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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

AIBU to think a seven-year-old going alone to restaurant toilets is unsafe?

154 replies

MountainBiker · 07/08/2026 19:47

Central London chain restaurant. Small 7 year old on the next table (definitely 7, she had a badge and a birthday balloon tied to the back of her chair) went off to the toilet on her own.
Toilets were out of sight, downstairs, in a corridor of floor to ceiling unisex cubicles.
Am I a helicopter parent or do most people think this is unsafe?
YABU: kids should be able to cope with this by age 7
YANBU: more supervision is required

OP posts:
SomeOtherUser · 09/08/2026 15:01

Borderline. Around age 8 felt right for us. It would depend on the layout, how familiar I was with the place, and the child in question though.

JoB1kenobi · 09/08/2026 16:20

My kids (DD 9 and DD7) go alone now. But we’re suburb of Bham. I have been to some sketchy unisex toilets in central London, I wasn’t happy being in them myself alone. I think I’d have to be comfortable with the place and area.

Mamabear8864 · 10/08/2026 20:48

The worst case scenario- there’s a bloke who assaults her or takes her off or someone hurting her- like the guy throwing someone off the Tate. The chances of this happening- very unlikely. A little boy went into men’s toilet alone and his mum was outside and he got assaulted by a man near me recently.

Its all very much the worse case Scenario and likely would never happen, but so thought Madeline McCanns parents.

MandemChickenShop · 10/08/2026 20:55

I think it would be fine to be honest

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