Stay Safe, Be Prepared: Staying Home Alone

The million-dollar question remains uncertain, at what age can a child stay home alone? Like most provinces, Saskatchewan does not have an age restriction for when a child can stay home alone. The Canadian Safety Council recommends the age of 10 as a minimum to stay home alone for short periods of time and children 12 and under shouldn’t be responsible for supervising others. At the end of the day, it’s up to the adult to determine what age is appropriate for their child to be left home alone.

Staying home alone is a major responsibility. It’s important for a child to be prepared to handle unexpected situations and receive the knowledge needed to safely do so. Tips to help prepare youth to safely stay home alone include,

• Create an emergency contact list

• Have an emergency safety plan

• Frequently check-in with an adult throughout the day

• Never tell others you’re home alone

• Have a fire safety plan

• Take a Home Alone course

• Take a First Aid/CPR course

For more tips to prepare your child to stay home alone visit, How to Help your Kids Stay Home Alone.

A hazard is something that is harmful, dangerous or makes a situation risky. The most common hazards found in the home are slips, trips and falls, poisoning, fires and burns, choking and suffocating and drowning. It’s important for youth to become comfortable with identifying hazards in the home to prevent themselves from getting injured by those hazards, especially when not accompanied by an adult.

Tips for preventing injury from everyday hazards in the home include;

• Remove tripping hazards

• Clean up spills immediately

• Do not use hot appliances

• Don’t talk, walk or run with food in your mouth

• Lock doors

• Keep an eye on small children while playing and eating

• Keep dangerous products out of reach

• Be selective with friend requests online

• If you’re unsure if a situation is safe, stop and ask a trusted adult

On our website you can find a “Staying Home Alone” poster followed by a variety of other safety posters to help youth stay safe in their environment.

Service Hospitality offers our Safety at Home and School safety presentation targeting the grade 6 level to shine a spotlight on safety at home, safety and school and safety while socializing.

For more information or to schedule a private virtual presentation, please contact us at [email protected].