A couple who let their five and eight-year-old son and daughter cycle to school are being threatened with action from social services.
The children currently cycle the one-mile journey without an adult along the pavements, as Oliver and Gillian Schonrock believe it teaches them independence, self-confidence and responsibility. However, other teachers and parents at the school believe that they're being irresponsible and putting their lives in danger.
The headteacher at Alleyn's Junior School in Dulwich called the parents in for a meeting, and told them that the school has an legal obligation to notify the council if they feel the safety of a child is at risk.
Mr Schonrock, 40, used to walk to school alone as a boy, and wants to give his children that same opportunity. His wife also used to travel to school unsupervised on the bus from the age of four with her six-year-old sister.
Mr Schonrock went on to say "'Like everybody else our age we spent a lot more time with our friends playing in the streets or parks without parental supervision and without our parents becoming unduly worried."
"These days children live such regimented lives. They can do nothing unless it's planned. We are trying to let them enjoy their lives and teach them a little bit about the risks of life."
The children are supervised on the journey home, either by one of their parents or their nanny.
What do you think about this situation? Are they too young to cycle to school alone, or is the school overreacting?
Source: Daily Mail