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AIBU?

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Original poster

AIBU to continue turning in the school gate?

488 replies

NortonBuns · 19/03/2025 14:18

I drive my dd to school everyday and once I drop her off I turn around and drive home. I approach the back gate of the school and use this entrance to turn my car round so I can head back home.
The school have now put up a sign saying keep our children safe, no stopping, dropping off or turning in the entrance.
So where am I supposed to turn around? If I carry on I reach the front gate which is busier and has the busses. If I turn before I reach the back entrance I am doing a three point turn in busy school run traffic with lots of children walking and cycling.
So AIBU to say I am safest turning in the large double gate and ignoring the new sign?

OP posts:
shehasglasses48 · 20/03/2025 22:06

Park away from the school and walk. A long way away.

treesandsun · 20/03/2025 21:37

Yeah you crack on - fuck the kids' safety. As long as you can turn easily.

RandomWordsThrownTogether · 20/03/2025 21:35

Honestly when I have been in situations like this I drive the wrong direction from home, through busy roads until I reach someplace I can turn around safely! If you put your address into google maps it’ll throw up some alternative routes home for you, it might add on time but better than doing a 3 point turn in a school entrance! When traffic is bad I end up doing a crazy long loop home from dropping my daughter off as there is no way to turn around at peak times!

ThriveAT · 20/03/2025 21:28

Nobody cares about this. Think about real struggles that schools (and other people across the world) are going through. First world (entitled ) problems.

Lourdes12 · 20/03/2025 21:22

I have autism and struggle to picture things. can you make a drawing of your predicament so I can understand

CleverButScatty · 20/03/2025 21:22

vodkaredbullgirl · 19/03/2025 14:26

Stop being a twat and take notice of the sign.

Edited

This. With bells on.

Ghosttofu99 · 20/03/2025 21:19

NortonBuns · 19/03/2025 18:52

There are no side roads, why post if you can’t be bothered to read the thread. No matter how early I leave I have to turn around. Either before or after the school, I just think it’s safer before. For what it’s worth the sign went up a week ago and so far everyone has carried on as usual.

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I hope the council makes a no stop zone with cameras and fines then as it is the only thing that will deter people like you from endangering others.

Try looking at it this way: One of the many other parents ignoring this sign knocks your daughter down. (hopefully doesn’t happen) Would you be pleased they ignored the safety advice to save time and convenience?

HevenlyMeS · 20/03/2025 21:09

Numerous unnecessary sarcasm within some of these responses
Being's none of us have seen the school premises & the part where this Mum's mentioned there's now a sign informing parents not to use this part anymore, we don't have a right to imply she's being awkward or self seeking
Maybe it does hold potential risks, but equally we don't know whether the power & control of some in authority here, has previously been known to abuse their power
Either way, sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, so please try to be kind & keep an open mind, especially in concerns with fellow, loving parents
Even when you presume they might be wrong - Kindness is The Highest Form Of Wisdom

Ottersmith · 20/03/2025 20:55

NortonBuns · 19/03/2025 16:51

Ok so to answer some of your questions;

All the other parents do this, it is literally a queue of cars waiting to turn around to avoid carrying on towards the main school gate where busses are dropping off.

The school is about two miles up a straight road full of high school children walking and cycling to the school. No side roads to drop off or turn around.

I really am a very considerate driver, would never block drives, stop on yellow lines or zebra crossings. I just don’t know what the safe alternative is.

Gross. What about all the children breathing these fumes? Asma, lungs developing wrong, dementia. All caused by fumes.

H112 · 20/03/2025 20:43

Tell her to walk

IzzyHandsIsMySpiritAnimal · 20/03/2025 20:42

The sensible approach would be to contact the school (ideally as a group of parents if most do as you do) and ask what the safest options might be given the constraints of the road?

I understand they don't necessarily want people turning/blocking business access but if there really is no other alternative with the road layout then they're going to have a lot of people dropping children off late.

Busyquaver1 · 20/03/2025 20:30

EdithBond · 20/03/2025 20:24

It’s rural and they live 6 miles away.

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Fair enough find a parking spot 5 mins away from school then walk.

EdithBond · 20/03/2025 20:24

Busyquaver1 · 20/03/2025 20:20

Assuming you and your child have no disabilities then I'd say walk to school!!

It’s rural and they live 6 miles away.

EdithBond · 20/03/2025 20:23

If the school serves rural locations, which necessitates children being taken to school by car, it should be down to the local authority to figure out how to provide a safe space for cars to turn, such as a mini roundabout.

Otherwise, sounds like an accident waiting to happen.

Ask the school where cars are supposed to turn to avoid the crowded main gate.

Busyquaver1 · 20/03/2025 20:20

Assuming you and your child have no disabilities then I'd say walk to school!!

Whaleandsnail6 · 20/03/2025 20:04

I feel like you have not actually answered WHY you can't carry on to the end of the road and then use the crossroads to work out a way home either by doing a different route or finding somewhere to eventually turn around and come back on yourself?

Is it a dead end road?
Or
Is it just the fact its busy with buses, pedestrians and traffic and you dont want to get stuck in that?

FreedomandPeace · 20/03/2025 19:59

NortonBuns · 20/03/2025 19:48

Perfectly legal to drive in but parents were emailed and asked not to as the business complained. Most comply with this so turn in the entry. No such email about not turning just a banner strung up on a fence.
Lots of people are saying it is dangerous but children don’t walk here, they have a separate fenced off walkway.

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If its legal it must be highways land so all OK to use.

If the business have ownership tho it isn’t. If they compla8ned are you sure they don’t own it

CountryCob · 20/03/2025 19:54

What does everyone else do? Obviously this can't be a system that all parents dropping off use. It is quite possible that the sign is for you and if you ignore it that will be noticeable. Their next step is likely close the gate/ cones. I would take the hint

Original poster
NortonBuns · 20/03/2025 19:48

Lovemycat2023 · 20/03/2025 19:08

I’m still confused about the businesses OP refers to. These seem to be beyond the gate where she normally turns around. Which doesn’t make much sense as then there would clearly be somewhere else to turn around (their car parks). Admittedly a pain for the businesses (maybe) but another option. Or did I imagine that post?

Perfectly legal to drive in but parents were emailed and asked not to as the business complained. Most comply with this so turn in the entry. No such email about not turning just a banner strung up on a fence.
Lots of people are saying it is dangerous but children don’t walk here, they have a separate fenced off walkway.

OP posts:
SwimBikeRunBake · 20/03/2025 19:43

Is this just an issue in the mornings? What do you do at pick up time at the end of the day? Do you wait by the back gate or use the main entrance?

Shelley108 · 20/03/2025 19:34

Or drop your child further away, won’t kill them to walk for 5-10 mins. That’s what I do

TheWombatleague · 20/03/2025 19:33

FreedomandPeace · 20/03/2025 19:15

Lovely

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With the bonus of teaching resilience.

Shelley108 · 20/03/2025 19:33

Could you not use part one of the houses drives instead?

LandSharksAnonymous · 20/03/2025 19:32

This is a high school by the way

Sorry, but by senior school, I very much think kids can walk 5 minutes down the road in rush-hour. It's hardly East-Croydon at 2am on a Sunday night.

Drop her 5-10 minutes away if you CBA to ge out your car and walk with her.

Shufflebumnessie · 20/03/2025 19:30

The school has obviously only put the sign up to personally inconvenience you. It has absolutely nothing with them trying to keep the children as safe as possible! 🙄
Your sense of self entitlement is astonishing. I suspect it's your ongoing use of using the school gate to turn around in that have pushed the school into putting up the signs.

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