Do you let your children play out?

[FireOverBabylon]

I've just been reading this report on the BBC website. I know that I certainly played out as a child, but we lived in a long cul de sac so you could see cars coming and all cars were parked on drives rather than in the road.

My DS isn't old enough to play out yet but I'm aware I generally don't see children playing out in the street. You hear them from their gardens but they don't ride bikes up the roads etc.

Do you let your children play out? If so, what sort of road do you live in and how old were they when you let them out? What restrictions, if any do you put in place e.g. not being out of sight of the house?

TIA

Mine play out in the culdesac outside, in our or the neighbours' gardens or in the park down the road. They take a mobile with them and "check in" every half hour - they are girls ,10 and 11 and have done this since 8 and 9

They have played out in the culdesac or neighbours' since school age..

I did yes. I lived in a cul de sac when they were small, they started playing out at about 6 ish on the front and were allowed more freedom as they got older.

Mine play on their bikes out in our cul de sac, but i ( or a neighbour) always stand out with them to check for cars.

Yep, she's been out since she was 3, with varying degrees of supervision as was appropriate at the time.

Sorry but my eldest is 9 and he doesn't. I would be scared of road accident or child abduction (I realise even typing that makes me sound like a loon but remember Soham?) I also come from an area where the kids who play out smoke, drink and commit crime so no chance!

I live on a scheme and the kids don't do that!

I live on a council estate and I've never seen little kids smoking and drinking

Yes, mine do. We also live in a cul de sac. I used to sit out and watch them, but I can't remember when I stopped doing this. About age 6 or so? We used to have a rule about not going beyond the speed bump, so that they were always in view.

Mine had to be within yelling distance

Yup. We live opposite a park (as in it is directly opposite our house) my kids virtually live there. The down side is we live opposite the gate of the park and seem to find an inordinate amount of loose or stray dogs, mostly JRTs. My children always bring them home so I can go and find the owner. I got shouted at once for trying to steal someone's dog . Dd1 told me she stopped it just before it ran out of the other gate and onto the main bus route. She didn't see anyone chasing or shouting it, so she brought it home before it got ran over.

We live in a no through road and there are lots of children here who play out. They have done since they were 3 or 4. I used to see their parents out occasionally but not all the time, and they don't supervise at all now that the youngest ones are about 5 or 6.

I remember playing out in the cul de sac where I lived, I must have been around 3 because we moved when I was 4.

DS is 3 and doesn't play out yet but I do let him go up and down on his scooter while I'm gardening (we don't have front gardens, just a flower bed between the house and the pavement).

All the kids play out in our cul de sac, my two are only 3 so I let them join in with me or DH supervising. All of the parents keep an eye out for cars - the kids under 8ish are always supervised, albeit in a more relaxed way the older they get and more road aware they become. We are lucky as it is fairly quiet, I would hate to keep my kids in as I remember playing out and loving it.

Yes, I have a just turned 7 year old and a 4 year old - they've played out this summer. There is a car park courtyard at the back of all the houses and most of the children play there or at the "green" - its a newish housing development. They all have bikes/scooters/hula hoops/skipping ropes etc.

I can see them most of the time and hear them all of the time

Yes I let mine play out. I think it's VERY sad for the kids who don't.

I was listening to the debate on LBC radio this morning and I completely agree with the following sentiment: there is an element of selfishness in parents who don't let their children play out because they are putting their own paranoia above their children's development and freedom.

I let DD play out. Have been flamed on her as shes only 3.5 but its a quiet cul de sac, not many cars, and as there is usually a large group out cars that do come down are very slow.

She has taken to the little girl next door who is 4 so they tend to be in our garden or her garden. Tbh I have to fight my every instinct to let her out, but she really needs the interaction. I can hear her if I cant see her and if all goes quiet Im straight out.

Also, IMO how can she learn independance and how to be trust worthy if I dont let her out!

We live in a cul de sac of 6 houses and I let my 3 year old and 6 year old play out. Neighbours are all great with them. we have one of these and its really good

Having been kidnapped by a pervert and dumped in a disused garage, st the age of 4' I am selfish enough not to let my DS play outside.

Yes. Absolutely - otherwise I'D go insane!! But, we live on a farm in the middle of nowhere so they can go anywhere they like pretty much. I guess I'd still let them out if we lived in a cul de sac or somewhere like an estate where they was some 'playing' space. We always went out as kids, no phones etc.. had to be back by dusk.

We live on a busy main road by a traffic light junction with few children nearby, so, no, they don't play out (7 and 4). We went camping at the weekend though and it was great to give them more freedom to roam. They went to the play area by themselves etc. Sometimes it is more about location than paranoia.

nuttyprofessor.

Sorry to hear that nuttyprofessor, but thankfully being kidnapped is extremely rare.

My just 6yo DD very occasionnally plays out. Only if DS (3yo) is not around (napping or with DH/GPs) as he begs to join her and is far too young and unreliable to do so. Tbh I don't particularly feel comfortable letting DD out, but do so if she is with older neighbour children, and if she stays very near to house. She is relatively responsible.

I can't see the road from my house (tall hedge), it is a through road (albeit a small/fairly quiet one) and there are parked cars everywhere. I can hear the kids easily though. Most of my mum friends think I'm mad to let her out, and don't let their own 6yos out.

Its very difficult to compare our childhood freedom with our DCs. There are SO many more cars nowadays - when I was little it was 1 car per family max, now its 2 or 3, parked all over the place. When my DM was small they used to go and play down the local river with their slightly older siblings from 2yo!

Yes my two girls do. They are 8 and 5. We're lucky that we live on the edge of a rural market town / large village, and our road goes nowhere. Children play out all the time so the locals know to drive slowly. It also has the added benefits of being a modernish road (about 20 years old), so there are natural curves in the road, and therefore no opportunity for cars to get up speed. I also live inbetween two speed bumps, and my daughters are well versed on the green cross code (Youngest is not allowed to cross the road without me watching anyway).

I only let my youngest out with my eldest and her group of friends. They ride their bikes / scooters out the front and they go to park (about a minute or so walk from my house). They have a mobile phone which they take with them when they go.

I also allow my eldest to cycle into the village (other end) to buy things at the local shop - that takes about 20 mins and is along quite a busy road. We have only just started letting her do this.

I think I like the contintental philosophy of allowing children more freedom but teaching them road safety from an early age. I think it does make children more responsible, and certainly whenever my DDs have been out, I have been impressed with their common sense and maturity. But, I had a lot more freedom as a child and knew I wanted my children to have freedom and be independent too, so I have been talking to them about road safety, stranger danger, and preparing them for playing out since they were little, about 3 years old maybe? I also moved to an area where this was possible (and it was one of the major factors in us choosing the house we bought).

I let my eldest child play out when she was school age and I wish I never. We lived in a cul-de-sac in quite a rough/deprived area. I found a lot of the other kids that played out were only out because they were under their mum's feet and only allowed back in the house for drinks/meals. We had terrible problems with DD being hurt, arguments, stones being thrown, things stolen, parents shouting the the street about their kids. It was horrible. We have now moved and I don't let my youngest 3 play out without me supervising them. There is a 4 yr old across the road who just lets herself out the front door. Last week she was bare foot playing in the street at 7.50am whilst the bin lorry was in the road! It wasn't a one off - her parents just let her out when she pleases.