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Advice for North East parents on how to keep kids safe

New stats from the NSPCC show 40% of parents in our region have had a child get lost or go missing.

Published 2nd Nov 2016

The NSPCC are issuing parents across the North East advice about keeping kids safe when they are out alone.

It comes off the back of a new study that reveals not enough parents are discussing safety and the dangers outside the home with their child, despite high numbers of parents in some areas having lost or had a child go missing at some point.

Here:

  • 40% of North East parents have had a child go missing or get lost, according to a new study. - The most common reason parents worry about their children going out on their own is the fear that they will go missing or lost. A third say this was their biggest concern. - 1 in 10 parents haven’t discussed safety and the dangers outside the home with their child. - 20% of parents think the appropriate age for their child to walk home from school on their own is between 5-10. A quarter say between 5-10 years old is an appropriate age for their child to walk to the local shop on their own. - 1 in 10 parents believe a child aged between 5-10 would be fine to stay home alone. - A third of parents worry about letting their own friends/family look after their children. - 1 in 5 parents will change their school run plans to accommodate the evenings getting darker earlier.
  • 60% of children will be given a mobile phone in the winter months to take to school for safety.

All children can be vulnerable sometimes and as a parent it is only natural to worry about their safety – and the NSPCC are telling parents if they’re worried, they can help to protect their young children and teens with these common-sense tips and advice:

  • Be prepared - Talk about dangers in advance - Set some rules - Build your child's confidence - Make sure you feel ready too - Keep talking - even after they start going out on their own, keep discussing safety outside the home with them and remind them of the dangers. It’s tempting to just leave them to it but you should still show you're interested in who they're spending their time with and what they're doing. If you do notice anything that doesn’t seem quite right – like them being secretive or coming home with new belongings they can’t explain – you should definitely look into the reasons why.