Having to pick 11 yr old up from school

[Knitwit101]

Our school has a new head. Been there maybe a month. He has announced that in the winter all kids must be collected from school. I have an 11 yr old in p7 (Scotland) who has been walking home alone since p3. We are really near the school and he has only one road to cross, it has a crossing. This is a ridiculous rule, right? Surely an 11 yr old can walk maybe 4 minutes home alone if his parent says he can? It's not even nearly dark at 3.15pm.

To add to my irritation my 6 yr old finishes 20 minutes earlier. There is nowhere sheltered outside to wait and we are not allowed to wait in the school. There's no point walking home, sitting at home for 10 minutes then going back out again. So I am expected to stand outside (in weather and light that is unsuitable for 11 yr olds to be alone in) with my 6 yr old for 20 minutes to collect an 11 yr old who is perfectly capable of walking home alone.

I have complained, as have several other parents. The school have said that they are not making judgements about the capabilities and journeys of individual pupils, it's the same rule for everyone and that's that.
One parent refused to come and collect her dd. She was made to wait in school and her parent was called to collect her.

Yesterday I offered to 'collect' a bunch of kids and walk them to the school gate then let them go. So i basically collected every p7 kid then let them walk home like they usually do. I half thought the school would have phoned me this morning and complained about deliberate flouting of their policy but they haven't. Another parent is going to collect them all today and walk them round the corner out of sight.

AIBU to think this is a ridiculous policy?

He's home. Just walked home, no drama. No-one checked on him. Sorry to disappoint everyone.

Has the whole policy been abandoned so quickly? Who knows.

Boohiss I HAVE read all your posts and I still think it's an unnecessary waste of police resources. Why children need to go to church during school hours I can't fathom either no need for it - assuming catholic school but then I'd ban all church schools.

Op - yay 15! "People power" hope it's gone well.

Has the whole policy been abandoned so quickly? Who knows.

Let's hope so!

Our school finishes at 3.30 and tbh it is pretty dark now which is when my p4 arrives home. He walks himself home as is normal. How bonkers from your head.

Damn it

Stupid head and his mum dramatic response. was looking forward to hearing about the argument

for the love of god check the Twitter page and your emails

Is it not the case that the school acts in loco parentis from the child's leaving home until their return to their front door? In which case, they absolutely have the right to specify the pupils' mode of departure. Otherwise, ridiculous.

Knitwit101 I don’t think I am alone in being very disappointed with your update.

I had hoped for a bit more of a drama instead of the head realising so quickly that’s he is a daftie.

I’m surprised there haven’t been more parents complaining!

I am half disappointed there wasn't more drama but half relieved because I could do without any more drama in my life right now.
An email arrived later this afternoon saying that parents can notify the school in writing if they are happy for their kids to walk home alone.
And that's the end of that I guess. Sorry it was such a rubbish ending.

tombstone - no that is not the case. School is responsible while children are on their premises/in their care (e.g. if out on trip). School is not responsible while children are travelling to & from school. THAT would be ridiculous!

Knitwit that's what sensible schools do already. I wrote a note saying "I give permission for [DD name] to walk home alone every day."

I would say that is not up to the school. It’s after school time so up to the parents. I would refuse to collect. If they called me I would refuse to pick up on the basis that it’s my decision as a parent and I think they are perfectly capable of coming home themselves. And the school are not in charge of me. If they want to walk my child home they are more than welcome. They won’t hold them there all night. It’s a battle of wills!

That's MAD. Our dd will be in 2ndary and having to negotiate a bus to and from school, across London by her age. Ask for the PTA to step in.

Why would the PTA step in, they are usually a fundraising group and have no say in how the school is run. Maybe you mean the school governors?

Someone mentioned walking on a school trip and that teachers can’t stop traffic.

Yes teachers can stop traffic to let pupils cross the road. Each school will have done a risk assessment.

Our whole school goes to church services at Christmas, Easter and harvest time. The 2 deputy’s stand on the road to stop each side and each class cross between them.

I work in the nursery and we go on various trips and we do the same, 2 staff members stand on the road and the children walk between us with parent helpers.

To get a police escort is just rediculous. You would hardly ever get to go on trips in the local community.

Why don’t the school just encourage parents and assist in making sure all the children are aware of road safety etc (I’m sure they are all aware at that age!) that’s ridiculous what about parents that are at work? What do they do?

There have been issues at my daughters school similar to this - she is 11 .
I understand why the teachers are concerned as there has been an attempted abduction recently and I have been told there are sex offenders with previous convictions in the playground by a very good source😲
It’s difficult when you need to work - I am trying to let my 11 year old walk home 4 mins to get a bit of independence . We are in the South East not far from London so not much better here !

Ridiculous.
I walked myself to and from school from the age of 6 . About a 10 minute walk.
Kids are so coddled these days they cannot cope when they get out into the real world.
If we'd been collected from school by our parents we'd have been scoffed and jeered at for being a big baby. We'd never have heard the end of it. There wasn't a parent in sight . Nowadays school yards are swarming with parents.
It is insane, it is ludicrous and it is teaching kids nothing.

DS’s school has this from after school clubs. But children were allowed to walk home if parents had agreed by signing a consent form. Could you not suggest this.

All the parents against the new rule should make a complaint to the school governors.

It’s Scotland, we don’t have school governors.

I can't imagine 1500 parents turning up to my son's school every day. It would be gridlock. It's madness to make parents collect their kids.
My DH works in Germany and for example a few days ago I was stuck in a hospital appointment. Our son walked home with his friends. No problem.

Wow, here from P3 teachers don’t hand kids over and it’s permissible to walk to or from school. No one actually does this with their primary 3’s but that’s the parents choice/responsibility as it should be. Usually by p5 though many are walking. I’m also finding the concept of a police escort to church unusual. We have a school roll of 600 and due to hugely increasing intakes over the last 3/4 years a large proportion are under 8’s. We are just outside the city centre and the walk to church is about half a mile with several roads. Teachers and TA’s manage no problem. I went on a walk of our local area as the only parent helper with 60 primary 1s (that’s only half of them) the other week and had no problem stopping traffic.

If it's due to the weather that the head is imposing the rule and with it being in Scotland you can surely challenge this. Children are being encouraged to walk to school and an 11 year old is certainly old eniugh to do so on his own. The Head is taking away the children's independence in a small way. Contact education department LA with your view and also evidence of legislation allowing this to be imposed. Have any children suffered injury eg frostbite, hypothermia or road accident due to his reasoning.