There are things a kid should know and things a kid should be able to do.

He or she should know:-

• Roughly how the central heating works
• How the plumbing works
• How the electricity works
• How an immersion heater works
• How the damp-proof course, the roof and gutters weatherproof the house
• How to get the car serviced (and how to check the tyres, water and oil)
• How to get a key cut.

He or she should be able to:-

• Mend a fuse/reset a contact breaker/change the fuse in a plug
• Put up a shelf
• Put up a picture
• Erect flat pack furniture
• Paint walls and woodwork (is wallpapering too advanced?)
• Change a light bulb
• Climb a ladder
• Clear out the gutters
• Unblock a drain
• Turn off the water coming into the house
• Mow the lawn, clip the hedge, weed a flowerbed
• Grow simple vegetables (lettuce, tomatoes and potatoes would do)
• Change a broken window pane