At what age is it ok for a child to travel alone by train?

It also depends on how long the journey is.

At 11, shortly after we moved house DS travelled by train to visit a friend. It was only 20 miles on a little local train. I went to the station with him and left him at the entrance to the right platform and his friend and mother met him the other end. I went home (before mobile phones) and rang his mother to confirm he was on the train and we did the rverse in th evening. Second trip was by friend to us and went as before, son's second trip. he went house to house, including buying ticket on his own. After that he was away and used trains as easily as he used buses.

I suppose you have to risk assess
My boys caught buses to school from age 8 quite recently I think compared to some of you and I've let my 13/14yo catch trains into London for the day and go to football matches on the trains but I've also said no to higher risk situations, especially football matches where I knew there might be violence, so I either insisted on the coach or transported myself

12 when they reach year 8 at school.

As others have said, just depends- on so many factors.
But I'd say about 15.

My youngest was travelling intercity alone at 11yo with mobile, with me putting her on train and adult sibling meeting her at other end. Her mate did same at 11 (different intercity journey), mum put her on train, I met her at other end.
I hope I'd do same in 2021, kids have to travel alone at some stage. Both at that age were mature and trustworthy. Both looked like young teenagers.

Where I live lots of children travel to school on trains. The number I see walking from the station to the school amazes me, I can't imagine how they all fit on the local commuter trains. So round here 11 year olds regularly travel alone on trains although they are surrounded by loads of other kids from their school or neighbouring school.

I travelled alone from london to Europe and back at just 15 by train then ferry and another two trains to get to my destination. I didn’t speak the language and most Europeans didn’t speak English then, but I found my way.
Dh used to travel alone to school across London by two buses at 10. No mobile phones (or house phones either come to think of it). What was normal then is seen as irresponsible parenting now, times change.
If a sensible 13 year old feels ok doing it and are being met at the other end I don’t think there should be a problem.

Well it is not my decision and I am not directly involved, but I shall be interested to see what is decided.
I often think we protect our children so much, then suddenly at 16 or 18 they are out there away from home, free to do whatever they choose, with so little experience.

My daughter travelled from the age of 12 alone from Paris to Beijing and back for many years, changing planes, true she had done it several times when she was younger as an accompanied child.

It was fine for 10 year old DD to travel by train alone 40 years ago. She made quite long journeys, no changes, and would get on saying ‘I know, sit by a nice old lady!’
About 2010 I asked a train manager about the possibility of 10 year old DGD making a 90 minute journey, on one train so no changes. He thought it was a very bad idea and stressed that even if she sat near his office he was unable and unwilling to keep an eye on her. Times change.

My OH caught the bus to school on his own from the age of five! ?
That was 70 years ago. ?

if not an obvious school commute journey, british transport police carry out spot checks for county lines.

www.btp.police.uk/news/btp/news/england/13-year-old-arrested--taken-into-police-protection-as-part-of-a-national-week-of-action-targeting-county-lines-on-the-railway/

County lines seems prolific atm

My DC travelled by train to the next city from 11 years old and DD flew from Germany via Amsterdam at 13 on her own.
I would not allow it now but forty years ago it seemed to be fairly normal.

When we were in Norway I noticed some really young children alone on the train. Probably around 6 or 7 coming home from school. It was a country area, though,so I am sure it was safe. My children started going on buses,trains etc alone from about age 12 and about the same when I was a child. My grandchildren are a bit older,though, about 15 until they go alone. There seems to be more loony toons on the public transport these days I have to say.

It’s sad, isn’t it?
My grandchildren will never have the joy that we had: getting on the train, 15 minutes to Charing Cross and then just wandering round the West End.
Now I find that my grandson can’t go out on his bike because the brand is one that the pond life are targeting.
I should apologise to the real pond life. At least that has a use and purpose.

As we all know there was much more freedom for children to come and go on their own, much less worrying where children were then they were out to play. Not quite sure why this may be, perhaps because through the media we are much more aware of dangers? Were they really safer times then?

I thought too that a train comps would keep an eye on him if asked. I seem to remember a journalist wrote about her very elderly mum travelling to London from Yorkshire and she had an ‘assistant’ provided by the train company to help. Might incur a charge of course?

Depends on the child. There's a child in our family who was flying alone at 13. I think that there's was a chaperone involved not sure how that worked though. 11 year olds are travelling on the tube to school in normal times. I suppose 11 is reasonable?

Times have changed. Some trains no longer have guards on them and so the child will not be supervised or helped if anything goes wrong. One website says^Train Operators cannot take any responsibility for children travelling alone and Train Companies will not allow any child under the age of 12 to travel without an adult aged 16 or over^
I'd check with the companies who will be running the services he will use. With different companies providing services at the same station, going to the same destination, making sure you get on the right train can be a nightmare..
It's no longer good old British Rail you know.

I travelled alone on a train at the age of 12, from Torquay to Bristol and then back again six weeks later.
Also, with a friend the same age this time, at age 14 we went by train to London and then caught a train to Edinburgh.
Looking back, I had a huge amount of freedom.

Certainly children aged 5 or 6 yrs old travelled to school by bus or train 50 yrs ago, surprisingly there is no minimum age imposed by train companies. Today, 11yr olds do travel to school on trains and service buses, some making several changes. For cross country journeys I would have wanted mine accompanied.

From the age of twelve, in the late seventies early eighties, my son was travelling from his school in the South of England to Yorkshire to stay with my sister, during the short school holidays, and by plane to be with us during the long summer holiday. He was accompanied to stations and airports by universal aunts, but he never had any problems. I doubt if my grandson would manage as well - I don’t think he knows what public transport looks like! I really wouldn’t want him to have to anyway.

I think there is more of a problem these days with attacks and theft. It was unheard of throughout my childhood and even my children’s’ childhood. Yes we had house burglary, bank robbers etc but people didn’t attack young children that I ever heard of. They wouldn’t have had much to pinch anyway - no phones etc.

I’d think it’d depend a great deal on the child - how scatty (or not) or sensible they are.

In the past IMO children used public transport at younger ages a lot more, at least partly because fewer parents had cars. At 6 I was taking a bus 3 miles to school. Going with an elder sister, but returning on my own, since she was 5 years older and finished rather later. And quite a long walk at the home end.

A dd (now 41) and a school friend at 13, announced that they wanted to take a day trip to Calais - on their own. It would be an adventure, with practising their French thrown in.

The other mother and I dithered and agonised, but eventually agreed. The journey involved a train to central London, tube across London, train to Dover, and the ferry.

I’m certain that I’d never allow it now! But they were fine.
My name and that of the other mother were mud for ages with other mums at school, though. Some were ludicrously over-protective - one would not even allow her 13 year old (no SN) to go shopping in the nearest town on her own.