Children at home alone, the helpline advice – Panorama

Rome, August 5 (AdnKronos Health) – More freedom for the children but also more time to spend at home alone. The summer holidays, with many free hours available for the little ones are too. For added security of the child and greater tranquility of the parents, Telefono Azzurro developed a security handbook. A handbook that takes on even more importance after the tragedy of Bologna, where an 8 year old boy, alone in the house, was injured with a glass at home and bled to death.

Here are the tips:

1) Assess, in addition to age, maturity, sense of responsibility and autonomy of the child, to determine whether and how long you leave it alone it is a choice to consider

2 ) Define together, before letting such activities and / or companies will make the agenda of the child for his hours ‘autonomously’

3) Make sure you can monitor, even without the activities of the child, for example, by activating appropriate filters for navigation on the technological support available (computers, smartphones, tablets, etc.)

4) Show your children to always be available to listen to them and make them understand that not it is never too late to report if someone or something, while browsing the network in your absence, has upset them, or put them at ease, without fear of being judged or punished.

5) Define how to communicate updates and request permission if “shared plans” would change. Always preferred mode of direct update, such as telephone calls, to speak directly to the child

6) Make sure your child knows clearly that any new / unforeseen should be agreed before you take any action (eg . open to someone who claims to have a package for mom)

7) Ensure the rooms where you will find the baby are safe and accessible only by certain people and certain modes

8) Identify the adult reference that the child (or possibly the same parent) can contact in case of need or emergency, and supply them to the child, preferably in at least two ways (for example, record the ‘number ready-help’ on the phone, but also on a paper address book or on a post-it on the fridge).

9) Remember that children are capable of surprising us and these surprises will be all the more wonderful and exciting, the more we will be able to represent for them a point of reference, a source of information and support, even when it emerges the need to leave them alone

10) are in any doubt, call for help or support, children, adolescents and adults can contact the free phone line of blue 1.96.96, 24 hours a day , 365 days a year, and the line 114 emergency childhood, to cases of immediate danger.