Would you leave 14yo alone in the country for one night?

[iloveapplesandcakes]

Single parent here, no family around here, no support network.

DC is 14, very sensible. They'd go to school, I fly out at lunch time, they come back home, reheat dinner, stay overnight and go to school in the morning, I return home before they are back from school, I'd be away for about 30 hours. DC is happy with this idea, they can manage. I'm concerned about emergency situation. I badly need to go to help a close relative abroad. Can't take DC with me for a number of reasons, mainly school but also family issue which is the reason for need to travel.

Voting:
AIBU: I wouldn't leave DC alone, no matter how sensible they are.
YANBU: it's ok for DC to stay for 30h alone given desperate circumstances.

As long as he had the phone number of someone for emergencies (a school friend’s parent or similar), I’d do it quite happily.

Take him with you and leave him in the hotel while you’re out during the day sorting the crisis out. School can wait. It’s not a GCSE year. You’d never forgive yourself if something happened to him.

No, not a chance. You say there is no family so where does he go if he needs help in an emergency? Who consents if he needs medical treatment? Who notices if he doesn't come home from school and reports him missing. I'm usually all for promoting a teens independence but leaving a 14 year old alone whilst you go to another country is madness.

Hope all went well op?

I thought about this thread when I saw the news about the fire at Heathrow. 🤔 Still a No from me.
What did you fo OP?

Hi op, glad you’re sorted now
Re comment “ don’t have guts to ask” for future…
do ask, pluck up guts… most people, particularly single mums or even duel working parents would be fine , or a retired neighbour like me, and actually if like me take it as a chance to “ bank goodwill “. In other words Do the favour so they can call on you in such an emergency

we all need those friends -even if we don’t socialise with him, whatever our age . You don’t know when you’ll need emergency help till too late . This is a warning really, you’ve got a backup plan in place now , but you don’t know what’s round the corner

when we leave school we forget as “adults “ how to make friends. It all gets so complex, yet most of us welcome all and any friends we can get.

hen this crisis settles, look for a couple of families your daughter could tolerate , and then grow those relationships - what’s worse that will happen? They say no. You move to someone else

your daughter could have stayed on her own in your house with emergency contact down the road she could rely on if issues . It’s a reasonably not demanding ask of someone , but you need to build that relationship first by smaller favours.

Missed the part that OP is taking dc with her.
🤦‍♀️

Hope all worked out on the trip.