To allow my son to walk to school on his own?

[tresdreg]

He's 9, it's not that unusual is it? It's about an 8 minute walk, through a village.

Ds could easily walk, but I wouldn't trust him to not lose track of time and forget to go to school or to lock the front door

It's tough in that situation. Half of my daughter's class starts school at 10 on tuesdays and thursday so their parents, if they are working, have no choice but to trust them to remember to go to school on time. I expect they use alarms or call their children before its time to leave to remind them but the latter wouldn't be an option for everyone. My daughter and her friend were late to their afterschool club once because they set their alarm wrong (there was an hour between school ending and the club beginning so they went to his house to wait)

My dd walks to and from school with a group of friends. She started by just walking back by herself in yr 5, because a lot of others were, then they organised a group who call for each other. She's in year 6 now. It's only a five minute walk and there's a lollipop person for the only rd they have to cross. My ds walked there and back from year 6 as the boys in his year weren't as keen. I think it's good preparation for when they start secondary school. It depends on the child and if they feel they can and how capable you think they are.

Well it obviously varies from schools etc but our particular school consider it a safeguarding issue if the child is under a certain age.

I used to walk home from around 8/9 too, I was fine. Depends on your personal route but I had to cross roads but it was a residential area, no main busy roads

The school can’t enforce those rules themselves or insist upon it.

If they genuinely believe a child’s safety will be compromised by him leaving the site unaccompanied they can contact SS or the police but they cannot overrule the wishes of the parents.

Personally I think it’s overkill and I don't actually believe the school can enforce these “rules”.

They can’t.

They can speak to SS and that’s about it. They’d lose any fight with parents over it.

It was summed up to me by someone as this - Schools have to make safety rules in school to cover the youngest and least capable children. They have to cover the fact that Billy has no common sense or Mary is easily distracted. Jimmy’s parents don’t have to consider Billy or Mary when they decide if Jimmy is capable of walking to and from school.

Our parents sign an agreement to support the school in its application of the school rules.

If a parent felt unable to honour that agreement, we would invite them in to discuss it. Clearly there are plenty of schools that allow children to walk to and from schools at an age younger than we do, so there are always options for parents who are not willing to abide by our rules.

They are not rules though Surburban because the school day has ended.

You may feel and I may personally agree a child below a certain age should not go home unaccompanied, but that isn’t your call to make, or mine.

The school day has ended but the child is still in our care, in the same way they are if the parent is late picking them up.

They are rules. They are stated clearly as such innour policies and in our website. If a parent is unable to keep to the agreement they signed, there are always options.

They are the schools preference surburban but can’t actually be enforced.

I’m not trying to be awkward. But this is the legal standpoint. A school cannot overrule rhe wishes of the parent.

You're dead right @continuallychargingmyphone this is not the schools decision. Schools already have too much agency in families lives imo. Allow your kids to walk to school, it has been proven again and again to provide countless benefits to the child.

There’s no aggression in what I’m saying. I would personally feel nine is a little young but the point is that isn’t my decision to make on behalf of someone else’s child and it isn’t the teachers to make either.

I had this problem when my own son was nine, actually. At the time I worked 8-3. The school finished at 3:25. I had to go past my house to get to the kids’ school so would collect the dog en route and be there on time. However (perfectly reasonably) dogs were not allowed on the school premises so I waited for DS across the school field. The school refused to let DS go because they insisted they had to hand him over to an adult even though I was waving and DS was nearly in tears saying ‘but she’s THERE!’

It’s the only time I had to do so but I did have a pretty firm word then and all was sorted. But put simply the law regarding a parents autonomy over their child supersedes any rules or policies a child’s school has in place.

I’m not trying to be awkward. But this is the legal standpoint. A school cannot overrule rhe wishes of the parent.

I’m not trying to be awkward either. But these are our rules and if a parent feels, despite having signed up to them, that they cannot adhere to them, and we can’t come to any other solution, they are welcome to move their child to another school where that rule doesn’t apply.

The parent certainly has the right to do that, but (as I’m sure you know) you wouldn’t be able to insist upon it.

That would be a MN thread and a half - child permanently excluded for going home at the end of the day

The school has rules but the rules of the school do not supersede the law - the opposite in fact.

I let mine walk from nine (beginning of year 5), she was earlier than some of her friends but certainly not usual

Mine catch a bus. From Y2 there is no requirement for them to gave a adult ensure they get the correct bus. Most of them manage it no problem.
However, watching the younger kids crossing roads to get to / from the bus is frightening. I watched one car this morning slam on its breaks as a 6 year old ran out, and it's not the first time.

So I'd say yes, but be absolutely clear on road safety.

Yes its fine. Our village has loads of kids walking to school at that age. And parents didnt have to stay in playground either. Some did just for the chat though or personal pref.

Some kids get a bus from p1 with all the other kids from outlying areas so no parents in the playground with them.

If the child is capable enough of walking for all of 8 minutes what's the problem? Probably will be other kids walking to school at the same time.

That would be a MN thread and a half - child permanently excluded for going home at the end of the day

Who said anything about exclusion? I’m talking about parents having the right to move their child to any school that has a space if their current school doesn’t meet the child’s needs.

Yes but surburban the parents may wish the child to attend that school and to leave without an adult and they do have that right - that is the point.

The school do not get to make the decision about it.

It’s not a ‘safeguing issue’ for goodness sake. When mine were at primary plenty of children caught a bus from neighbouring villages into the town bust station and walked the 6 -7 minutes to the school.

YANBU.
It is only VERY recently that children were constantly accompanied. There is often a good reason eg parent dropping off on way to work or child at school out of catchment; also Children are not all road secure until 8 or so . However, I really think we are getting this wrong. One only has to look back to children in1970s to see most were getting themselves to and from school on foot, bike or bus. DSis and I caught bus+ train+ walk from years 3 and 5. We were together and looked after each other. The main concern for my parents was the long day and getting tired. We weren't the only ones doing this .

yes i would and have

my DC started secondary this year and some parents are still walking their DC to secondary

Yes but surburban the parents may wish the child to attend that school and to leave without an adult and they do have that right - that is the point.

I’d be very surprised if a parent who is insistent that the school rule for walking to and from school alone does not apply to their child still wished their child to attend that school.

If I had been that insistent about a particular aspect of a school’s policy when I was looking for schools for my DC, I wouldn’t have deliberately chosen a school that had a rule that wouldn’t work for me or them. But then, it comes as no surprise that people think the rule they’ve signed up to doesn’t apply to them.

This isn’t something personal.

It is not a ‘rule’ that can be enforced. It is therefore the schools ‘preference’.

For my part, I collected my children but wished to do so with the dog. The school ‘rule’ stated I could not because my child had to be physically handed to me. However the school rule was wrong because the law states otherwise.

Take my DS out of the school local to him where all his friends were and where he was happy and achieving well because of a silly quibble over the logistics of where I stood when collecting him? Do you not honestly think that’s a bit ridiculous surburban?

As an aside it isn’t the first time I’ve noticed ‘find another school if you don’t like it’ attitudes and they are both rude and dismissive.

No, I don’t think it’s ridiculous to ask a parent to consider whether the school is right for them, if they feel unable to follow the rules they signed up to.

And I don’t know where you’ve got this idea that the school rule is about where you stand when you collect him.