to not let five-year-old child go on school trip into central London

[Blueflowers2011]

as title says, Year 1 (age 5 mostly) are going on a trip into London, which consists of 30 children and supervising adults travelling on 1 rail train, interchange to 1 underground tube train then a 20 min walk when they get to the other side to visit a shop.

A couple of parents are now saying they are not allowing their child to go which is also confirming my thoughts initially, which btw is mostly due to anything happening in London in general.

I have worked in London all my life and it's bad enough travelling on the tube everyday as an adult, let alone a 5 yr old child. Many parents also feel it's an unneccassary trip at this age just to visit a shop and how it works.

I encourage most things and experiences for my children but just feel this one is a bit too much for a 5 yr old. Am I worrying too much or should I just let them go?

I grew up in London, as did my children. We survived! Volunteer as a helper if you can. Then you know your child will be safe. And if it is hamleys. It's barely five minutes walk from tube.

We live in London and the kids go
On trips by tube all the time - I fact they're off to St Paul's on Tuesday by tube. It's not a problem - there will be plentyof adults but I don't get why they would need to walk 20 mins from the tube - that doesn't make sense - the city tubes are close to the stores.

feels like a lot of people might be missing the point of what you're saying. Yes there are 5 yr olds in London. But if your son isn't used to it, and this is an unusual experience for him, then yes, maybe you'd feel it was not desirable. On the other hand, if it's an unusual trip for him, what an experience! And surely the point isn't just that they're going to a shop, it's also about learning doing things with peers, about transport, etc. Life skills innit.

YABVU

I can't believe any parent would deny their child a trip to Hamleys just because of their own fears and insecurities.

I live in London and my kids have gone on tube for nursery and school trips from a young age. They can give tube staff prior notice of trip and usually someone will be at station to assist the party. Tube driver is informed school party will be boarding, if one train is busy driver can update and kids wait for next one. Trip to central London is so much fun for kids.

I live in London and my kids go on school trips round London all the time. 2 of them from the age of 11 travelled across London on their own to school every day too. I think it would be sad to miss out on a school trip. It will be very exciting and something fun and out of the ordinary.
Your school will have done a pre-trip risk assessment and will have deemed it suitable and that they can cope with it too.

YABU
5 year olds travel on the tube all the time. When school parties go on the tube they're often escorted on and off the trains and the train drivers are alerted to which stop the school party is getting off at. Your kid'll love it.

This thread highlights the rise of anxiety, far more of a threat to our DC and it's no laughing matter. OP hats off to you for reflecting on the source of it, feeling the fear and doing it anyway. As others have said, this age group regularly travel on mass on the tube and are well organised and supervised, if a bit noisy sometimes. In many ways probably safer, as a school party is more visible to London Underground staff. Things do happen on the tube (doors did once close on my DD, World did not end, no harm was done). Old statistic that we are most likely to be killed in a road accident within 3 miles of home. For those who mentioned pollution, the air quality by school is among the most polluted for our DC due to heavy reliance on cars for the school run rather than cleaner modes of transport. This is 5 days per week exposure not a one-off. Anxiety is not rational nor proportionate and actions based on it only feed it.

I think the posts from people saying they, as adults, suffer anxiety from having to take public transport or go to a city are very good reasons for the child to go: so they don't develop fears of normal every day things, and grow up unable to live a normal life.

These fears are learned, they aren't innate. Don't pass phobias onto your kids.

YANBU I wouldn't let mine go either. I would worry about mine getting lost. I heard of a school trip year 3 where they marched them so quickly through London as they were running a bit late they could have lost some stragglers if it wasn't for some vigilant parents.

The trip sounds more suspect than the transport. I'm not sure why they don't by coach as most schools don't wish to inflict classes of kids on the tube. A twenty minute walk is around a mile so tube doesn't sound like the best option if it's that far from a tube. You can ask to see the risk assessment if you're worried.

