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A concerned mum says she’s worried her friend is being ‘ridiculously negligent’ after she admitted she regularly leaves her four-year-old home alone at night.

The women, who is also mum to a four-year-old, says the admission was made after the couple were casually chatting.

“We are both single parents,” she explained on Mumsnet.

“She’s not a close friend but we see each other regularly at a group both our sons go to. Our sons are two weeks apart, both were four in November.

“I was saying today how hard it is in the evenings when you’re a lone parent, mainly because if you fancy a bar of chocolate and your child is asleep you can’t just nip out (not a big issue, just never have chocolate when I need it!). She said, ‘Just leave him at home, that’s what I do. I can see the shop from my bedroom window and I’m always back within 15 mins’.”

Her friend’s confession didn’t sit well with the mum, who says she can think of a multitude of things that could go wrong.

“My son has fallen out of bed in the past, or had a nightmare, and I wouldn’t put it past him to wake up, call for me, and to go wandering round the house if I didn’t respond.”

It’s left her questioning if this is something other parents are doing.

“Is this actually something people do and just keep quiet, or am I in the majority here thinking that this is so ridiculously negligent?”

Let us know what you think in the comments below. 

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  • It is 100% a NO. This should never happen. It doesnt matter that she can see the house from where she is going. What if she was hit by a car, knocked unconcious and taken to hospital by ambulance? No one knows that she has left a child at home alone.

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  • Good god no! I would never leave a child that young on their own. You never know what might happen. Very irresponsible I say. She’s right to be concerned about the mother’s behaviour.

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  • This makes me very uncomfortable, I am all for the dream of chocolate at night but Id be way too concerned.

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  • No way! That’s so wrong.

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  • Definitely not okay to leave a child that young alone while she goes out. Anything can happen in the time she is gone.

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  • No no no. Definitely not okay to leave a four year old alone.

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  • I can see why she might think it’s ok to just nip across the road….but the thing is, what if she was run over by a car or something else bad happened? then the four year old would be by themself for quite some time

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  • I simply think that’s scary stuff !

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  • Definitely not.

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  • Id feel so anxious! Its a no from me definitely

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  • no no no no!

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  • I would never have done that. At 4, there’s so many things that can go wrong.

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  • Omg no! Definitely not okay. 15 minutes is a very long time and anything could happen! Really not worth the risk at all.

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  • Not okay! Anything can happen in 15 minutes and a four year old would not be able to make life or death decisions.

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  • I’d never do it, you just never know what could happen while you’re out, even if the shop is only 15 minutes away

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  • It’s not right and I would never do it.

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  • Not okay – this is so dangerous

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  • I think this is wrong, never should you leave a child alone. It only takes a second for something to happened. I feel this is careless behaviour

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  • I definitely couldnt do it it as the child is to young and you dont know what could happen in those 15 minutes

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  • Nope, I simply couldnt do it, if i really needed something I would just get it delivered or go without. I wouldnt leave the house.

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