What age did YOU walk to school by yourself?

[StripeyKnickersSpottySocks]

Just interested how much things have changed.

I was 5 or 6 and that was in the early 1980s.

I was five, and it was a long way.

To be fair on my mum, she thought my 15yo sister was taking me and collecting me.

I was 6. (1976) suburb of Newcastle.

Do you know ther is a bunch of 7/8 year old girls round here whose sole game seems to consist of screaming really loudly and shrilly.

I did actually go out and explain to them once why it was a really crap game (ie from a 'cry wolf' angle, rather than ''it's really getting on my tits and I may have to throw a bucket of water over you to stop you'' sort of way.)

They really didn't get it though

And what WAS your sister doing, Scienceteacher?

Six - in a small village in the '70s.

11

School coach to primary school till then

7 years old (late '70s). It was only across the road though.

At secondary school age I walked a mile and a half to catch the school bus, and back again in the evening, and not in a very nice area either. Seemed normal then to do that.

Actually I do agree with Wisteria, it does depend on the child, their degree of road sense and awareness and actually we never had park wardens. I remember stopping in the park on the way back to the CM's and it was completely deserted and getting dark.
Of course you had to watch out for the FLASHER!

6 in the 70s

about 8

(I lived directly opposite school, and my mum would watch me cross road from the drive way!)

then 11 'properly' when i went to secondary school

Travelled home by bus from age of 9/10.

9 i think.

but we live on busy road so cant imagine letting my dc do it any time soon.

when school was really near the house i used to walk to infants with my big brother who was in juniors and that was from age 4...

but then later we moved house and school and my parents drove us to/from school for all of infants/juniors.

started getting the bus/es across the borough when we started secondary school, so 11.

primary school too far, but i was allowed to walk or cycle to the shop (1 mile away, no pavements but quiet) at 9.

Mum says she was terrified as it was the same year Genette Tate died - she said she coudln't get the picture of her bicycle in the middle of the road with the wheel still spinning out of her head.

walked to Junior school from about the 2nd year, but it was about 100 metres from home, and then middle school was next door.
So I walked to school 'alone' from about 6-7 years old maybe.

Walked to school when about 8 but my mum would walk me half way and then watch me walk the rest of the way, went on my own properly from 10 when I went to secondary school but it was only a short walk. My daugher walked to school the other day on her own she is nearly 7 but it was a matter of watching her from the corner and she only had about 100 yards to go on her own to the school gate. Didn't have a choice though as I was waiting for a central heating man to come so I had to watch the house as well as her. She is also very grown up for her age, unlike her 4 year old sister!!!

I have the same attitude as Wisteria - glad I'm not alone!

I walked to school from age 5 (ie from the start) - this was in the mid 60s. The following year I also had my brother (age 4) with me. It was about a 5 minute walk, with one minor road and then a major road with a Lollipop man to cross. This was in a (posh) suburb of Glasgow,

From age 8 I was taking a train into Glasgow plus a ten minute walk (including up a secluded lane) in the evening (so in winter, in the dark) to go to my ballet lessons.

Ds (age 7) has just started occasionally walking to school on his own. 10 minute walk, with one relatively busy crossing (but which has a lollipop man usually there - becasue ds goes to breakfast club, it's actually officially beofre the lollipop man starts) and a couple of minor crossings. At the moment we are still "spying" on ds as he walks - much to his irritation! He has a good traffic sense, which we trained in to him from as soon as he could walk, eg I always get him to decide when it is safe to crss the road whenever I am walking with him.

I trust my 11yr old to cross a road far more than my 14yr old truth be told but I can't really keep her in... well I could, but life really wouldn't be worth living and I'd be assailed with crap music from dawn til dusk .

I put my trust in her mates to keep her feet on the ground if I'm honest and the ad with the teenagers on their mobiles freaks me out completely so we had compulsory viewing of that for a while.

Unfortunately they are either born sensible or not IMO so need to gain experience somehow and that is by learning lessons themselves ultimately.

For the screaming one I have always taught my girls to shout 'fire' and help as that usually provokes a reaction more than screaming...we have teenagers outside here a lot but if one of them screams and I am unsure I always go and check they're ok. They usually look a bit sheepish but I can honestly say that none of them have ever given me abuse - the fear people have of teenagers is far worse than the reality of talking to them IME.

My sister and I walked aged 5 and 6 in the early 70's but there was a nice lollipop man to help us cross the busy road. Do they still have them nowadays? Here in Berlin I don't let mine go alone because even at the traffic light crossing the mad crazy drivers don't always stop.

My school was quite far so we were walked till we were about 10, then the head master told my mum we'd have to start coming by ourselves or did she intend to still walk us to secondary school.

I was 10 when I used to travel on the Piccadilly line from Sudbury Town station to Ealing Broadway and then walk from there to my school by myself. I'm 41 now!

5 - late 70's (then moved to saudi for a couple of years and had a driver so no one would steal me - they wouldn't have kept me for long!!)

8, it was a 5 minute walk down a couple of residential roads. Aged 10 we moved a bus ride away and I did that alone. Sometimes a group of us saved up our 4p bus fares to buy sweets and walked home together, it took about 30 minutes along a couple of pretty busy roads. One time we had seen a 'stranger danger' film at school and laughed all the way home about how silly it had seemed.
Aye those were t'days.
Staggers off to polish zimmer frame.