When to leave dc's alone

[mangosaregreat]

I have 2 dc's, one 15 (who is left alone and gets to school on their own) and one 10 who is taken to school by me and isn't left alone. I was talking to my partner who said younger dc is fine to be left alone if I need to go to the shops or anything. I wouldn't let younger dc walk home from school alone yet as there are roads and if anything happened to them I would never forgive my self. What age did people leave dc's alone? My younger dc is responsible and I'm sure would be fine to leave but it's just me scared to take that step

I don't think it helps to ask others. My eldest is 6 and honestly, she'd be fine with being left. She's very sensible, likes her own company and would just read a book. I don't think that's typical though!

Talk to your child. Ask them how they would feel about it. There's also a difference between being left at home (presumably a safe environment) and crossing big roads alone.

In y6 my son would often go to the park after school with his friends. Friends would then walk home but we live further so he would call me for a lift.
I left him home alone for the odd 15m before this but he us my oldest.
Would you actually be leaving him alone or with his 15yo brother. As long as they get along I think a 15yo is plenty old enough to look after a 10yo for an evening.

i started introducing this when they were 10.

a quick nip to the dr round the corner without them, to the pharmacy or shop, all places I could run back from in an emergency. Also letting them go to the shop by themselves to build confidence which is far scarier than leaving them home alone.

Thing is the need you to show them it’s ok and they can manage perfectly well. If you turn it into a huge deal it will knock their confidence in themselves. It’s your job to teach them to be capable and competent and to believe in themselves

My 14 year old baby sits his 9 and 7 year old brothers if I walk the dog or go to the super market. My 9 year old is left for short periods (20 mins). I never made it a big thing, just said I was popping out to walk the dog and did they want to come. Usual shout is 'don't answer the door or use the oven, and if the house catches fire please leave by the nearest exit, its usually met with a 'yeah, ok mum, bye'.

It depends on the child but my 10 year old has been walking home from school for over a year and Ive left him for about 5 hours on his own before. He knows what to do in an emergency etc and I've laminated phone numbers and put them by the telephone. My 7 year old I would probably be fine but I wouldn't leave him for more than an hour.

DD is 10 and is left alone for up to an hour these days, she loves it. For various reasons out of necessity I had to leave her for about 15mins on occasion during the first lockdown and she was fine with that, and we’ve slowly built since then.

I started leaving my (very level headed) ds at the age of 8 just to pop very quickly to the local shop. Maximum ten minutes.
Now at age 10.5 he's comfortable for 20-30 mins. He doesn't really walk anywhere on his own yet though.
I think a lot more is expected of them at secondary school and a gradual build up to independence is better than nothing, then letting the reins loose all of a sudden.

Mine are 14 and 10.

The 14 yo is left for up to half a day

The 10 yo is left with the 14'yo for about 2 hours

The 10 yo is left alone for about 30-60 mins.

I can leave my sensible 9 year old for 20-30 minutes to nip to the shop . She knows what to do in an emergency. I can also drop her to school and she waits a couple of minutes for her to gate open (she stands with some year 5/6 children she knows ). In contrast some of the kids in her class are never left alone and are held on to their mums until they're in the gate . They wouldnt be trusted to stand for 2 minutes , they'd run off or be too scared on their own. Mum friends with siblings in year 5/6 start to give more independence at this age in prep for big school . Little things at a time . Letting them walk far ahead on their own , leaving them for small periods of time etc

Thank is for for the replies everyone, youngest dc is responsible and I think would be fine to leave on their own for a little while. I think I just need to bite the bullet and do it, I think the problem is it's my last dc and it means they are growing up. Dc is more than happy to be left alone