Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Parenting

For free parenting resources please check out the Early Years Alliance's Family Corner.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

Ho wold were your children when you let them bathe unsupervised?

31 replies

xoz · 14/12/2004 20:49

I'm curious to know how old people think children need to be before it's okay to leave them in the bath. We have 2 dd's aged 4 and 2, and they usually bathe together. dh doesn't think they need to be watched any more but I'm not so sure. What is your experience?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

heavenlyghost · 14/12/2004 20:53

DS was 3 when we would leave him in the bath unsupervised, but the house we lived in had the bathroom right next to the kitchen and dining room so with the door open I could see him and hear him while I was cooking dinner.
If I was in a 'normal' english type house with the bathroom upstairs I wouldn't leave him even now (and he is 5).
There was a terrible story in the NZ news a while back where a woman left her 3 year old in the bath and went to lie down on her bed. She fell asleep and woke up half an hour later to find her son drowned in the bath .
I really wouldn't leave a 4 year old and a 2 year old in the bath unsupervised ...

MiaouyChristmas · 14/12/2004 21:05

I think my two were 4 or 5 before I left them in the bath by themselves. That said, we live in a bungalow and our living room is directly opposite the bathroom. They are now 6 and 7 and I'm only just comfortable leaving them in a bath when it's upstairs and I'm downstairs (eg at my mums) - and I insist they leave the door open!

SnowmAngeliz · 14/12/2004 21:14

My dd is 3.10 and i will put clothes away, tidy up in the next room sometimes as she is ALWAYS chatting or singing.
IF she stops, i go straight in.
I only mean for a few minutes though, wouldn't leave her for ages...

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about these subjects:

Families General parenting

prufRockingAroundtheXmasTree · 14/12/2004 21:19

It does depend where you are. DD is only 2.7, but I will leave her in the bath by herself whilst I bf ds in the room on the other side of the corridor, but I wouldn't dream of going downstairs

Hulababy · 14/12/2004 21:21

DD is 2y 8m but I have never thought of leaving her in the bath alone yet at all.

noddyholder · 14/12/2004 21:22

about 6ish

kid · 14/12/2004 21:26

My DD is 5.11 and my DS is 2.8.
I leave either of them in the bath if I am in the next room putting clothes away or tidying their bedrooms. But I'd never go downstairs and leave either of them. If when I am out of the bathroom, one of the goes quiet. I call their name and they reply 'I'm ok mummy!'

Caligulights · 14/12/2004 21:44

I do like Kid and Angeliz, and potter about within hearing distance. If I do go downstairs, it's to put the kettle on/ stir something very quickly, and then straight back upstairs again - so no longer than 2 minutes absolute maximum.

Children do need to be kept half an eye on until they're quite old I think.

miggy · 14/12/2004 22:01

mrs paranoid here-i'd say 7-have only just started letting ds2 bath on his own, and will only let dd bath alone (nearly 6) if ds2 is willing to watch her.
I worry about them slipping on the way out and hitting their heads
sorry!

wrapmefestively · 14/12/2004 22:11

I leave my 2.5 year old whilst I walk along the landing (upstairs) to fetch a towel etc ...but wouldn't leave her for more than 60 seconds. She seems so competent in the bath - but I am baseing my cautious approach on what I have observed when I take her swimming.

The other week we were in 12 inches of water in the toddler pool (so only just above waist height for her) and she lost her footing and fell head first into the water. I expected her to right herself and get up because she wasn't even close to being out of her depth - but she just kept floundering about and flapping her arms whilst her face was submerged under water. She obviously panicked and needed me to 'rescue' her. This could happen in the bath...

merrymarthamoo · 14/12/2004 22:17

Rospa says that no child under 5 should be left unattended in the bath. I found this about it (it's not the bat, I promise!)

I bath my two (7 and 3) together and never leave them unattended as ds2 is a nutcase. I don't really have any reason to leave them in the bath, though - I wash their hair etc. so need to be there (and I wouldn't let them get in and out by themselves in case they slipped)

codswallop · 14/12/2004 22:17

I leave my big two

blossomgoodwill · 14/12/2004 22:19

My 2 are 5 and 7 and I do leave them upstairs in the bath but I always listen out for them and pop up and down. They have such fun that I'd know soemthing was wrong if it went quiet as they make such a racket!!!!

Caligulights · 14/12/2004 22:21

God MMM that's a salutory tale.

turquey · 14/12/2004 22:23

I left mine pretty much to it (but kept an ear out and was around) by the time they were about 6 and 3. Now they bath seperately and I tend to hang about doing stuff nearby while dd (6) is bathing. Ds is nearly 10 I'm sorry to say I frequently completely forget about him when he's in there now

marialuisa · 15/12/2004 09:47

Depends what you mean by "unsupervised" I have left DD on her own in the bath for growing periods of time since she was 18m. now she's 3y 9m and we lave her for 15 mins or so. But she sings and chats away all the time so if the noise stops one of us calls to her or pops our head round the door. still won't go into the garden or something though.

wrapmefestively · 15/12/2004 09:52

But what about the swimming pool scenario that I described Marialuisa - are you confident regarding your child in this situation?

littlemissbossy · 15/12/2004 09:57

I never leave ds, aged 4 and my other two boys were at least 6 (I think) before I left them. It only take a few seconds for children to drown.

sparklymieow · 15/12/2004 10:06

I don't leave any of my kids, DS is nearly 7, but that is because of the CP, and he can't balance right anyway, and with DD1, I wouldn't dare leave her, also because of the CP, and DD2is 3 now, butbecause they all bath together I just stay in the room. What age should DS bath by himself (with me supervising) He enjoys bathing with his sisters, but now he is getting older, I am thinking that he shouldn't!

eefs · 15/12/2004 10:10

wrapmefestively - same thing happened us - I was in the toddler pool watching ds1 walk towards me - the water is only up to his waist. He stumbled a few inches from me and I waited for him to get back up. It was scary to realise how helpless he was, he didn't seem to know what to do and just floundered head down under the water until I picked him up. He was pretty scared after that.

I'd never leave DS2 (1 yr) alone but let DS1 play in the bath alone. I usually start him singing so I can hear him. and use it as time to tidy up the bedrooms.

DoesntTurkeySoupDragOn · 15/12/2004 10:10

I've only recently started leaving ds1 who's 5 in the bath alone whilst I get his little brother into his pyjamas - so I am not far away -nor would I go downstairs and leave him.

I never leave my 3 yr old unsupervised - he's the type of child who will do dangerous things like trying to stand on the side of the bath and jump in

wrapmefestively · 15/12/2004 10:35

Eefs

You don't realise how vulnerable they still are until they do something like this do you?

Caligulights · 15/12/2004 10:46

This thread has made me reassess whether I'm careful enough about the bath. I think I am, but it's reinforced how important it is not to have a lapse of concentration. xoz, thanks for starting it and I think the overall consensus is that your DH is very wrong about supervision and you're right.

marialuisa · 15/12/2004 10:55

She's 3.9y though Wrapmefestively so she's fully able to understand that she only stands up in the bath if there's a grown-up in the room. i'm afraid she's one of those kids that MNers love to hate, very rule bound, if we say "no" that's it and she's always been like this.

Also I don't put 12 inches of water in her bath (think it only takes 2 inches to drown though), but on balance the likelihood of any harm befalling her is miniscule. Swimming pools are very different anyway.

marialuisa · 15/12/2004 10:56

Also DD swims confidently without floats/armbands so if she stumbles she jsut does a few strokes under water and pops back up making funny faces.

Flip

1 2

Swipe left for the next trending thread