Graph 3. Parental independent licence

Graph 3. Parental independent licence

Regarding parental licence, the questionnaire included two separate sections, which expanded on the freedom and restriction as seen on graph 3. Overall, parents have a more restricted view of independent licence, granting fewer independent rights than those reported by children. Only 47% of children whose guardians were surveyed are allowed to go to school by themselves. In an international review on licence, Shaw et al.(2015) found 65% of parents grant this permission around the world, which might indicate parents in this community are particularly fearful of the neighbourhood environment and the risks for unaccompanied children. There were no significant differences in the way female and male guardians responded, as most of them disagreed with the first set of licence statements.

The most withheld independent freedom was going out alone after dark, granted by just 12.8% of parents, which coincides with findings in the literature. Surprisingly, this was the only statement were gender differences were significant, 90% of male guardians overwhelmingly disagreed with this freedom, as opposed to 77% of female participants. Further insights related to walking, playing and socialising indicate children autonomy are