My last blog was about child health and safety rules and I wrote that, in my opinion, these had gone too far. Now look what has happened one week later! Perhaps the news hasn't made it outside of London but a family called the Schonrocks who live in South London have been publicised for the parents' decision to allow their eight and five year old children to cycle to school by themselves. The school that the children attend don't approve.
This raises three questions:
1. Does it matter how the children get to school just as long as they get there safely? You might say that cycling a mile to school by yourself at the age of five and eight isn't exactly safe. However,if the children and the parents feel comfortable with this then does the school have a right to object? Traffic allegedly is not a problem as the children have only one road to cross and there is a lolly pop lady to help them.
2. Should it be the State's decision as to whether or not the parents are capable of checking if the route that the children take is safe?
3. If the parents are reasonable and responsible should they not be allowed to make decisions for their own children?
I personally would not cycle to school because I don't feel safe and there have been a few attacks on the streets close to where I live. However, I think that these children should be allowed to cycle to school because they have obviously been doing it for a while now and have shown that they are capable of staying safe. Their parents have made the right decision and should be allowed to get on with it.
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