Is it okay to leave a baby in the car?

The solution isn’t you helping, those are silly suggestions as this is a regular arrangement. 3 kids is tough but most parents will arrive early, put baby in a pushchair so they can handle other siblings more easily. Yes it’s more work but that’s parenting.

you just need to report to nursery or 101. Yes you might feel awkward but you’d feel way worse if something happened that was preventable had you intervened.

It's not illegal as such but babies, toddlers and young children should never be left alone and parents can be prosecuted for leaving children unattended where they could be at risk.

Not so long ago babies were left outside alone in front of shops and cafes. It's still the norm in Northern Europe. Rationally it's no more risky now than it was 30 years ago. So why are we so risk averse now? It's no more dangerous now than then, perhaps even less so. Its not illegal to leave a baby or child in a car or in a pram unattended, unless they are in danger. It's a very open assessment. Looking up recent cases you would be prosecuted in the US, given a caution in the UK, and it would be entirely normal in the Nordics.

That's what I'm thinking. The risk of someone abducting a baby from a locked car has to be very low.

Is it really much different from leaving them in a forecourt?

She probably pressed for time too. Collect them will be quicker and easier than faffing getting LO out the car too.

Yadnbu

I think you would have to be pretty dumb and naive to risk it.

It’s very likely that mum has risked assessed and decided that any potential risks are incredibly tiny. As a parent, she is entitled to make that decision.

I wouldn’t do anything about it.

Please don't waste police time with this. It is not illegal. By all means mention to the nursery if you're that concerned. But try and assess the risks logically. It is very very unlikely that the baby will be kidnapped or anything bad will happen to it. Over heating might be a concern though

Talk to the mum first, perhaps on the basis of help being needed. If the mum does not like you for doing that, you would not want someone with that view as a friend anyway.

Why not call the police and report it? The nursery might not do anything about it.

Hell no

I'm going to go against the grain here but the faff in getting baby out, pram out etc is more than likely the reason. Yes it's not nice to see/hear a baby cry but would you be saying the same if the mother was in the car?

If the windows were closed and it was in direct sun, you'd have a point. As for stealing car and baby, most cars are keyless these days so if she has the fob, the car won't start.

Don't call 101 or 999.

But do either mention it to the nursery or hand around and mention it to the mum.

I know you've said you don't want to. But if you're stood there waiting for her to come back anyway, you may as well. It can be a "oh I thought I'd better wait for you to come back, didn't want to leave your baby alone as you never know who could come by".

If the car park is away from the main road, the mum probably has risk assessed that leaving the baby there with windows down for a few mins is safe. I wouldn't do it. If the handover happened at the door so you could see the car, yes, but not as you describe for 10 minutes out of sight.

If you can't speak to the mum speak to the nursery manager.

Definitely not ok!!

If you really don't want any confrontation @Anonymousmummmy , is there anyone you could ask to ring the nursery to say they saw a baby left in a car outside as they were walking past? They could describe the car, the woman and children getting back in to it and the reg? Is it obvious that the carpark belongs to the nursery?
I dont know how anyone would think it was ok to leave a baby alone, with the windows down, when out of sight for over a minute tbh. Unless they were incredibly stupid.

She is judged though

No. No way. I would never do that.

It's attitudes like this that give bad ppl opportunity to take or hurt kids.

The baby isn’t sleeping. But exactly that, all OP can do is report and if further action needs doing it will be taken, if not then no harm done.

I know he's been proven to be a rather unsavoury character since, but didn't Laurence Fox get a warning from the police or something for leaving a toddler in a car parked outside a chemist while he popped in for 2 minutes to buy calpol?

"Babies .... should never be left alone. "

See I don't agree with that. That's not actually true, is it? Or else no one would ever cook a meal, have a shower, go to the toilet. Do a pooh!

I would absolutely report it to the nursery. Babies are not designed to fend for themselves and should never be left alone. I took my kids in with me to the petrol station until they were old enough to undo seat belts and get out of the car themselves in an emergency. A baby can't do that.

I do actually think that the kidnap risk is miniscule, but it's not the only danger. The car could be stolen, handbrake not on properly, sun be coming through the glass straight onto baby's eyes, baby could vomit, mum or kids in nursery become unwell and no one would know to check the car and many more.

Not that I'm recommending it, but is it actually illegal though?

Mention it to nursery but the suggestions to call 999 and SS are bonkers.

The report to nursery could also have come from a concerned member of the public, a neighbour of the nursery for example could hear the baby crying and go in to tell them. So what if some random mum at nursery doesn't like you much. Her kids aren't even in the same room as yours so you won't even have to deal with her at parties or playdates or anything.

You can call social services or 111 or whatever else has been recommended on here but leaving your sleeping baby in a car while you drop off at nursery won't prompt any sort of investigation or action. I guess it leaves a record in case other concerns are raised about the family in the future.