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Hi...my husband wanted the kids to sleep in the awning a few years ago, as there is 4 of them I conceeded and let them. But my sleep was never very good when they were out there. My ears were pricked and ready for any slight noise and my cricket bat for action should the need arise!  After many exhasting trips like this I went and adopted a dog. He now sleeps quite happily amongst all the sleeping bags and I'm happy knowing if anyone comes within a few inches of his beloved kids, he would happily chew off the offenders legs!  So..my advice would be if its practical and would give you peace of mind, go get a mutt.

Rach

I think the chances of a child being abducted in this way are very rare but if you are worried why not get a baby listener or similar so that you can hear if anything unusual is happening.  Children love the adventure of being in their own little tent and doing this sort of thing is an important part of growing up. 

Fat Bum

Do we ever stop protecting our kids - in whatever situation?  As a parent, especially a mother, it comes with the territory.  Camping allowed our only child, a daughter, to grow up with a sense of responsibilityand independence and me with more restless nights than I care to think about.  She is now 16, approaching 6', a grand lass with an ear splitting scream and I (we) still worry about where to site her bedroom best for her protection.  Just when I was beginning to relax a little we bought a caravan and I've realised I won't be able to hear her as clearly, wonder if I sew bells all over her inner awning bedroom she'll think I'm going too far? Frankly, there is more chance of her coming across a bad situation in daylight at the swimming pool, but let's not go there!

sorry for lack of replies - been down to Goudhurst for the weekend and it was too cold for my daughter to sleep outside. Having read everyones comments we are only going to let her sleep out at Rallies - mainly because quite a few people are in the same boat and we generally keep a watchful eye on all the kids. Having said that we are going to keep a baby alarm with her as well as a night light. That way everyone is happy.

It all depends on the child, the campsite and how we personally feel about it. We can't protect them from every danger, but we assess the risks/benefits.

Kids are many times more likely to be abused by someone they know than a predatory stranger, and are far more likely to be killed on the road travelling to the campsite than when they are actually there - but that doesn't stop us travelling on the roads!

Maybe you shouldn't even mention that you have children???  Or that you leave your home to go on holiday??

- I think people tend to worry disproportionately about highly unlikely things.  Thankfully, incidents involving child abductions are very rare indeed and I am happy to take reasonable safety precautions without it affecting my choices.  Perhaps police parents are overly spooked by the things they come across, but of course their involvement must make it seem to them as though the incidents are more common because of their focus on affected people.

It's funny though, how many parents don't mind their children passive smoking, or not wearing car restraints properly, or riding around on (illegal) powered mini-bikes or a million and one life-shortening other things that they don't worry about - and yet they worry about abductions?  It seems unbalanced to me.

My children have been allowed to sleep out in an awning annex, and in a separate compartment of our previous tent and I would probably allow an older child to sleep in a pup tent if they insisted.

Sadly, in those cases where children have been harmed, there were often fairly good safety & supervision arrangements anyway - showing that it is impossible to make your children totally safe without removing them from all of society!

I'm not a 'worrier' myself, and I would like to think this allows me and my precious family to enjoy ourselves in relative safety.