Stephen Leigh (Richard Attenborough) befriends a rebel child, Tod (Colin Petersen) who is accused of shoplifting. When Stephen discovers that Tod is living a nomadic, un-schooled existence, he is keen for Tod to start going to the school he teaches at. After Tod's father announces that he is leaving to work in America, Stephen offers to look after the boy whilst his father is away.

As Stephen and his wife Barbara (Dorothy Alison) are unable to have children, the arrival of Tod is a welcome blessing. But when the young tearaway struggles to adapt to respectable family life, they begin to question their decision. Tod and Stephen's shared love for music, however, helps build a bond, and family life becomes happy once again, until Tod's father returns with a new wife and demands his son back.