Kirstie Allsopp has hit back at social media users criticising her over a decision relating to her son.
Love It or List It host Kirstie, 52, revealed on Monday (August 19) that 15-year-old Oscar Hercules had returned from travelling in Europe.
She told her X followers he had been Interrailing for three weeks with a friend. But since then the Location, Location, Location star has been swamped with negative reactions, with many respondents fuming it was “inappropriate” for a boy of his age to explore the world without parents.
Kirstie Allsopp on her son Interrailing at 15
At the time of her initial post, Kirstie explained her son, who is nearly 16, went away with a friend who was already 16.
“They organised the whole thing,” she wrote. “Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Berlin, Munich, Marseille, Toulouse, Barcelona and Madrid.”
Kirstie continued: “For obvious budget reasons interrailing isn’t on the cards for everyone. But in this increasingly risk averse world it’s vital that we find any ways we can to give our children the confidence that only comes from trusting them.
“Of course I missed spending the summer with our son. But I’m so proud of him and my loss is nothing compared to his gain and the encyclopaedic knowledge he now has of the differences between one McDonalds and another.”
Kirstie added: “If we’re afraid our children will also be afraid, if we let go, they will fly.”
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How fans reacted
Despite praise from some users for trusting her son to be a mature and sensible traveller, others were horrified that Kirstie could let Oscar head off by himself.
And even more X users questioned her about whether she would allow a similar situation to occur if Oscar was her daughter, rather than her son.
But Kirstie noted how “different kids mature at different speeds”. She also reasoned: “In previous generations 16 was when you started work. There is a lot of evidence that children have become less confident and more anxious, could that be because we haven’t let them grow in confidence and independence?”
The greatest danger for any child comes from people they know.
And in response to remarks about teenage girls’ safety, Kirstie responded: “The greatest danger for any child comes from people they know. It is very important that we all understand what risk there is and where we are most likely to be in danger. As it happens there is more stranger danger for boys than girls.”
‘He’s a very sensible young man’
Additionally, Kirstie appeared on Radio 4 today (Wednesday August 21) to speak about the reaction to her posts.
“He’s a very sensible young man, he’s never been in trouble at school, so when he said he wanted to do this I thought: ‘Right, OK, good on you,'” Kirstie said.
She went on: “I struggled on an emotional level because I knew I’d be not seeing him for quite a lot of this summer, and he’s only got two more years of school and then he’ll be at university. As a parent there’s always that thing of: ‘Oh I want to be with my child,’ or ‘Is it good for them to do their own thing?'”
Kirstie also indicated she was more worried about a child getting in a car driven by a newly qualified driver, or going to a music festival due to the risk of drugs being available.
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