To think kids should be able to walk in the rain

[MiaMarshmallows]

To school if it is less than 30 minutes away?

There isn't a lot of stuff that is truly waterproof. Even stuff that claims to be waterproof may only be so up to a certain point.

The only difference with an adult is that they might struggle to carry an umbrella upwards - not o ly would they be wet but they could also hurt other pedestrians.
Except that, no different than adults. As long as the children are not expected to walk with school shoes and light jacket when the adult has wellies and a warm waterproof coat.

Yadnbu

I suspect those saying they can't don't walk when its dry either though.

Usually, yes, but this morning it was fucking torrential and I'm not sorry for driving my kids a mile and a half.

“ As people say - good weather gear is a lot cheaper than running a car.”

The point about cost there is that if you already need and have a car (and plenty of people do, for reasons that I’m sure you will find acceptable) the decent waterproof wet weather gear cost is on top of that.

Now we are people who love going camping and hiking in all sorts of weathers - we have all the gear, including sailing stuff. I don’t need to be persuaded that my children can or should walk to school and back in the rain. But i don’t make a virtue out of it.

My children walk to school (25 min away) I'm on mat leave at the mo but I am lucky that I have flexible working from home when I am at work, so I can manage it. We have a car but my husband takes it to work, I don't see the point in getting another car when we can walk. My children are 4 and 5 and have been doing this walk since the eldest was at nursery. I really think it does them the world of good. They have coats, an umbrella and we put wellies on if it's raining. They don't melt and we don't have expensive gear either. It always amazes me how many people drive their kids to school when they live less than 10 minutes walk away, granted I know many shoot straight off to work, but some are sahms and still hop in the car, just lazy! We actually walk past one house and they leave the same time as we walk past (school is a 10 minute walk from there), they have to drive in the opposite direction to get out the big estate and then get stuck in traffic we arrive at school at the same time as them. Same thing when she drives back I get there at the same time, we wave! She probably pities me walking and I silently judge her driving 😆.

I don't really get the dramas, surely loads of people walk to school/work/whatever come rain or shine?

It's fine to walk to school, you just need to make sure you're appropriately clothed for the weather.

Fine if they have full waterproofs, it was raining so hard here the pavements were flowing, My raincoat only comes to my waist and I was drenched from there down.

@IHateCoronavirus

The rain was bouncing off the road, in my NW town this morning. Yes children in appropriate clothing could walk to school, but many families can’t afford additional rainwear. You do your children, let others make their own decisions for their children.

Yes they can run a car

With the right clothing certainly, and by that I mean warm and waterproof jacket and waterproof trousers or warm puddle suit, plus decent wellies or waterproof boots and a brolly, with a pair of shoes with them to change into at school. Without this no, they'd be soaked and then damp/cold and uncomfortable all day which is hardly conducive to learning is it.

We did it, but only as we were properly attired and I don't have a public facing role where it matters whether my hair looks like I've been electrocuted. Which it did when I got in out of the rain today.

Yes but depends if they can walk alone or if too young where accompanying parent needs to be after.
In DD’s primary class every mother except 1 worked so needed to be at work or logged on asap after dropping.
If it’s 30 mins there most parents don’t have 30 mins time to walk home then start their commute. Much easier chuck kids out enroute and carry on to work.

Loving the idea that people with expensive wet weather gear make do without a car . Does it come with a teleport function for holidays to Cornwall?

We don't have a car and no bus goes to my daughter's school. So if it rains, we get wet!

I drive my lot to school/college when they were younger and if it was tipping down, I'd give them a lift in because walking in the rain to get to work or school is miserable. It also made sure they got there on time and helped avoid meltdowns and was generally just easier all round. For me and them.

My eldest 19, autistic and walks everywhere just fine, in spite of being pampered by lifts for most of his life. My middle one is massively independent and cycles everywhere and my youngest walks home from school unless it's absolutely chucking it down and I'm not in a meeting.

None of them have developed lazyitis, in spite of all the Pearl clutching going on here! And I'm the only fatty amongst us (thanks menopause and arthritis!)

