what do you think if 10 years old girl and 8 years old boy get the bus and go home after school?

[kamanmama]

Hi All, my children are 10 years old and 8 years old. Every day I finish my part time work at 12:30, and wait their school to finish until 3:15. My girl is year 6 now, so she can off school by herself and pick up her brother in year 4 as well. everyday I just wait them in bus stop at 3:30. I wait outside 3 hours everyday after finish my part time job. if I back home and come back to their school, it take 1hour and half. That’s why I wait outside. Recently, I see many year 6 students, they take the bus by themselves. I just think can I do the same? I will give my girl a mobile, ask her to call me when they nearly get off the bus, and will pick them up at the bus stop at my home town. Is it sounds alright? Is do so, do I need to prepare anything for them? Like zip oyster card? Or they can just get in the bus by themselves?

My kids 11 and 9 get a taxi home from school, I have another little one who goes to special needs school. Is school bus is unpredictable so I never really know when he will come home could be between 3.05 and 4.05 which it has come at 3 and 2.30 before. Due to sickness of a driver. I can’t be at 2 places at once. It’s impossible

You can’t opt out of parenting because it’s inconvenient. Goto the library while you wait, volunteer at the school, do your online admin or whatever. You have many options that aren’t sitting in a bus stop! 8 is far too young to go home from school especially in London!

There is no way the school would allow that.

You do realise school policy is meaningless it's up to you as a parent.

Nothing to do with a school all they could do is report to social services who would have no issues.

Hard no. Too many predators.

well i wouldnt chance it i think think there to young and not responsible at this age the children must come first xx

@DragonFly98 Well your average U.K. family abides by school rules and they will not allow this. They are not going to release an 8 year old into the care of a 10 year old as they’re scared for the repercussions.

I have a year 4 and year 8. They won’t let an older sibling in primary to collect a primary child. But year 5 and year 6 can walk home themselves. However a child, whatever age can be picked up by a year 7. I have seen year 7 picking up 4 year olds.

I think it’s just whatever the school policy is.

I have put down my secondary child as one of the people who can pick up my younger one on the school consent form too.

My childrens’ school wouldn’t allow the 10 year old to take the 8 year old home. Their policy is that children can go home alone from mid way through Year 5, but anyone younger than that needs to be collected by someone over the age of 16. Is the bus stop the only place you can wait for them? Can you go to a library, or for a walk?

If it's a dedicated school bus that's absolutely fine. Only you know what your area is like and if you should go ahead with public transport.

No they don't parents do as they see fit and a school cannot legally keep a child against parents wishes.

I would not allow this if they were my children

That's the best thing with my daughter even though she has a phone (she is 12 now & in secondary) sometimes she forgets to charge it, leaves it at home etc but she has known my num since year 4 (when they are allowed with parents permission to come home on their own) lots of times she has had to ring me from another mobile it's definitely important to drum your num into their heads, they will be able to remember it. But I think the kids will be fine on bus, the eldest in less than a year will be expected to get a bus by. herself to secondary school which is probably a longer journey 🤷 and the 8yo must be sensible or the mum wouldn't be considering it I'm sure x

I would check with the school. It varies what age/year group are allowed to walk home.

I’d say that it was perfectly acceptable - and to be encouraged even

Absolutely not.

I am so surprised at the number of people who say they’d let a 10 yr old and an 8 yr old be out by themselves in a school uniform. Have you not realised that the world is full of wrongens who love to do the worst thing to ever happen to a child?
My eldest will be 10 in April and they don’t leave my sight. I’d kill whomever tried to take/abuse my children. 10 is too young to be out without a parent/guardian. Our job is to keep our children safe.

absolutely it doesn’t matter where you live or where the school is i live in a decent area but have had warnings in the past of a white van etc hanging around the local schools so beware i would not trust my kids to come home or go to school on there own at this age they are to precious

I started getting a bus to and from school when I'd just turned eleven. The school would be fine with a Y6 doing this but I'm not sure about being able to take a sibling. What I did was to get a friend to take them so far. If you found someone to put them on the bus you'd probably be fine.

I used to go home for lunch from primary school! Looking back I find this quite shocking but it was quite normal then.

On Monday tell them to walk ahead and pretend you’re not there… get them to walk to bus stop and get on bus and do everything themselves… see how they cope and go @from there.
our junior school doesn’t see who kids go to after school, they’re just let out. So
does school just let your two walk out or do they only let them out when they see parent?

A year 6 will not be able to take out a younger sibling unless a parent is present. They are not old or mature enough to take care of the younger child. 10 is still very young.

so many bad people about it shocks me that you would let this happen

They don’t leave your sight? That’s a bit extreme, is it not? Your job as a parent is to help them grow into independent adults.