Saw a child with mum trick or treating at 11:20pm (school night here)

[fmla]

I was about to go to bed. Noticed outside was a girl aged 5-7 wearing a Halloween outfit with several of those one off glow necklaces (that made me draw attention to begin with) with her mum. They were going to paths to houses and knocked on a couple of doors.

Who in their right minds will answer the door that time of night, unless you are expecting it - member of household returning back from work etc or ordering that very late takeout delivery?

Half term was last week here. It's not acceptable for a young child to be out that time plus some of the streetlights switch off at 11pm. It doesn't matter if its half term or not,

If the mum was working until, say 9pm, then she should arrange with DD's friends' parents to go round with them. If that is the case that she finished work, who looked after DD after school?

Why? Especially on Halloween. Even if it wasn’t on Halloween it takes no more than a “huh how weird” and then you move on with your life. Not sure why everything occupies so much headspace on here.

Sorry what's the precise welfare issue of a parent enjoying time with their child on Halloween during half term?

Okay but I was clearly replying to “Imagine you are in ed or elderly, a knock T that time would be scary” from the PP.

It is ridiculous but she might be homeschooled.

However yeah at that time of the night it's absolutely ridiculous.

If you read my OP its was half term last week here. So today schools are open for teaching.

They might be, they might not be and we will never know but the point of the thread is to spark a discussion as to what people find reasonable and for that we need to make some assumptions to go along with our points. Obviously the specific facts and circumstances will result in a different final conclusion but if we can’t comment without knowing them then the thread is pointless and no-one should be commenting

ALL the schools here and in the county had half term last week. The nearest village in a different county to me and are on half term this week is about 18 miles away.

There's many a drip feed on mumsnet but this isn't one of them. I suspect OP didn't expect for so many to find every tiny little excuse imaginable as to why this wasn't inconsiderate behaviour.

Even if she got this wrong, this stuff does happen so it's not a massive reach to assume these people were strangers. Apparently it's absolutely fine to disturb others late at night though if you have your reasons for doing so 🙄

I think it is an unusual thing to do, which is why my first thought wouldn't be terrible mother and awful behaviour disturbing people so late, more I wonder what that's about and if maybe she might need help.

I'm not saying I'd go and offer it, but I'd be thinking she must have her reasons.

Ok so the child had one late night.
Is that a long term welfare issue?

It'll blow your mind that in decades past parents were able to take their kids on holiday at any time during term time and in spite of this, children still left school with a higher standard of education than they have now.

Rules and regulations don't add up to increased success. It's apparent all around you in adult life.

Quality time with a parent/s is the oil of a child's future potential.

They didn't knock on OP's door, and OP has not suggested that anyone has mentioned to her that they were disturbed by them. She decided to watch a Mum and daughter out of her window and from that vantage point saw them approach a house or two and drew inferences about what was going on, then came here to judge the situation. It's quite a weird thing to do.

Because you don't personally like the idea doesn't mean others don't.

MN is frequented by people who take parenting far too seriously. It's these people who are the awful parents.

Read your post again and take in the intolerance in the words.

That's the intolerance your teaching your kids.

MN cultists are awful.

Yeah that’s too late.

I always thought trick or treating was about 6-8 pm, so kids would have their dinner first, but people seem to be pushing it forward a lot.

I was surprised to see kids out as early as 5, but read on here about people going at 3. I do think it’s a bit much for people to go that early as it means everyone runs out by the “normal” time.

People were saying “hard finish at 7” which I really don’t get as it gives no time for parents to finish work, get kids fed and outfits on, and then get out!

Most of the schools in our borough had half term last week, including my daughter’s secondary school, except my son’s primary which is this week!

It's not just the mother and child though is it?
If they want to go wandering around at gone eleven at night in the the winter thstsxuo to them
But why go disturbing others at that time ,knocking on peooles doors even at Halloween at that time is not normal or rational ,last ime we got a a knock on the door late at night was to tell us my DH ,estranged Dad had died

💯 agree. Some people lack common sense and decency.

That's terrible. And these people are procreating 🙄

There are 5 primary schools in my area. Four of them have half term on the same week. The other school is a catholic school and for some reason always seem to have school holidays on a different week to the other schools. Also how do you know that the child is not attending a special school that may be a few miles outside your area and that child may be attending one of those which also may have their school holidays on a different week. As some people have said, their child’s half term is this week so it’s not set in stone that every single child has the same week off for half term.

What did she say when you spoke to her about it?

What about the two houses they went to? What did they say?

What have the school said when you told them this morning?

Ah, they left the bowl, least I have that haha

Maybe the mother needs to learn some manners and common decency. Unless it is an emergency nobody should be knocking on a strangers door at that time of night. Stop making excuses for poor behaviour.

There's always one 😂

But if someone's absolutely certain they are right, why wouldn't they say something?!

Why the need to get validation off Internet strangers?

Otherwise it's just pretend concern in a bid to slag someone off behind their back and get everyone else frothed up about it.

She hadn't even asked what she should have done, just straight in there, labelling her the worst parent ever and how she's wrong

The OP doesn't know why the child was out at that time, how come you know?

Stop pretending either you or the OP are genuinely concerned 😂

Same. I’d gone upstairs to bed at 10.45 and the last group started hammering (looked out and it was a group of 5-7 year olds and their parents, who I didn’t recognise). They knocked for ages as well!

I’d say I can’t believe that people are justifying this but it’s MN, so I can.