I've flown with EasyJet and RyanAir many times. Each time we've always been given priority boarding as we have a young child (and for anyone who doesn't know, these carriers don't allocate seat numbers to passangers).
However, when I booked this week for our next trip, I had a closer look at the terms and conditions of carriage. They state that the airlines don't guarantee that families will be seated together - fair enough. Has anyone, though, had all their family members split up including small children? Now I assume that common sense would prevail in instances like these, but ultimately, what would the carriers do if my 8 year old had to sit completely on her own (especially as they will not allow unaccompanied minors to travel) and no-one would swap a seat?

I can't imagine that happening, but just for the record, how bad would it be if your eight year old had to sit between two strangers for an hour or so? Most eight year olds I know might even look on it as an adventure, depending of course on the luck of the draw.

My concern was more for when she was younger to be honest. I just wondered if anyone had ever had it happen.
Just passing the time on a cold winter's evening!!

My daughter and I will be flying Ryan Air to Rome in 10 days. Do you get a seat assigned to you when you check in or do you just pick a seat when you board. Does it help to check in early, to get a good seat?

They'd probably do nothing. Geez -- I was taking city buses on my own for several hours when I was eight years old. If your child can't sit alone on a plane for an hour, maybe you should book a regular airline, that's why they are cheaper.

Summersquash - No they don't allocate seats. You sit anywhere on board. Sometimes they do board depending on the number on your boardling pass, so earlier check-in may work. Usually they call people with children first.
Christina - Geez yourself. Good for you in taking buses on your own at 8 years old. If I was anywhere near you, I'd pat you on the head patronisingly.
Why don't people read things before having little digs? I said that my concern was more for when she was younger. It was just something I picked up on on the small print and wondered what they would do with a younger child seeing that they are very strict on unacompanied minors. Sorry to have caused you so much problems. Move on to the next thread.
One thing though - I don't want another passanger's nervy 5 or 6 year old next to me, on their own.

If someone's five or six year old is "nervy" it probably speaks volumes about the parents.

Get there early so you won't ever have to worry about sitting together.

OK. It was a rhetorical question and the issue is not one that I lie awake at nights worrying about.
However, I am genuinely stunned that parents would leave their small children out of sight - even on a flight.
I realise that not much could happen on an aeroplane, but I would not leave my daughter alone without responsible supervision even for one minute.
Perhaps it is a sad reflection on modern Britain where you never leave your kids alone (let alone allow 8 year olds to ride buses on their own), and that spills out into your way of dealing with mundane items problems like this.

My experience with Ryanair and Easyjet has been that people with small children are allowed to board first. I don't know whether that extends to eight-year olds though.

In any event, I'd be surprised if you weren't easily able to find two seats next to each other or across an aisle even if you boarded quite late.