PARENTS could be putting themselves at risk of being questioned by social services, or even the police, if they let their children go on holiday alone.
Deciding when your kids are old enough to go off and do things on their own is a tough call – and it won’t always be popular with other parents either.
TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp found this out back in 2024 after revealing that her 15-year-old son, Oscar, had gone Interrailing without adult supervision.
The property show host was visited by a social worker from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC), after she mentioned her decision on social media.
Allsopp said that it had been “a huge shock” and that she had been questioned about “what safeguards were in place” for her son’s trip.
For parents hoping to avoid ending up in a similar position, there are some rules they need to follow, although generally speaking, it is more or less up to them to decide when their child is old enough.
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The UK government website states that legally, when it comes to leaving children unsupervised, there is no specific age limit.
However, it is an offence to leave a child alone if it places them at risk.
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) advises that children under 12 are rarely mature enough to be left alone and that children under 16 should not be left alone overnight.
However, this is only advice and, legally, parents can only be prosecuted if they leave a child unsupervised “in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to health“.
When it comes to travelling, the rules depend on which company your child is due to be travelling with, with different rules applying to different airlines or train operators, many of whom will offer “unaccompanied minor” services.
The UK government advises that parents will often have to book a separate ticket for this service, and will also have to fill out extra
paperwork.
They will need to provide airlines with information about the child, their parents/guardians and whoever is collecting the child at their destination.
Each airline will have their own age limits on which children can and cannot use this service, but this is generally available for kids up to 12 or 15, depending on the carrier. Parents should check before booking tickets.
Meanwhile, on the Eurostar, 12 to 15 years old can travel on their own between London and Paris, Lille or Brussels on trains departing between 6am and 5pm local time.
They must have a fully completed Eurostar unaccompanied minor form, which must be signed by their parent or legal guardian at the station in the presence of a member of the Eurostar team.
The rules for taking kids out of school for holidays
Parents who take kids on holiday during term now face big school fines, as of new rules brought in this summer.
Families whose children miss five days of school could have to pay as much as £160, due to the government’s new attendance drive.
Previously, it was up to local authorities to decide when to issue fines to parents, so the process varied from council to council.
However, the change has brought in a country-wide approach to unauthorised school absences, with fines rising from £60 to £80, if they’re paid within 21 days.
Anyone who doesn’t pay within the first 21 days will have to pay double – meaning a maximum cost of £160, whereas before it was £120.
Parents can pick up two fines within a three-year period before they’re followed up with extra actions like a parenting order, or prosecution.
Anyone whose prosecuted and taken to court due to their child not attending school could be fined as much as £2,500.
The parent or guardian must also ensure arrangements are in place for the young person to be met on arrival.
Children under 16 cannot travel unaccompanied on direct trains between London and the Netherlands.
For Interrail tickets, children aged up to 11 must be accompanied at all times by at least one person with an Adult Pass. This doesn’t have to be a family member and can be anyone over 18.
The Interrail website also states that passengers under 18 “may have limitations in travelling alone using a pass”.
Each different country in Europe has its own rules for unaccompanied children, who may need extra documents signed by their parents or guardian, authorising them to travel.
There are no EU-wide rules on the matter, with each EU country deciding their own regulations, so parents should check the embassy of their child’s destination.
So, simply put, if you’re comfortable with it, your child is legally allowed to travel on their own aged 15, like Kirsty Allsopp’s.
However, transport companies and different countries will have different rules and guidelines, so it’s best to check what those rules are and what your responsibilities are as a parent or guardian.
As long as they’re not on their own “in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to health” then you’re unlikely to be visited by the police or social services.
But it’s best to put some safeguarding measures in place, just to make sure you can do as much as you can to keep them safe from afar.
Meanwhile, there are also rules parents need to know if they’re travelling with their kids, if they don’t have the same surname.
And these confusing rules stopped a young child from boarding a plane for a family holiday.