OMG, I live on the outskirts of London and that's exactly why my children don't go up into town, I don't go either, if I want them to go into London then I will take them myself, no way the school are, my son has sensory processing disorder and it would totally freak him out, stick to your guns

I think the fear of London, to many, is the unknown. It's big, busy, fast paced etc. Having not lived there for over 10 years I can appreciate why people find it so daunting.

I commuted by tube to school from age 11 with my 8 year old sister without any adult help. No incidents at all (this was the 90s, not the dark ages!)

Driving and parking a coach in central London is difficult, expensive (because of CC), time-consuming, and annoying. I don't think you'd find it easy to park a coach anywhere near Hamleys. That's why school trips to London almost always go by public transport.

The adults who have a phobia of cities or public transport: do you not feel that it's limited your life (for example what jobs you can do)? Do you really want your child to grow up limited by the same irrational phobias? I'm not counting kids who might struggle due to disabilities or who are non-neurotypical.

YABU. My girls (6 &3) have been on the tube or other public transport pretty much everyday since they were about a week old. We spend 20 mins on the tube every day there and back to go to school. NBD honestly.

Whens the last time you heard of an injured or missing child on a school day trip into London? Hundreds of school outings happen across London each School Day. Yes we all have concerns over some school trips but surely its best to just accompany your kids on those occassions rather than deny the experience?

Could have..... But didnt therefore supervision worked surely?

YANBU op I would ask that anyone considering letting their offspring go to London for the day, even under close supervision watch this hard-hitting contemporary documentary on the plight of children in the capital and the very real dangers that can lurk behind every corner

At age 5 it depends on the child and it's up to the parent to decide.

I have a nearly 5yo and there's absolutely no way I would let him go. He's a runner, easily distracted and doesn't pay attention to what's going on around him. He would be the one who ran onto the wrong tube and the doors shut, stepped out into the road, got lost in the shop because he saw a dinosaur that he wanted to run over and look at. Would be gone in a second before anyone even noticed.

We live just outside London and I've taken him in myself plenty of times but I know him well enough to know that I wouldn't trust him to be safe unless he specifically had one on one supervision. I don't care how much risk assessment takes place, he's run away from me before (without even realising he's done it) and I'll do my own risk assessment first. He wouldn't be going until I've seen him demonstrate that he can be safe and aware.

To all those saying your kids have been on the tube and in crowds everyday since they were 1, that's great but you'll appreciate that means your child will be more aware of how to behave and therefore will probably be safer than mine who lives in a quiet road on the edge of a field and takes the car to school each day. He's his own liability!!

I completely understand your concern, and would feel the same. I will take my dd so that she can see the Christmas lights this year, and will take her myself to see the sights, but I just wouldn't trust anyone else to have that responsibility. Might make me sounds a bit over the top but I don't care to be honest, I would worry too much and I would make sure she doesn't miss out ok things by taking her myself if I couldn't be a helper on the trip.

Another one who lives in zone 2 and whose children have been going to inner London on school trips since nursery. Nothing to fear!

I'd be more afraid of Hamleys than the tube tbh. At least the tube is sometimes quiet, Hamleys is always heaving on the rare occasions I go in.

If they're studying toys, agree with PP that the Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood would be better.

But, OP, I am sure your DS will have a lovely time.

As a teacher there are so many regulations, risk assessments etc to comply with and staff ratios too, I really feel no need to worry and as someone else said will be follow up work at school that they are unable to take part in.My daughter's first trip was into London aged just 3 from a nursery , we had just 2 days before moved from London to Surrey! Seemed scarey but so many safeguarding systems in place, it really was fine and she talked about it for weeks.

When my kids were younger they went on a bus trip round Milton Keynes "looking at architecture".

That Hamleys trip actually sounds interesting. I was hoping they were just visiting a London or something And I would be reassured by the poster earlier who talked about how TfL handle large groups. So I'd let them go, but I do understand your concerns.