IT’S that time of year that most parents dread – the long school summer holidays.

The daily dilemmas of getting them properly looked after and keeping them safe, happy and interested in activities proves an annual problem.

Small wonder, then, there are times when some parents leave their children on their own. Now, the NSPCC has issued warnings of the very real dangers to children during this “peak season” for being home alone. and they’re urging parents to think carefully before they go out.

The Society has good reason to be concerned. During June, July and August last year, 916 cases involving unsupervised children were reported to them – including children as young as one.

The severity of 723 of these was such that the Society immediately referred them to police or children’s services. As Ms Kam Thandi, head of the NSPCC helpline service, explained: “Leaving young children by themselves can put them at risk of harm. It might seem an easy option, but it could result in serious consequences.”

Between 2014 and 2015, 2,489 such cases were brought to the charity’s attention with 1,883 incidents involving 3,610 children passed on to care services. Alarmingly, just over 35 per cent were children aged between one and five.

Although the law doesn’t set an age for leaving a child alone, it states there should be no risk or harm to the child. The NSPCC says – and you really can’t believe that they should have to – that parents should never leave a baby or young child alone. And that older children should only be left if they’re mature enough, for short periods of time.

Such high figures reveal that even loving parents, who would never deliberately put their child into a dangerous situation, don’t think twice about leaving them alone.

It is a difficult situation and children themselves differ in how they handle it. Some older children – and I guess I mean 11 onwards – are very sensible and can be relied upon to look after themselves safely. Whether they should have to is another matter.

Working parents may struggle to find childcare, and there is always the thorny problem of persuading older children that they need looking after.

The bottom line is that, as parents, we signed up for a job which involves keeping our children safe 24/7. If you’re not there, and neither is another suitable adult, you can’t know. End of story.