Would you let a 9 and 12 year old walk to shops alone?

[DinoDinoDinoDino]

Would you let a just turned 9 year old and 12 year old go to the shops alone (obviously 12 year old can) but with a 9 year old? Shop says it’s 0.2 miles away, but it’s London and crossing 2 residential and one main road with a bus that comes down (thats the road thats got me questioning it)

If your 9 year old child can’t take a 5 minute walk with their 12 year old sibling then that’s pretty sad.
Of course they can do it!

Let them go. I presume you’ve taught them how to use road crossings etc? At 9, they should be able to move much longer distances without an adult to hold their hand.

Yes of course I would.

Yeah I have as I said it’s the main road bothering me as it’s a corner with a bus that comes round it’s a bit of a blind spot. I wouldn’t question it if it was a village etc.

I let my 9 and 11 year old go to our local shop. It's a 3 minute walk away and they have to cross 2 roads. One without a crossing ( our street but its a busy road ) and one with a crossing

I have life360 on all our phones so I can see exactly where their going

( my 11 year old has been playing out for around a year and my 9 year old has been playing out for around 3 months )

Kids don’t play out here it’s a main road in London, no kids do so I guess im not use to them being out alone

Is there a safer route or crossing they can take that doesn’t involve buses flying round a blind corner? At those ages they really should be fine but unless you’re making it sounds a lot worse than it is, it doesn’t sound like anyone should be crossing in that location.

How does your 12 year old get to school, OP?

Have they been walking that route with you since they were babies?
If yes then presumably they are aware of how to cross the road safely.

He walks, im not concerned about the 12 year old as mentioned in my post he goes to the shops alone but he wants his sister to come with him

It's really hard with scary roads. I live off a main road and plenty of adults acknowledge it's hard to cross as cars fly up and down at 50mph (it's a 30).
Can you go with them a few times and let them take charge but you're there if they make a bad decision? Unfortunately they have to learn by doing and we parents have to grit our teeth and hope for the best. Not easy, but necessary.

No one can answer this for you, it depends on the children involved.

Would I let my children yes; they're more than capable. Yours? I have no idea.

he wants his sister to come with him

So she'll be with her brother who knows how to cross the road safely.

Or are you afraid she'll run off and run into the road? At nine she should know better than that.

Isn't there a crossing they can use, even if it means walking a bit further? If there are shops and bus stops, there must be places to cross.

no Crossing unfortunately

No need to be rude

Yes absolutely

Exactly, it’s the cars and buses im concerned about not my child, the cars/bus come speeding round the corner and there is no crossing

I would, yes. Mine walked around half a mile to school / running local errands solo from 8, and the older one was around 9 or 10 when the the 3 yrs junior sibling started to accompany them, without an adult. Not in London, but there's a tricky road / accident blackspot to cross.

If you haven't already done so, show them where the safest position to cross the road is in each direction and explain why that is so they understand how to work out for themselves where to position themselves to cross roads. Then wave them off to enjoy their freedom.

Of course I would.

Exactly, it’s the cars and buses im concerned about not my child, the cars/bus come speeding round the corner and there is no crossing

Where are you in London that buses go fast enough to come come speeding round corners?

They need to walk along the road so that they're further from the corner and can see the traffic coming in both directions. As in the Green Cross Code.

In other countries kids younger than yours get buses to school.
Some times trains.

Tell them to walk down the road away from the corner.

What age dod the older child start gping out alone?

I thought most if not all ? London boroughs now had a speed limit of 20mph
so now sure how a bus can come speeding around a corner

there must be a way of crossing the road - how do the disabled and blind manage ?

Absolutely.

Tell them to find a safe place to cross and do it there. Not on the dangerous bend part.