Overview

• There is no statutory minimum age in England for leaving children home alone, but doing so becomes an offence if it places them at risk of unnecessary suffering or injury.
• The NSPCC recommends that children under 12 should not be left alone for extended periods and that under-16s should never stay at home unsupervised overnight.
• Babies and very young children must always have adult supervision, as they are not considered capable of handling emergencies on their own.
• NSPCC head Helen Westerman urges parents to evaluate each child’s maturity, emergency preparedness and comfort level and to establish practical safety measures such as spare keys, contact lists and clear house rules.
• Families facing rising childcare costs and cost-of-living pressures have driven the NSPCC to log over 21,000 calls about unsupervised children since 2021, with nearly half reported during summer holidays.