Shannon Matthews Found!
Wonderful news that the little girl who went missing walking home from school has been found, alive and 'well' according to internet news reports.
They have brought up the subject of her being allowed to walk home alone and this is an emotive subject. It is something I have been discussing with friends recently. At what age do you let them have more independence?? I couldn't imagine letting Tom out alone yet and he's almost 9 (same age as Shannon) I just wondered what you all felt about this? I know you have to let them go at some stage.
They have brought up the subject of her being allowed to walk home alone and this is an emotive subject. It is something I have been discussing with friends recently. At what age do you let them have more independence?? I couldn't imagine letting Tom out alone yet and he's almost 9 (same age as Shannon) I just wondered what you all felt about this? I know you have to let them go at some stage.
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I am one of 6 and we werent allowed to walk home from school alone until we got to secondary school. So that would be about 11 years old. We lived quarter of a mile away from the bus stop, where we caught the school bus, and in the middle of nowhere. But as there were 6 of us we always had someone to walk home with because there was always more than 1 of us in the same school at one time.
I've been watching it on sky news. It's great she's alive, I just hope mentally she is ok and can cope with what's happened to her.
Zoe xx
xx
I live on a large estate and its unbelievable how many kids as young as 5 play out on their own. We got new neighboyurs (from hell) this week and yesterday the i saw the 5yr old playing out with her little brother who doesn't even look 2 yet it's shocking!
My other neu
ighbours son started walking home last yr when he started secondary school and we only live a 5 min walk away from it.
I think we are as a society, at great risk of bringing up mollycoddled kids. They need their freedom and to develop their own independance.
My cousin was wrapped in cotton wool and was only allowed to go nextdoor by herself until she was at secondary school. Even then she could only cross a road to see her friend. At 16 she suddenly went mad, meeting people on the internet and going off on a bus or train to visit them. That was extremely dangerous but she had to knowledge of being out by herself and was extremely street unwise!!!! I also teach kids who aren't allowed anywhere with their parents (at 14 or 15) and those who are kicked out after school and not given a time to return home!!
On the other hand my niehgbours kids race on the road on their bikes and they are aged between 2 and 6. That scares me as no-one appears to be watching!
I hope that I will be sensible when the time comes and give Bronwyn the space and freedom that I had.
Sorry for the essay, but this is something that i feel quite strongly about!!
My daughter has just turned nine and I would not let her out on her own. Maybe at 12 she can start walking to or from school, but times are just too bad. Not like when we were kids!
A paedophile lived in my neighbourhood when we were kids. My parents still let us out. I never even came into contact with him or saw him.
Our neighbours have four kids under the age of 5/6 and there dad who is a pisshead sits outside watching them with a can of diamond white - Its good that he watches them but I sometimes feel a bit intimidated walking past them to my front door - and my parents feel the same. I think its good he is watching them but sometimes wonder if it wouldn't be possible to watch them from inside there house - if that makes sense?