Is it ever right to leave kids home alone?

Is it ever right to leave little ones in the house by themselves? As tempting as it may be when you need to nip out for some milk or to post a letter, we know that it's never the right thing to do.

But is it actually illegal? One MP is asking for clearer guidance regarding leaving children home alone. Here's why ...

Just this week, a BBC Freedom of Information request revealed that 510 people were arrested on suspicion of neglect last year for leaving a child home alone. Most of the arrests related to children under 10. One six week old baby was left home alone.

What's interesting though is that there is currently no legal minumum age at which a child can be left at home alone – but police can take action if they consider a youngster to be at risk.

Now, former MP, John Hemming, has launched a campaign demanding clearer guidelines on when children are old enough to be left ‘home alone’.

He believes that the current lack of guidelines is confusing and leaves parents open to potential prosecution - even though they're not actually breaking the law.

Writing on his blog, he said:

"The Government claims parents are allowed to decide whether their child is mature enough to be left alone.

That, however, is not true.

Either the police or local authority social workers decide whether, in their opinion, the parents have neglected their child.

We need to consider what is optimal, what is ill-advised and what should be criminal or require action from the local authority."

So what should parents do?

The NSPCC issues its own guidance regarding when you can or can't leave your child home alone. Here's what their website says:

What the law says

Strange as it may seem, there’s no set age for leaving children home alone.

The law simply says that you shouldn’t leave a child alone if they’ll be at risk.

There’s such a wide variation in the rate that children mature that it would be almost impossible to come up with a “one size fits all” law. Instead, the choice is left to parents. They know their children best and can use their own judgement.

That’s not to say that there are no laws on leaving children home alone. Under the Children and Young Persons (England and Wales) Act 1933, the Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act 1937 and the Children and Young Persons (Northern Ireland) Act 1968, parents and carers can be prosecuted for neglect.

This means that they can be fined or sent to prison if they are judged to have placed a child at risk of harm by leaving them at home alone, regardless of where in the UK the child lives.

There might not be a specific legal age to leave children alone but it’s safe to say babies, toddlers and young children should never be left alone, even if it’s just while you pop down the road. Even if they’re sleeping peacefully when you leave they could well wake up and get very upset when you’re not there to look after them. They would not be able to protect themselves in an emergency and may even try to leave the property to find you.

Source: NSPCC