School Refuser - The Blog

Wednesday 3 October 2018

Separation phobia? Keeping in touch with an app

Knowing where your child is at any given moment can seem an important part of parenting, and new apps have been designed to enable parents to track their children's movements.  Whether this is a desirable advance, or not, is a moot point.

Teenagers, particularly, need space and time to demonstrate their independence, and parents need to be able to trust their youngsters.

I have just been introduced to Life360 - there are others. Life360’s family locator app helps you to keep a watchful eye over your family with a handy map display and alerts for when someone reaches a specified location.

Standout features of the app include its Family Channel, helping everyone keep in touch at the same time. It also alerts you when one of your family members has reached a specified destination. Other positives are that the app helps you track lost or stolen phones and provides a Crash Detection service, getting in touch to offer assistance for a driver if they believe they may have had an accident.

If you happen to be one of those people that are concerned about “big brother” tracking you, this is not the App you want.

But if you are the parent of a child who suffers from a separation fear, maybe this is something to consider.  If your child could see where you were at any given moment, might this be a reassurance?

When you tell your child when you take them in to school you will stay close-by, they can see where you are. Or if you message to say you are going to the supermarket, they can see you do that.

Might be worth trying?  The app is free.

[Read reviews: they are not all good!]