Page 9 | To ask what age you would let your kids go to the park alone?

hellofrommetoyou · 2021-04-09T13:43:45+00:00

Would you let a 7 year old girl and 10 year old boy to go to the park alone? Park is a two minute walk round the corner but cannot be seen from my house. No roads to cross on the way, just a huge big grassy area.

Fembot123 · 10/04/2021 19:16

I just don’t see how the shops can be much better, is it the amount of people there that is reassuring?

Fembot123 · 10/04/2021 19:18

@Waxonwaxoff0

Not everyone lives in nice safe happy areas. If you think I'm extreme, I've seen a thread on here where someone said a friend of theirs walk her sixth former to and from college because it's so unsafe in their area. Even I wouldn't go that far!

That’s nutty, I’m guessing that if someone was going to attack a sixth former there’s not much a parent could do about it 😱

Lassy1945 · 10/04/2021 19:20

@Waxonwaxoff0
You said absolutely not because of your area in your first post

Lassy1945 · 10/04/2021 19:21

* Where I live, absolutely not. I won't be allowing DS out on his own until he is at secondary school.*

Waxonwaxoff0 · 10/04/2021 19:24

[quote Lassy1945]@Waxonwaxoff0
You said absolutely not because of your area in your first post[/quote]
Yes, I meant not to the park as that was what OP said.

Waxonwaxoff0 · 10/04/2021 19:26

@Fembot123

I just don’t see how the shops can be much better, is it the amount of people there that is reassuring?

Yes, I mean I've not seen anyone fighting or taking drugs at the shops. Although I walked past 2 older teens fighting in the street a few weeks ago! They were in and out of the road nearly getting hit by cars.

Chillychangchoo · 10/04/2021 19:27

@Waxonwaxoff0

I live in a similar area. I completely agree with all your posts. Shame we didn’t pick nicer areas hey 🤣 I mean silly us 🤦‍♀️ what a Mumsnet thing to say. It proves the point though doesn’t it? a lot of women on here really are clueless to life in their safe villages. I guess it’s easy for them to judge.

So no, age 10 and 7 is much too young around here.

Dee1975 · 10/04/2021 19:27

Depends on area and child. I allow mine out the front and they go ‘round the corner’. But there are no roads, just cycle paths and grass. Also there is a group if around 6 of them who hang out. Year 3 to year 6.

SmokedDuck · 10/04/2021 19:28

@daffodilsandprimroses

It’s not about statistics though.

If my child is abducted it’s not really going to bring me any comfort to know that a million others didn’t.

Besides, it’s rare because opportunities to do so are rare. When children roamed freely, it was more common.

If you decide to go on a drive to a park for fun, and your child dies in a car accident on the way, will it bring you any comfort to know that most kids don't always die on frivolous trips to the park?

Because that is a much more likely scenario.

Kidnappings have never been high on the list of dangers in most places. If you live in a narco-state YMMV.

FlyingBum · 10/04/2021 19:31

Ds is 6 and has started being allowed to the small play park in our housing estate along with the other 6 year olds (there's a group of 7/8 of them that are at school together and all live in the estate). There's only 70 houses in the estate and no roads for them to cross as the park is within the estate. The parents all went with them last year and now we're letting them go alone but they know they're less than a minute from home and if we ever check and they've gone elsewhere that's it over until they're adults!

SmokedDuck · 10/04/2021 19:33

No one disputes that some areas may be too dangerous, traffic or whatever, for some kids.

That isn't the situation that the OP has described though.

LindaEllen · 10/04/2021 19:35

9 here but to be fair you can see the park from our window so not exactly the same.

Waxonwaxoff0 · 10/04/2021 19:36

[quote Chillychangchoo]@Waxonwaxoff0

I live in a similar area. I completely agree with all your posts. Shame we didn’t pick nicer areas hey 🤣 I mean silly us 🤦‍♀️ what a Mumsnet thing to say. It proves the point though doesn’t it? a lot of women on here really are clueless to life in their safe villages. I guess it’s easy for them to judge.

So no, age 10 and 7 is much too young around here.[/quote]
Thank you! I guess it's hard for people to imagine if they don't live in those kind of areas, I wish I lived somewhere nicer but I don't have much choice on my budget. I read about people letting their children play outside in the cul de sac, all the kids together on the street playing nicely. I can't even let DS do that, my neighbour across the street sells drugs so there's always horrible types coming around and I heard him getting beaten up a few weeks ago and was screaming for an ambulance.

