Do you let your 6 yr olds play on the street?

[tigwig]

My niece is almost 7 and is allowed with her 9yr old sister to play on the street on their bikes etc. Quite often this is out of view of the house. My sister believes this is fine and says you have to give them some freedom etc but on Saturday I came out of her house and watched my niece ride her bike straight out of a street in front of a car. Fortunately the car was turning left but if it hadn't have been she could have been dead. This scared the hell out of me and in my opinion demonstated that she is not mature enough to play like this on the street. It is a modern estate by the way so not a busy main road but obviously there is cars going up and down. What do others think?

[redcrx]

no, i wouldnt let my kids.
We have a 6 year old neighbour who is always outside, often in charge of his 3 year old brother. The 2 will ride bikes out into road without looking (only yesterday did i hear a driver giving the lad a lecture about it) play in peoples gardens, walk into your back garden and even house.
The poor guy at the end house came home to find they had even covered his car in gravel that they had taken from someones garden.
Most weeks the parents are out searching for them as theyve wandered off somewhere.
It also annoys me as they ask my 5 year old to go and play and he gets upset when i wont let him.

[annie0000]

At that age, my two were allowed to play in the street, but had strict boundaries that they weren't allowed to go past. Most of the time I would be out with them or if not, I would watch from the window (the boundaries were based on what I could see from the window). They weren't allowed in other peoples houses or gardens without coming to ask me first. They were allowed to go on their scooters round the pavement, but if they wanted bikes on the road, then I would go out with them. I do believe that children need their freedom, but that has to be based on their age and common sense. I have gradually given them more freedom, and now at just turned 10 and nearly 9, they are allowed to cycle round our estate and visit a named group of friends. I have however taken them out cycling a lot so I am comfortable with their road sense. They are still not allowed to cross the main road. I'd have thought that at 6 with an older sister out with her, she would be fine to play in the street in general view, but not out of it.

[annie0000]

What did your sister say about the car incident?

[momcj]

My daughter is 6 in November and i would not let her play out front, i would be a nervous wreck!!! i dont like her running out of view when coming home from school. i know you need to let them have some freedom but i think that is too young. Also my daughter appears to have less road sense now then she did when she was 4!!! I keep trying to make her understand that if you drop something while crossing the road dont stop to pick it up! she just doesnt get it!

[yogi-bear]

Nope....never have with any of my four, and they never wanted too........thats what large spacious Parks/commons are for :0).......and gardens too.

I know there may be those that dont have gardens that saywhere can they play safely....the answer in my opinion is NOT a street, for so many reasons.

[annie0000]

I should say, when I talk about the street, i live in a new build estate of large houses with open plan gardens, and we live in a cul de saq, not quite the image of playing in the street that could be conjured up. As I say, all about risk assessment.

[momcj]

I live in a flat so unfortunatley dont have a garden, but we go my moms alot and she plays in hers. There is also a field near, but i have not ventured there as large groups of youths hang out there, which is a shame. i dont think she misses out!

[andy-hughes]

When my girls were little. we lived at the top end of a cul-de-sac so they were allowed out there, but never more than half way down.

Now we have a nice big back garden, so my grand children can play safely.

i would not let a six-year-old play out where there are cars passing.

[yogi-bear]

Open plan gardens and cul de saq's are reasonably safe, Annie, so in that instance, i would say acceptable, and you did keep an eye on them.....many would'nt as they are just out of their hair......that is what annoys me.

I played occasionally in the street/pavement....mainly in the gardens of my friends exchanging football stickers etc so mainly always in a friends or my front or back garden when i was kid, but was born in '66 so a lot has changed since then....more cars, more crime and knowhere near as risky as now.

[annie0000]

yogi, I wore a dent in the lampost I was out in the street that much lol.

I was also born in 66, but we were given freedom to roam then, we never had childcare while my parents were working and our house was never locked - we would make ourselves a snack and disappear for the day. When I was about 8 or 9, my friends and I would get the bus into central Edinburgh and go shopping or play in Princes street gardens or go to the museum cos it was free, or we would go swimming and spend the return fare on sweets and walk the 3 miles home. Wouldn't let my kids do that now. One of our favourite pastimes was to go to the woods and look for the flasher!!!

[B00]

Yeah why not?

As long as she knows the boundaries of where she can and can't go, and what she can and can't do and that the two of them are to stay together.

Kids used to play out almost 24/7 and mostly came to no harm- the harm was usually normal bumps and scrapes.

Good on your sister for refusing to pander to the fearful society we've become and is letting her kids be kids.

[tigwig]

Well thanks for the different views. My sister did see the car incident but said she has never done that before but I beg to differ! Its not a cul de sac either they live near the beginning of the estate so quite a few cars have to pass through.

[Misky]

Annie's answer doesn't half bring back memories. I was born in 67 and during the school holidays all the kids in my street used to meet up at about 9 am, make sure we had at least one orange each, and then go off for the day. So long as we were home by teatime, there was no problem! And we all stopped talking to one girl coz she went into the pervert's flat for a drink when he asked her, and so with all the trouble that came after that, that part of town was somewhere we weren't allowed to play in any more... These days, there are a lot more cars, but it gives us a chance to teach kids to respect roads and cars else they won't be allowed out. I certainy don't think there are more weirdos, just more publicity about them.

[Nosha123]

Hi Tigwig

I agree with other here that she shouldnt be allowed at that age - they are not spacially aware and risk aware...
You state "My sister did see the car incident but said she has never done that before"

The little girl may never have done it before - but it only takes ONCE for a tragedy to happen

[aims1202]

yes i let my son play out the front of our house with other kids when he was four if i could see him and then when he was five i let him go without me but i always made sure that the two older ones (8yrs) i knew well were looking after him and i gave him strict rules of how far down the road he could go and that he must stay in this side of the road and never cross it. I also said to never go into anyone's house or garden without asking me, even if he knew them. He always did what he was told and still does he's now seven but i still keep the same rules and won't let him cross the road without me yet. i think it good to let them have freedom and play without adults watching them and to give them rules and show them you trust them, then they are more likely to obey them.

[annie0000]

My grandad was a roads inspector. He retired in the late 60's and never drove again, he said the roads were just too busy. God knows what he would think if he were alive today!

[missrandom]

Yes I would and have. I see people of all ages (teenagers are the most likely to be knocked over) not looking properly when crossing the road. I have taught my children road safety as best as I can and they all need to learn at some time. At that age they don't have the cockiness and I know better attitude as they do when they get older.
It's good for children's development to take calculated risks. Unfortunately there will always be accidents, you just have to know your child (some might not be ready at that age) and teach them well.