Keeping your family and loved ones safe has become easier with a new app called XandY Family. It’s a free Smartphone app for the safety of family that uses GPS to plot the exact locations of everyone on a map, along with Twitter style messaging to easily communicate with each other.
With my boyfriend’s 12 year old daughter having just started high school, this new app has given both of us a great deal of peace of mind. Whilst catching public transport is helping to forge her independence, it is also nerve wracking hoping that she doesn’t get lost or confused on a journey that requires her to catch both a bus and a train for the first time.
Installing the app on her phone, gives us all comfort knowing that she can message us if she gets lost or misses a bus, and we can see where she is on a map and guide her home. There is also an emergency button, which can be used if she was to ever come across any trouble whilst travelling to or from school.
And unfortunately the reality is that we do live in a society where children can be exposed to situations that threaten their safety. She has twice been approached in the local area by strange men, and once was asked to get into a car.
I have sent the app to many people, including my friend whose 17-year old daughter who was recently placed in a threatening situation that has left her feeling unsafe. This app helps her to rebuild her confidence to go back out into public again, knowing that her mum can be notified immediately if her personal safety is ever compromised again.
I believe this new kind of technology will also deter predators like this, reduce crime and protect the safety of kids. Feedback from family and friends who have installed this app, has indicated like us that it was very easy to install and to start using immediately. Also, if the phone ever goes out of service, it continues to store location data and will do so for up to a two-month period.
The full version of the app is currently available for free download. In the future, new users will pay a small fee. The lite version will always be free.
This post was brought to you by XandY Family.
Thanks for the heads up on this app Gaynor. I have an 11 year old daughter who is in the process of discovering and experimenting with what independence means for her (and her parents!!). I will let you know how it works for us.
That would be great to let me know you go with the app. I think it’s such a great initiative and has certainly given my boyfriend a lot of peace of mind with his daughters.