I want my son to be confident and happy. A child who is not afraid to take risks in life, but also someone who is not a reckless thrill seeker.

I do not want him to think that people are inherently evil and that all strangers are going to snatch him away from us – but nor do I want him to speak to people he doesn't know without any awareness of the dangers.

At the end of the day we all want to protect our children but I believe it is important that we do not wrap them in cotton wool or make them feel scared to have fun.

I was really saddened the other day to see a documentary on ITV about children who were too afraid to be, in essence, children.

They would not play outside in the street, go on bike rides, even with one another, or walk to the corner shop alone – even at the age of 13.

They stayed at home, played computer games and watched television.

One parent was even considering micro-chipping her children so she would always know their whereabouts.

A tad extreme, I would argue.

But how do we get the balance right?

It's a tricky one isn't it?

I know the world we live in today is very different to the one I inhabited as child – but is it really more unsafe?

According to all the statistics children today are no more likely to be at risk from kidnappers/paedophiles than they were 20, 30, 40 years ago. In fact, as I mentioned in last week's column, most children who have been physically, sexually or mentally abused have been done so by a member of their own family, or someone they know well.

Yet parents are more afraid of their children being abducted than almost anything else.

Personally I am more concerned about the danger posed by traffic. The sheer volume of vehicles on the roads seems to have quadrupled since I was a young child – and drivers seem to perpetually ignore speed limits.

I was amazed/horrified the other day to see a woman belting down the road near our quiet cul-de-sac, in a car full of kids, travelling at at least 40, if not 50mph.

How stupid can you get.

I was very tempted to pretend to jump out in the road, in an attempt to get her to slow down or at least think about her speed.

I think I might start a campaign to make the speed limit in all built-up areas to be 20mph.

Our children are in far more danger of cars then they are from strangers, but this should not stop us from allowing them to explore the world around them and have a little bit of independence. . . although from what age we start this is a different matter. Is 21 too young?