I wouldn't walk in torrential rain to get to work unless I had no choice. Don't see why kids should have to either, as long as they know they need to walk when it's fine we're all good!

It's fine if they are properly clothed but a bit mean if they have to sit in soggy clothes for the rest of the school day.

@Goldbar

Loving the idea that people with expensive wet weather gear make do without a car . Does it come with a teleport function for holidays to Cornwall?

Right!

@Antinerak

Healthy, able children in proper clothing should manage 30 minutes in rain. It's rare that you'd get 30 minutes of terrential, freezing rain so they can manage some drizzle.

Unhealthy, unable students obviously shouldn't be forced to- especially if they have risk of getting ill from the cold or slipping on wet floors.

We had six hours of torrential, cold rain this morning and it's due to be the same every morning this week.

It started around 2/3am and didn't stop raining until around 10am. It's very common for it to be like that here in Autumn/Winter.

@HugeAckmansWife

I think it's great to get kids out in all weathers to play if they can go inside when they're done, get warm and dry in fresh clothes. Sitting around in damp polyester or soaked feet though is a different thing. It's not about being pathetic or wimpy or anything else, why be miseale and gold if you don't have yo?

Exactly.

Being out in the rain in good waterproofs, coming home, stripping off and sitting in a warm room with spare clothes is a very different experience to walking to school in sodden polyester uniform, and then spending six hours in damp clothes with wet feet, then having to walk back home in the pissing rain in wet, cold clothes.

I love walking and regularly do 20-25k steps a day, but I can go home and strip off, have a hot shower and curl up on the sofa under a blanket afterwards. Kids can't do that at school.

@MiloAndEddie

I guess they can but tbh as an adult I’d bloody hate it. Wet feet/tights/legs/hair (because hoods never fit!) is miserable. Plus it was windy as hell here this morning and my umbrella turned inside out

Waterproof walking shoes stops me getting wet feet, waterproof overtrousers (cost about £12 from Black's about 10 years ago, you could probably get similar from somewhere like Mountain Warehouse) stops me getting wet legs, and a decent raincoat with a peaked hood which I can tighten to fit stops me getting wet hair. I add an umbrella if it's not too windy.

They can, but if it’s uncomfortable and unnecessary then why do it unless they want to?

YANBU. Mine walks to school and back every day regardless of the weather. We stay in Glasgow, if you don’t walk in the rain you’d never be out the house 🙂

I understand though that everyone has different circumstances and many parents drop their kids to school on the way to work etc in which case walking in doesn’t really make sense.

Waterproof walking shoes stops me getting wet feet, waterproof overtrousers (cost about £12 from Black's about 10 years ago, you could probably get similar from somewhere like Mountain Warehouse) stops me getting wet legs, and a decent raincoat with a peaked hood which I can tighten to fit stops me getting wet hair. I add an umbrella if it's not too windy.

But most schools (especially secondaries) have nowhere for kids to store all that stuff. So they have to cart it around all day, it has no chance of drying, and if it's raining on the way home, they have to get dressed back into damp, cold, smelly waterproof clothes that have been stuffed in an old carrier bag for six hours.

We live at the top of a hill, school is at the bottom of it. The roads and paths were flowing water like a stream. An umbrella or hood would not have stopped soaking wet shoes, socks and trousers. Every passing car threw up a splash onto the pavement.
Our secondary school has no lockers so students have to carry everything around all day. They have nowhere to store spare clothes or shoes, nowhere to put soggy coats.
Yes my son could have walked to school, but then he would have had to sit in soaking clothes all day and carry a large soaking coat, along with everything else. Why would I make him do that if I could give him a lift and let him have a comfortable day? If there was no alternative he would have had to do it, but I don’t understand why anyone wouldn’t make life nicer for their dc if they can?

I used to walk 27 miles to school in the rain, in my day. No shoes or coat and swim across a small river, scale a ravine and fight off wild dogs. Kids these days don't know they're born.

I walked to school 40 mins each way from 11-16, the only waterproof thing I had was an umbrella (school coats were wool). We all survived. If you can't afford a £5 umbrella and £20 jacket for your kids (cheaper from charity shop) I doubt you can afford petrol