

He shouldn't have left them but I think you are overreacting regarding taking it further.

I think he was wrong to leave them. I don't think it's as big a deal as you think. I would calmly explain the reasons why you don't think it's a very good idea.

I wouldn't leave my 7 year old alone yet, but it probably won't be long until I think it's OK, so maybe at 8 or 9 for the sort of period of time you describe.

I also don't think it was sensible of you to use words like "safeguarding" about your own family arrangements.

I'm also quite confused that if the station is so close why did he need to drive there last night?

YANBU, I wouldn't be happy. But I do think that talk of safeguarding and 'taking it further' are over reactions. You've talked it over and made your point, hopefully from now he'll stick with your comfort zone. The fact he timed himself tells you he wasn't 100% comfortable and knew you wouldn't be either. To be fair the risks are probably pretty minimal but it doesn't seem necessary- if it took him 8 minutes to run there and drive back, it wouldn't have been difficult to walk them both down there and drive to school from there. I'm surprised that so many would leave their young children. Mine only take a minute to get into some right pickles - running water, overflowing sinks. 8 minutes could be carnage!

I wouldn't be too impressed, but equally I don't really think there was that much risk of anything happening. To the posters asking why he didn't take them with him, I'm assuming he was much quicker on his own. If they are anything like mine, it would take at least 8 minutes just to leave the house! Whereas an adult man can presumably run reasonably fast and do the whole trip quickly.

I'm guessing he drove to the station to go to work, possibly after taking the kids to school. Got the train to work, went out with friends and got a taxi back home

You need to teach your children to use the phone.

I think it's fine if he's only done it once. We all make mistakes and don't take things into account, and I'm sure a 7.5 year old can take care of himself and a sibling for 10 minutes.

Interesting to see the division of opinion here.

Complete overreaction.
Is this for real??

I wouldn't be happy about this. If he comes home late and leaves the car at the station he should have a better plan for dealing with it eg getting everyone up earlier so he can walk to the station with the DCs or collecting the car before you leave for work.

It's lax and I'm not entirely convinced by his 8 minutes.

Oh, and yy your DS should be able to use a phone to call 999 regardless of whether your DH is going to leave him again or not It's an important skill for a DC to have.

Ah probably

I'm with others, huge overeaction.
'Safeguarding'? Who exactly are you going to tell?

Why do the dc's have to go to school in Half Term?

Re-reading the op I see that the dad hasn't agreed not to do it again so it's not a mistake or one-off. There was no need to leave the children in this instance. OP in your situation I would make sure the children aren't left in the sole care of your oh until they are old enough to be left alone (as that's what may well end up happening).

They covered this perfectly in an episode of Friends.

[Rachel is nervous about leaving Emma alone in the apartment for a few minutes]
Rachel: What if she jumped out the basinet?
Ross: Can't hold her own head up, but yeah, jumped.
Rachel: Oh my God, I left the water running.
Ross: Rach, you did not leave the water running. Please, just pull yourself together, okay?
Rachel: Ah, did I leave the stove on?
Ross: You haven't cooked since 1996.
Rachel: Is the window open? Because if there's a window open, a bird could fly in there.
Ross: Oh my god, you know what, yeah, I think you're right. I think... listen, listen.
Rachel: Huh?
Ross: A pigeon, a pigeon. No, no wait, no, no, an eagle flew in. Landed on the stove and caught fire. The baby, seeing this, jumps across the apartment to the mighty bird's aid. The eagle, however, misconstrues it as an act of aggression and grabs the baby in its talons. Meanwhile the faucet fills the apartment with water. Baby and bird still ablaze are locked in a death grip, swirling around in the whirlpool that fills the apartment.
Rachel: Boy, are you gonna be sorry if that's true.

Some children are fine to be left and some aren't. Only you know how much you trust your children and how confident and independent you have taught them to be. I sense some trust issues with your DCs and your DH. No-one can come to terms with them until you do. You have to work out what is acceptable to you and decide if this is rational. Then you need to calmly discuss this with your DH and a conversation with your DCs would also not go amiss...... Soon, your DCs will be 11 and off to big school where they quite often start to take the bus to school (I did when I was 11) on their own. Then they are off to college and then off to Uni or out to work. I doubt very much that you will be holding their hand when they are 30, so you have to decide in your own mind, how you will get from now to when they are 17.

My DH did this when my DS was less than 7 and I was pissed off and he knew it. I didn't see the need to take it any further at the time because I knew DH understood how strongly I felt about it. Now DCs are 11 and 9 and we leave them for up to an hour by themselves if we're staying local. They know how to phone us if necessary (and they have done it). I didn't make it a huge "safeguarding" issue though.

what does op think about the responses to this ? does seem she's being ganged up on a bit, what would other posters really have done had they been in thereare 's shoes, too easy to be so casual.

They are old enough (and sensible enough) to just sit and play without burning the house down or drinking bleach.

Seriously? My friend's db was older than that when he burnt their house down after finding matches (that he climbed to get).

I know it's a miniscule risk, but please don't underestimate what children are capable of.

I know some 7 and 5 year olds I would leave and some I definitely wouldn't!!

I'd be cross with DH if he decided on a new parenting 'rule' without discussing with me. In this situation it would've been better if he had called you at work, then he could have called you when he got back and you'd know everyone was ok.

I'd be annoyed. I'd want him to say he wouldn't do it again. Like any aspect of parenting it's important to agree on some basic rules.

I'd also suspect that it took more than 8 mins. If the station was genuinely that near, he should have taken the kids with him.

Too young.

Buzzard it isnt Half Term everywhere. I am in scotland and the schools in my area are open.

OP I would let your partner know how you feel but unless its a regular thing i would let it go.

It's not half term everywhere, children are in school in Scotland.