Not allowing heavily pregnant woman to use a loo

It will be customer toilets, not public toilets. The policy isn't the fault of the staff member - its probably not "nastiness".

Kindness from who though?

If kindness on behalf of senior management telling staff they can use their discretion to allow people to use the staff loos if needed and wont be penalised then fair enough, but the suggestion from lots of the posts here is that it should be kindness on behalf of a minimum waged staff member risking their job ir at least a disciplinary, and if they don't want to do so they are cruel, which I think is unfair....

No, I've been saying that all along. I thought the poster said it was a toilet the public could use, or do you have to buy something first in Primark? If so, that's policy I don't agree with!

The minimum wage shop floor staff probably aren't allowed to bend the rules.

Is it everyone you'd bend the rules for? Or just people with visible issues like pregnancy or small children?
If a homeless looking 50 year old man smelling of alcohol came in saying he had food poisoning and could he use your loo would you have let him? If there was only you and say one other woman in the building?

Wow, now that is out of order. I can't see any reason for that other than nastiness!

This reminds me: I was at a well known clothes store (beginning with P) which does have public toilets and a cafe here - but the toilets need a code to enter - when a lady went up to a member of staff asking if she could be let into the toilets because she was on her period and was caught in a situation where she didn’t have time queue up to buy something to get the code, and the member of staff refused! The lady was clearly distressed, and I was shocked and angered at the poor customer service.

I agree, but the fact is, kindness won't get you out of having to pay out thousands because your insurance doesn't cover accidents and kindness won't help some poor person on minimum wage who gets fired because they were nice enough to let someone use the toilet, and it all goes wrong.

We absolutely need to campaign for more public toilets. I think that's the only real solution.

I’m a bit shocked by some of these responses. If you are ever in OP’s situation due to pregnancy, food poisoning, IBS or any other cause, would you expect to be scolded for “not planning better”? It can happen to anyone, you know.

I used to work in a shop and we did occasionally bend the rules and let customers use the staff toilet. One of us had to wait in the corridor outside the toilets so we could escort them out of the staff area afterwards.

I totally get policies and whatnot, but I also think that kindness should be forefront.

I recall one of my sons telling me he needed the toilet in the local (small) Asda - he was about 3 and a half, maybe 4, and so couldn't wait long. I remember telling him ok, we'll have to go and come back later - a staff member heard me and kindly let me use the toilet with him.

PS - yes I've worked in a shop.

How many members of staff were on? If less than 3, then of course they couldn't let you.
I work for Co-op & the policy is if there are 3 or more staff members available (ie not on a break, counting safes etc) then one member of staff CAN accompany a member of the public to the staff toilets if the staff are comfortable doing this.
Members of the public cannot be left alone in the back areas & the staff are under zero obligation to let anyone use the toilets.
That being said, if there was enough staff, I'd have allowed it, but others (maybe a team on that were all male) would not.
I certainly would not be accompanying a male on my own as it wouldn't be safe, but a male member of my team may feel differently, but wouldn't accompany a lone woman.

It is often to do with insurance though, I know that for a fact. Of course, not everyone has the same level of insurance.

And it's not just about leaving no one in the shop at all - staff can and do get reprimanded if they leave their post for any reason, even if there's cover. Retail can be pretty draconian.

Not sure if the point is going over your head or you're just purposely ignoring it to fit with the narrative you want to hear.

Irrespective of whether they are the Co-op's values, those are not the values of their insurance provider. Similarly, if you were expecting an insurance policy to be flexible, where do you draw the line? Because it's always going to omit someone who arguably has a reasonable case.

Why your name, address have an impact on whether you are insured for accidents. Do you think they write that into insurance policies? Don't be ridiculous.

