Can someone please provide me with information on rules/regulations regarding leaving kids unattended?
I went to Coop (which is exactly 400m away from our apartment) and bumped onto my neighbor who suddenly seemed totally disgusted that I'd leave my 10 year old daughter alone. I told her that my daughter would rather play her instruments or watch TV than trail me to the shops everytime I need to top-up bread or milk.
She told me that it's ILLEGAL in Switzerland to leave kids under 12 unattended. I thanked her for the info (because I was and am still clueless regarding this) and requested that she finds me a copy of where this rule/regulation is documented so that I can read the full details.
Can someone enlighten me regarding this rule/regulation? As a parent I do understand that it's generally unacceptable for kids to be left unattended (I guess it's common sense too), but again there must be reasonableness in applying such regulation...e.g length of time, distance, etc. Perhaps the full documented regulation (if there is one) will have these details.
I don't believe there is a law. You can leave them at any age.
However, if something goes wrong, their age and the circumstances in general will be taken into account in deciding whether any action against the parents will be taken.
i.e. it's down to parental responsibility.
So, don't leave a three year old at home for a couple of weeks whilst you go on holiday!
I'm sure there are a couple of old threads about this.
There's no law - or at least not nationally. Perhaps there is a local ordinance where you live, but I doubt it.
As to whether it is common practice or not, a rule of thumb quoted here is that a nine-year-old could be left for up to an hour. They are quick to qualify that though, saying that it depends very much on the child, and that before you do this you need to run through all the possibilities - what to do if he hurts himself, what to do if the doorbell rings etc.
It's also not unheard of to leave a sleeping baby at home alone while you nip out to the village shop, or walk with the older kid to kindergarten. I wouldn't do it myself, but there you go. I've been out and about with one of my twins and been asked nonchalantly, "oh, you've left the other one at home?"
There is a requirement (don't know if a legality, though) that children have to be a minimum age of 12 to supervise other, younger children.
Children also have to be 12 (if they're under 150cm tall) before, they can lose their car booster seat, so 12 is an age that seems to be a transition age.
I must admit, I've kind of had in my mind too, with my children, that for any lengths of time I shouldn't leave them alone, until 12.
However, one is now 15, and the other is 8; and the younger is left alone, for short periods - the longest being about an hour-and-a-half (exception).
She has strict instructions not to go to the door, and knows how to call me, if necessary.
How did your neighbour know that you'd left your kids at home unattended just by bumping into you? I know we live in a country of 8 million police...but really? And that she felt the need to judge you and set you straight? Weeeirrrd.
I am quite sure there is no national nor cantonal law defining these issues. But there are what you would call best practices, which are excellently summurazed by the Beobachter article referred by MathNut.
But yes, you parents are kept responsible until they get 18. But of course, in a case of accident anythng will be talen into account, how old they are, how grown-up they already are, hat the best practices say etc.
Generally reasonably considered rules:
- Starting with 8/9/10, up to one hour during day light.
- Starting with ~12, sometimes also the whole evening until midnight.
I am actually on the other side of the fence. I am horrified at the number of people here who leave their kids unattended here. I have seen parents going out for the evening leaving their 3 kids on their own (all under 10) + one going to pick her 5 year old at school leaving the 3 year old in bed. I also saw 5 & 6 year olds outside school crying 'cos no one turned up to pick them up - miscommunication between parents, child minder, grand parents or whatever. Poor little sods didn't know who was supposed to get them. I always stayed with them with my kids until someone either turned up or we could contact a parent on the phone to say their kid could be found at our place until they could find the time to come get them.
As to teens, it depends on their maturity.
The booster seat is a funny thing. My mother is tiny & would still have to use one if it was simply a question of height.
That's not the same thing as a plan to leave them at home for a couple of hours though. That's inexcusable. With kids - if you've arranged something, you stick with it. But, always give them a plan B (in case you get stuck in traffic etc).
But, why aren't the kids just walking to where they should be? Why are they being picked up?
It would seem some peoples kids will melt in the rain or they don't want to wear their legs down walking 5 minutes or they're busy rushing off to piano/judo/plate spinning classes after school. I think a lot of people are stressed out rushing off to work & it just saves a battle to stick their little darlings in the car.
LOL I am just being sarky. There's actually a Pedibus system where we live & if you're out in the countryside a car is much easier than trying to get pushchair, screaming baby & toddler onto a bus. Attitudes in society have also changed. (Who's showing their age) ... when I was a kid we walked 3 miles to school in whatever weather. Nowadays lot of people drive to the gym.
I did find it weird that she'd assume that my daughter is home alone (what if my OH was back from work already? ). And what if she had gone for a playdate?
But again I didn't want to put up defence because the same neighbor commented about how quiet our family was over the weekend compared to others, to me that meant she's either too attentive a person or too snoopy...or both.
Thanks for the links Sbrinz, I will contact our KESB office.
Sublime, my neighbor is a foreigner too, has been here for 25 years and is married to a Swiss guy.