A British dad moved his family to Japan and copied Tokyo parents. He is raising his kids to be independent. [Video]

It’s the type of scenario that would leave many Western parents in a panic. But even though it might be past 6 p.m. and dark, James and Morgan Ould aren’t worried that their 11-year-old daughter, Lillian, will be riding a public bus home from school.

The British couple, who moved to Tokyo from England in 2022, have a relatively relaxed attitude to the comings and goings of Lillian and her 7-year-old sister, Esme.

Their father told Business Insider that it was a case of “when in Rome.” Japanese parents, he said, are happy for their kids to walk — often long distances — to school or ride the train alone. “You see 5- and 6-year-olds walking to school by themselves,” Ould said. “It isn’t a big deal.”

Kids in the country are encouraged to be as independent as possible from a very young age, he said.

In contrast, he said, children who are raised in nations such as the US …