Small stores just don't have the staff for this, even if there wasn't a blanket policy of "no". The time it would take to get the till covered or summon someone to escort you, plus where staff only toilets are situated, it's just not feasible. The number of big chain supermarkets with dedicated full time cleaning staff whose public toilets i've been in lately showcase just how filthy people can be too. Where theres toilet seats/floors sprinkled with pee from the "hoverers", toilets unflushed full of human waste, broken seats/doors, some cubicles unusable because theyre blocked to overflowing with loo roll or used roll is all over the cubicle floor etc. No wonder all the public toilets are closing, it costs too much to try to keep them clean and useable because people don't respect them. And these were facilities that are supposedly checked every few hours. I have bladder and bowel issues to the point i even have a blue badge and radar key, and the disabled loo/baby change can be just as awful if it's not radar locked.

I sympathise so much, my life is literally dictated by where are there toilets i can use in an emergency (OCD also about germs so its literal last resort to use outside loos) I can't go out anywhere if its not by car as i can't manage even the length of a street or two if my need to go NOW kicks in, I've struggled many a time making it the few hundred metres to the loo from parking right at the shop entrance. But even so, i don't think you're being reasonable.

When you have a condition that can make urgent toilet use a need, you have to plan carefully. Use the loo before leaving the house, and use every loo available at oppertunities between errands etc. I totally get you didn't need a wee when you left the school, but you could've gone just incase. I've lost count how many just in case wees i've done in my life even when i know i'll be out and back in a half hour etc and haven't even that long since been. I had to hobble in to a library a few weeks ago when i was scared i wouldn't make it the 3 streets back to my partners house when i'd only nipped to the corner shop. Its reinforced my rule of wee before i leave the house, even if i went less than an hour earlier as i just cannot trust my bladder.

You may find this interesting
https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/History-of-Womens-Public-Toilets-in-Britain/

But the size of a building is the size of a building. If we were to build more loos we'd need to lose a treatment room or the reception area.
The place I work is an old terrace house used as a medical place. We rarely have more than 3 or 4 patients in at any one time. So one loo per 3 or 4 people should really be enough. Otherwise we'd need to remove a treatment room, which would kill the business. We'd then have 2 toilets for 1-2 people. And the business would go under as not enough money coming in.
And we have one staff toilet for 5 staff. I think ratio wise that's plenty.
Obviously it's unfortunate if someone is in the loo when you need to go. But if someone is that desperate they can't wait a few mins there's not really much anyone can do about that. Unless you're in your own house no one can guarantee an available toilet instantly.
No company can have a ratio of public to loo as 1:1.

I'm not suggesting that's the staff do that if it leaves no one in the shop. That obviously wouldn't make sense. My point is it's nothing to do with insurance. I'm pretty sure if OP went to a chemist shop they would take her to the staff toilet if there was a medical reason.

I'm not suggesting Joe public wanders around the stockroom without supervision fgs. Obviously a member of staff would have to go with them. I'm not sure what you mean by "appropriate footwear". What sort of dangerous terrain will be in the average shop that requires "appropriate footwear" to get to the toilet?

I mean, you can laugh and scoff all you like, but most retail environments require you to wear certain types of footwear - normally closed shoes at a minimum, or steel toe caps in the warehouse or other areas. You wouldn't be allowed to wander through in sandals or ballet shoes for example.

If people on job interviews are covered by insurance because they are accompanied why would any other member of the public not to be covered by insurance if they are accompanied.

I'm guessing because someone who is there for a job interview has given their details (name, address, phone number) whereas someone who is just shopping there wouldn't have done.

The issue is lack of public toilets. It's not co-ops fault. All high streets, decent sized parks etc should have one.
And mums, Tena and pelvic floor exercises are your friends!

Then the staff member gets in trouble because there's no one manning the tills or whatever.

I wish it were different but people in retail are often doing the jobs of three people already, and they get very little grace from managers when things don't go as planned.

Not to mention a lack of basic reading skills. The OP was on her way home when she needed the toilet. Unless she has previously undisclosed powers of Startreck levels of instant transportation she could not have made it home.

I'm not suggesting Joe public wanders around the stockroom without supervision fgs. Obviously a member of staff would have to go with them. I'm not sure what you mean by "appropriate footwear". What sort of dangerous terrain will be in the average shop that requires "appropriate footwear" to get to the toilet?

If people on job interviews are covered by insurance because they are accompanied why would any other member of the public not to be covered by insurance if they are accompanied.