At what age may a child be left home alone and for how long?

There is no Minnesota law that states at what exact age a child must be before he or she may be left home alone or left under the care of another child. There are general laws, however, that require adequate and appropriate supervision of children. County child protection offices are required to investigate and enforce that general law. As a result, Dakota County Child Protection, a part of Dakota County Community Services, has adopted a policy, which defines those situations when it will investigate a report of children who may be inadequately supervised. The policy is as follows:

IX. LACK OF SUPERVISION

A. The decision to assess the reports of unsupervised children will be made in light of the following considerations, according to Dakota County Community Services policy:

1. The maturity level of the children

2. The accessibility of the parent, guardian, caretaker or responsible adult by phone or in person

3. The physical or mental health condition of the children

4. The behavioral history of the children

5. Whether a young child is using a stove, iron or appliance which poses a danger because of their age

6. Whether the parents have discussed an escape plan or held a fire drill with the children

7. Whether the residence has a smoke detector

8. Whether there are unusual hazards in the home

9. The children's reaction to being left alone

10. The ages of the children being cared for

11. Whether the child has completed a Baby-sitting Clinic

12. The reliability of the person that the parent has chosen to provide supervision.

Section III. O-17

B. Considering the above factors, the following reports will be assessed:

1. Reports of children 7 and under left alone for any period of time

2. Reports of children ages 8 and 9 who are alone for more than 2 hours

3. Reports of children 10 through 13 alone for more than 12 hours

4. Reports indicating that children 14 to 17 are unsupervised while parents are absent for more than 24 hours will be screened, considering adequate adult back-up supervision.

C. Dakota County accepts the following guidelines for older children providing supervision to younger children:

1. It is acceptable for children ages 11 to 14 to baby-sit, with the expectation that the parent, guardian, or caretaker will be returning to supervise the children later that same day.

2. It is acceptable for ages 15 and older to baby-sit younger children for more than 24 hours. (Please refer to VIII.A. Decision to Assess Reports of Unsupervised Children.)

In general, Dakota County Community Services will investigate a report that indicates a situation exists under Paragraph B. They may find, however, that leaving a child alone is appropriate as set forth under the 12 factors in Paragraph A, even if the exact age of the child does not fit under Paragraph B.

For example, they may receive a report that a 7-year-old child has been left alone for 1 hour. They investigate and determine that the child was in fact left alone for 1 hour. However, they also determine that the child is mature for her age, is comfortable being alone, knew where and how to contact a parent, the home was safe and protected, with adequate locks and smoke detectors, etc. They would then make a determination that this was not a case of child maltreatment because of the other factors involved. On the other hand, they may determine that it is child maltreatment to leave a 9-year-old home alone for 2-1/2 hours (or less) because the child is developmentally delayed, did not know how to contact a parent, and did not know what to do in case of a fire.

The bottom line for parents is to avoid situations in violation of the assessment criteria in Paragraph B above and to use common sense in all situations. Please remember that leaving children home alone can be a risk, even in situations not in violation of County Child Protection guidelines. Please make sure to discuss emergency situations with your child if they are left unattended and make sure they can readily find you or a responsible adult quickly if needed.

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