What age is considered appropriate before a child can do this...

[Poppymayday]

Get themselves home from a local school, let themselves in and stay home alone for an hour or so until adult gets back home?

It's the combination of walking home to an empty house which needs to be older.
Walking home to an adult waiting and expecting them, or staying at home with an adult leaving and returning and knowing where the child is, are both less risk and responsibility for the child than walking home and letting themselves in to an empty house.

i don’t think that’s what people are saying. It’s the combination of walking home and then letting them self into an empty house for an hour is what people are objecting to.
Walking home… could be fine, depending on a number of factors. Being left for short periods, ditto. Walking home, letting themselves in, being at home alone for an hour… not fine.

DS was 10. School is about a 5 min walk away with lots of others walking in the same direction and we're friendly with all the neighbours in our cul de sac, so he could go to them if he needed too.

He's very mature for his age though. If he wasn't so sensible then I would probably have waited until he was older.

DD walked home by herself from 10, but she was too scared to be home alone.

Yes that makes sense thanks. It's something I've been pondering as to when I can leave my 8 year old home alone for short times.
I think they would be fine but all those worst case scenarios fly through my head.

10/11 year 6

Although I'd add to that, we'd left them home before that (from about 8/9) but only if he didn't want to pokemon hunt, which meant we were 5-10 mins walk from home MAX. Mobile number by the phone and DH could have run it in 3-4 mins.

Secondary starts at 11. Unless you’re 3 tier. Middle is 9-13 and high school starts at 13.

This poster already confirmed that they are in Ireland and their kids start Secondary at 12/13.

So we did the walking home thing from y6. I tried the leaving them at home but they didn’t want to be left, even if I was to pop out. Then come the start of y7 in secondary they had no option. Left in the morning for an hour and then at the end of school for an hour as well. I have to leave at 7:15am for work. However dark nights of staring for an after school club I ask them to wait at school til I can collect as I’m not a fan of them walking in the dark. However the winter mornings this winter have been quite dark some days. Also to add, mine can actually get to school purely via a cycle track rather than needing to cross roads. Youngest now detours in y8 to meet friends.

There is no legal age. It depends on the child.

11/12?
My 11.5 DS does this although he’s not normally alone at home, maybe 5/10 minutes if we’re picking up his sister. She’s 8.5 and I wouldn’t like her at home on her own yet. She’s also not allowed to walk home alone until Y6 as school won’t release the younger years on their own!

I'd say Y8.

So you think the parents of children in countries where this is normal practice are poor parents? And the social workers who advise on this and say that it is appropriate are wrong? And the child protection charities that give advice on how to prepare your child from 7 years old how to go home and stay home alone safely are promoting poor parenting? I got a booklet in the post from the national child protection society in my country the summer before my oldest started school, giving this advice and explaining the checklist of things to go through with your child before they start staying home alone with the guideline that 7 year olds can generally manage 60-90 minutes home alone, with the caveat that they must be comfortable with it themselves, that its not ok to leave a child that is unhappy to be left.

Things vary from society to society. In my country the recommendation is that children under 14 shouldn’t be left alone, or at most for very short periods of time.

Starting Secondary school, at least. Children around here aren't allowed to walk home from school without being collected until Y6.

8 is madness.

I don't think most children under 10 are responsible enough to be 'in charge ' of a house. I'd be worried they might decide to make their own food, put the grill on, or whatever. Not lock the front door, leave the keys in it, I don't know...any number of terrifying situations! My friend's daughter came home alone at 14 and found burglars coming down the stairs! Imagine a younger child being faced with that? Or knowing what to do. It doesn't bear thinking about, and personally I'd just never take the risk.

They do vary but the question is why? Because the basic capabilities of children can't vary that much from society to society so why do some expect more from children and others expect less?

I would say around 11.

I don’t really know.

I suppose part of it depends on how safe the society is itself. Where I live the local children don’t walk home because of busy roads and no footpaths, for example.

I do think 7 or 8 is much too young to be left alone, but how much of that is due to social conditioning I can’t say. I don’t think it’s all social conditioning though. I remember reading an article that said that children weren’t safe to cross the road on their own until about 14. This was to do with brain development iirc - they were unable to judge speed /distance accurately or predict the possibility of traffic being just around the corner successfully at a younger age. It did vary depending on the individual child also (and people start having difficulty once again as they age).

Lots of things are built for adult hands too. It’s safer to wait until a certain age before handling kettles and pots of boiling water for example. So child development, both physical and mental is a factor.

In Lebanon the age of marriage for girls is 9, some other countries 13 or puberty. I think we can all agree that is far far far too young. I know that marriage is not like leaving a child at home or allowing them to walk home. But it is an example of what other countries do, which is wrong, just because they do it, it does not make it right. It’s not about expecting more from children or less from children it’s about morally and ethically what is right for the child, and letting them be children safely.

I think 7 or 8 is definitely too young to be letting themselves into an empty house! Or even to walk home from school by themselves.

I leave my 7 year old by herself for 20 minutes while I go to the supermarket. But I know what she's doing and in what kind of mood I am leaving her. Usually she is watching tv or playing on the PlayStation when I'm away. She has strict instructions to not open the door for anyone and where to go in case of fire.

It’s not about expecting more from children or less from children it’s about morally and ethically what is right for the child, and letting them be children safely.

Which I suppose begs the question - why is it morally or ethically wrong for an 8yo to have some independence and at what point does it go from something beneficial to something dangerous?

I mean, if children in Japan can make their way home, do housework and cook dinner at 7/8 without a load of house fires or devastation in their wake, why is it negligent for children in England to be trusted to do something similar?

Mine did this from age 11.

No one 8. I have a sensible 8 year old but she is 8 and can't judge car speeds. Depending on roads needed to cross secondary school age or term before going to secondary school. So 11 ish...

Kids start high school from 11 here.