Fembot123 · 10/04/2021 19:36

Maybe I’m old @Waxonwaxoff0, all the youths used to hang around the shops back in the day 😄 I was pretty much in agreement with you until the whole Russian roulette thing, you know your area and you know your child so I think you sound rational in that respect

Waxonwaxoff0 · 10/04/2021 19:48

@Fembot123

Maybe I’m old *@Waxonwaxoff0*, all the youths used to hang around the shops back in the day 😄 I was pretty much in agreement with you until the whole Russian roulette thing, you know your area and you know your child so I think you sound rational in that respect

I did too when I was a teen, the high street is pretty dead now though. There isn't anything local really for kids to do, we used to have a cinema but it closed down. All they do is roam the streets. Unfortunately there are just a lot of local thugs who ruin it for everyone else. Not just for the kids either, there is a big problem lately of dogs being stolen in broad daylight from the adults out walking them.

MinecraftMad · 10/04/2021 19:50

My dd is 10 and very sensible but I won't let her go to the park alone, about 3 minutes from my house across a quite road but I can't see the park from o ur house. Lots of her friends are allowed to the park alone and they live further away than us.

DenisetheMenace · 10/04/2021 19:51

No, personally I think too young to make the older responsible for the younger.

Angel2702 · 10/04/2021 19:55

Not a chance I’d let a 7 year old out alone. Year 6 ready for year 7.

Chillychangchoo · 10/04/2021 20:08

@Waxonwaxoff0

Agreed. It was just last week my car got smashed up from a high speed police chase, at 11AM in the day. Apparently the driver was high on drugs wielding a knife around in the street half a mile away from mine. The car repeatedly rammed the police car so that the officer ended up unconscious, it wasn’t
stopping for anyone or anything. 11am :( There is constant low level crime here and high level. There’s no respite. To be honest it’s the worst it has ever been. I fear for the future here :(

I have serious plans to escape from this place eventually but for now here we are. My year 6 will be walking to school on his own in year 7 in Sept and I’m already trying to settle my nerves over it.

I had a council estate upbringing in the city I live In and I was out and about from the age of 6. It was fab back then though. We were poor but happy, everyone knew each other.

Waxonwaxoff0 · 10/04/2021 20:18

[quote Chillychangchoo]@Waxonwaxoff0

Agreed. It was just last week my car got smashed up from a high speed police chase, at 11AM in the day. Apparently the driver was high on drugs wielding a knife around in the street half a mile away from mine. The car repeatedly rammed the police car so that the officer ended up unconscious, it wasn’t
stopping for anyone or anything. 11am :( There is constant low level crime here and high level. There’s no respite. To be honest it’s the worst it has ever been. I fear for the future here :(

I have serious plans to escape from this place eventually but for now here we are. My year 6 will be walking to school on his own in year 7 in Sept and I’m already trying to settle my nerves over it.

I had a council estate upbringing in the city I live In and I was out and about from the age of 6. It was fab back then though. We were poor but happy, everyone knew each other.[/quote]
Ahhh are you me? Exactly the same situation! We were all out and about as kids too, 2 of my friends lived on my street and we used to go out together all the time from primary age. Such a shame that DS can't do that, it really is a different world.

I too fear for the future of my town, it was already underfunded before Covid and now it's even worse, so many of the shops have closed. There are pretty much only charity shops and bookies left open now (and Greggs). It just looks so run down and grim. There are just no opportunities, the only jobs round here are in factories or care homes.

DS is happy at school but eventually I would like to move too if I can. I used to like living here but it's really taken a turn for the worse over the past few years. I really hope he does well for himself and decides to move elsewhere when he's an adult!

ElsasFrozenVerucca · 10/04/2021 20:22

It would be secondary school age for me, unless I could see the park. Can't you go with them and take your phone? Answer some emails, go for a run, call a friend, do your mobile banking?

NoIDontWatchLoveIsland · 10/04/2021 20:34

The 10 year old with same aged friends, yes. Taking and being responsible for the 7 year old, no. I would probably only let a 7 or 8 year old go with a sensible(!) 14 year old.

NoIDontWatchLoveIsland · 10/04/2021 20:36

However I live in a very small safe village, park can be reached without crossing any main roads etc.

Chillychangchoo · 10/04/2021 20:39

@Waxonwaxoff0

My husband works in a factory and I work in care 😉
Perhaps we are from the same town!

I try to remain positive and have a long term plan to escape but it will not be any time soon.

Good luck!

beela · 11/04/2021 08:35

@Fembot123

I just don’t see how the shops can be much better, is it the amount of people there that is reassuring?

@Fembot123 if you are referring to my post, they go to the village shop to buy a pint of milk or something, and come straight back - it's a 10 minute errand at most. So the difference is the amount of time they are out.