walking to school

Kimberley82

at what age did you let your children walk to school alone?

rachbc

8 - but the school is at the top of our quiet suburban road/

Depends on the kid and the route

pimento

About nine I think. My mum followed him in her car (without him knowing) for the first day or so.

We laugh about that now.

itzmee

At our school children younger than year 5 have to be accompanied by a parent. DS is in year 4 at the moment and is looking forward to being able to go to school on his own from September, but we only live less than a couple of minutes away.

Kimberley82

itzmee wrote: »

At our school children younger than year 5 have to be accompanied by a parent. DS is in year 4 at the moment and is looking forward to being able to go to school on his own from September, but we only live less than a couple of minutes away.

can they really tell you how you take your child to school? how do they check?

balletshoes

Kimberley82 wrote: »

can they really tell you how you take your child to school? how do they check?

its around age 8 here too - so from the start of year 4. I don't know if the school would check that the children were accompanied to school in the mornings, but the children in younger years are expected to be picked up from the school door, not the school gate, and they are expressly told to stay in school if their parent/guardian is not there to collect them, then the teacher takes them to the office area to be collected when their parent/guardian turns up.

So yes, at age 8 my daughter walked home from school (I drop her off in the morning because its on the way from home to my workplace).

Spendless

My son walked with 2 other children from his class for the last 1/2 term of yr 4, when he was 9 1/4. From yr 5 he walked to and from alone and from yr 6 he took his younger sister (then in yr 3). We live a 2 min walk away around a corner from the nearest school entrance. There is a road to cross with a raised speed bump outside, but no other form of crossing.

DD is now a very similar age to what DS was when he first started walking to and from school without me, but she is more 'dizzy' by nature and a lot smaller in height, which affects her ability to see clearly when crossing roads.

VJsmum

It kind of happened gradually. DD really didn't go to primary school alone at all as I still had DS. But DS initially began walking alone at about 9 but I could stand on the corner and watch him for most of the way and cross him over the busy road. School was half a mile away

He went totally alone in Year 6.

I started school at 4 1/2 - my mum took me for the first day and after that I went with the girl over the road. She was 6! But in those days everyone was walking so it was very safe.

scottishchick27

I start work at 9 so I would drop my DD at the school gate but she walked herself when she was 6. The school is only about 100m at the top of our road though and the only road she crossed was outside our door, quiet street and I watched her crossing. My mum met her everyday after school as her house was a bit further and she looked after her till I got home. She did this for two years and now she walks home. I think it depends on the child, the distance from the school and how busy the roads are nearby.

Abbafan1972

My kids are 8 & 10 and I wouldn't trust them just yet to walk to school alone.

They have to cross a dual carriageway (this has a lollipop lady) and another very busy road. Drivers know there's a school nearby and yet they still bomb up and down at speeds you wouldn't believe!

onlyroz

At age 10 I was allowed to cycle two miles to school on my own. At my son's school they don't really want anyone below year 6 to go alone - but as others have said they only really check at the end of the day. In the morning you can see many children from maybe year 2 onwards being dropped off at the end of the school drive and walking into the grounds on their own.