How old to walk to school on their own?

[user1498647726]

Firstly,and I can not be too clear on this,I'm merely asking out of ignorance and am not judging.
I'm asking as when I was walking the dog this morning I saw a boy who(though I am rubbish at guessing ages)was about eight. He was on his own, school from uniform is about a 12-15 minute walk away,and we're in a small town.
Just interested in other people's experiences and knowledge.

I live in a country where the kids walk to school on their own from when they start. So 6 years old. There are some extra things put in place like adults on crossing points in the darker months and walking co-ops formed.

It took a bit of getting used too and i'm sure I will find it hard when my LO starts school next year but i think its lovely that they can be trusted to have this independance and it clearly works as the whole country does it.

At our school from reception to year 4 parents have to walk their child to and from school. But years 5 and 6 can make their own ways with parental permission. So about 9/10 years old?

My dd won't as i'll have to walk her little brother to school, so she'll start travelling back herself when she goes to secondary school.

I think as long as the parent is confident in their childs common sense and safety awareness there's not a problem.

DDs school rule is y5, so that's age nine at the very minimum. I personally think it depends on so many factors that there's no right or wrong answer.

Also there's the question of cultural acceptability, in some countries it's the norm for really quite young children to walk themselves to school. I live in a very MC area with lots of SAHMs, it's not unusual for children here to be walked all the way to school right up until the end of primary, whereas in a different kind of area with more parents out at work I'd guess more children make their own way to school.

Depends where you live.
Our county suggests y5 (age 9-10) but most kids that age will already have experience going to the local shop/park/friend's house on their own.

Depends where you live and if the school has rules about it. DD walks by herself at 6 years old (I asked the teacher first if it was allowed), one of her friends also walks alone sometimes (I think the days when mum works later so there's no one home to get him) but other times with his mum but I don't think anyone else in their class does yet (half the class come in the school taxi bus anyway) but by the next year much more will be walking alone or with friends (or cycling, most children seem to cycle to school in my town) with just the ones who live further away getting picked up by parents or sometimes in bad weather you see a few more cars.

I think the norm in the UK seems to be around year 5 or 6. DS's school allows it for all of KS2 (year 3 and up) but year 3 would have been too young for him as it's a 20 minute walk with a few roads to cross. He's just started year 5 and will be making his own way to and from school a couple of days a week.
At his old school, it was more common for kids to get themselves to and from school but it was on a housing estate where most of the kids lived so fewer roads to cross etc.

I walk my 6yr old to the end of our road and he goes the rest of way to school himself and I go the other direction into work. His road to cross has a crossing patrol and its max 4min walk to school gates. He doesn't walk home alone.

Our school doesn't have a strict guideline.

Thanks for the replies;it's amazing all the little things you've never thought of when you know you'll need to know this stuff in 8 or 9 years!;s

Once your time comes, you will be able to find out what the school allows (some are quite strict, for responsibility and insurance reasons), you will hear what the other mums do, and most of all you will know your own child's capabilities and be able to make a risk assessment of your own particular area.