"Banty" wrote in message
...
In article , Penny Gaines says...

Banty wrote in :
Like someone said, what is "being left alone". Is it alright for me to
leave the 9yo in the house, while I hang out the washing in the garden?
I don't think that would be a problem. Is it alright for me and dh to
take our cups of coffee to the end of the garden, and leave the kids
inside,
or do we insist that they come outside too? And if both of those are OK,
why shouldn't I post a letter at the post office: it takes less time then
hanging out the washing, and is closer then the end of the garden?

It's not just a matter of how long they're left alone, but also how
available
you are in case they need you. So if you're in the far side of the garden
for
30 minutes, they can find you, but leaving them to get milk at the store
for 20
minutes may be more of a risk. They can't get your help if they need it.

Yeah. One lady near here left her two children at home. The 1 yo was
watching tv and the 3 yo was napping. She walked her older child to the bus
stop around the corner and got home not 10 minutes later. The house was on
fire and her children were dead. It was an electrical fire. If she were in
the garden, she would have noticed the fire sooner and probably been able to
save her kids. Fires spread quickly. 10 minutes is a long time.