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That’s pretty strange...all of our community centres have family change rooms in addition to male and female change rooms so I have never even thought of this as a problem. There are large changing stalls for privacy and any age/sex of kids/adults go in there. Does your centre have that option? To answer your question, my son is only 3.5 but I can’t even think when I would be ok sending him alone...maybe like 7 or 8?

Are you sure that the center doesn't have a family locker room? At our gym, we can bring children 4 and under into the opposite sex changing room, but after that have to use the family locker room. I send my 5 year old son into the bathroom by himself sometimes, with me waiting right outside the door. I would not send him into a locker room and trust that he was capable of getting himself showered and changed after swim lessons though.

I didn't vote, as I would actually vote at an earlier age.

I have let my 3 year old go into restrooms by himself. I have stood outside the door, but he insisted on using the urinals. On a couple of occasions, I have gone into the Men's room with him. Most have been small 1/2 stall restrooms. I do then drag him into the women's room to change his sister and go to the restroom myself.

At one of the most common restrooms, I would be willing to let him go by himself already. My biggest concern would be other people complaining about it.

It's hard to say and depends on each child. I would be uncomfortable having a 5 year old plus aged child of the opposite sex in the locker room area while I was changing and having them most likely stare. At the pool I use they having a family changing are. One time a father sent his daughter into the women's room to change by herself. He stood outside the door the entire time and occasionally opened it a crack (around a corner so he couldn't see anything) and would make sure she was okay and not wasting time.

I agree this situation is hard and depends so much on the child/facility. In your situation, if I wasn't comfortable with my son changing alone in the men's room, I would probably hold a towel around him in a corner of the pool area and have him quickly change behind the towel. I would just have both kids shower at home, which is what I do with DD1 now. I may or may not have my daughter change behind a towel (it would be really hard with my 3-yr-old DD since she needs so much help getting her swimsuit on and off) - I would probably just change her quickly in the ladies changing room and have your son wait outside the door on the non-pool side. If she doesn't have to pee, it takes me 2 min or so to simply change DD1 into street clothes and throw her wet stuff in the bag.

Our YMCA is the same way (kids only up to a certain age can go into either locker room with parents - there's no family changing room. I'm not sure what the age limit is because my oldest LO is only 2, so I haven't had to worry about it yet.) That being said, I kind of agree with @Pollywog: - I'd just change my habits and shower at home, to minimize the amount of time your son is by himself.

Five seems way too young for a locker room full of strangers. Especially considering showering can take a while, it's not like they run in and out. My local pool has the same rule, and if DS ever signs up to swim there, I'm totally asking DH to take him.

I wouldn't even care if a young boy was in the women's locker room though. Better if they're safe, and in my experience just about everyone changes in the stalls or under a towel, not in full view of strangers.

I don't understand how pools that are family centered don't have family bathrooms or changing rooms. We looked at two gyms with pools and one had no family bathrooms at all, while the other one has mens and women's locker rooms plus a couple of family changing rooms with a toilet and shower all in one room. Opposite sex children 4 and up are not technically supposed to go in the locker rooms (no one complains if people push that though because we all get it).

In your situation, I would stop showering there as well. I only have two girls and the oldest is 4.5 and shes definitely not anywhere close to ready for all that.

our Y is the same way, but there is a restroom open to everyone in the pool area, a shower to rinse off (not fully shower) and changing stalls. i have all girls, so this isn't an issue for me currently, but i imagine if we're all there with DH as well, I would want to stagger the care of the kids so send one to just rinse off and dress in the stalls. i have sent my 5 year old into a restroom stall to pee alone, but no way would i send her into a shower alone with no way to get to her unless she came out!

Idk where everyone is from but I'm pretty sure around here you would get more flack for not supervising and letting him go alone than for taking him with you!

I must be the only helicopter parent here (lol)....my kids are (newly) 5, 2.5, and 11m and at this moment I can't imagine my oldest is anywhere near ready to go into a locker room full of strangers alone. Not even close. I'd bet that he wouldn't want to either.

I didn't vote because I am perplexed. Maybe you can talk to the people who runs the place as in why do they think it is OK for a 6 year old to go into a public changing room to shower, dry, and change himself? I am almost positive that no one follows that rule on the sign.

While I am 100% not comfortable with sending my 6 year old into a public changing room and expect him to do everything himself (he'd probably drag the towel all through the floor and then wipe it on himself eeek), I also don't know when will be an appropriate time. It really depends on how ready your child is, I'd think.

My DS is also newly 6. I am sending him to the public restroom by himself occasionally starting on his 6th birthday. Every time he wants to go, I will offer if he wants me to go with him (to the ladies' room) or if he wants to go by himself (to the men's room). He did it by himself maybe 3 or 4 out of 10 times. This is helpful especially when there 's a line at the ladie's room . I am usually right outside and can hear him call out to me (nothing so far). I have preached to him to never touch anything when he is in the bathroom, and as he comes out I always ask if he was able to wash his hands/reach the soap by himself and if he wants me to go with him to wash his hands again, and he usually tells me someone helped him get the soap and he can wash his hands. If you are really uncomfortable, give him some hand sanitizer. If you think about it, they do use the restroom by themselves anyway at school, so they should be fine