A school run mum blocked the driveway then refused to move when asked to

[DillyDallyDayDream]

I work a few doors down from a school/preschool as a nanny. The house has a doubled dropped kerb and double driveway.
I'd dropped my charge off at school and was getting the younger ones into the car when one of the preschool mums parked her huge 4x4 across the dropped kerb of the house I work in.
I asked her politely to move her car as I was going out and told her she can't legally block the driveway. She got quite arsey saying that she was late and there was no where else to park.
Was I being unreasonable to ask her to move??
Was I being unreasonable to report her to the local pcso after school whilst they were monitoring the parking?

YANBU

There are so many selfish gobshites who park badly round my DDs school I'd be going loony if I lived round there! There is really no excuse at all. A local pub has even given parents permission to park in there carpark totally free of charge, which is about 3 minutes walk from the school. It was meant to ease congestion. Yet my DP (I dont drive) and a very small handful of other parents are the only ones that do that. Everyone else goes right down to the school and battles it out like crazy people for the limited legal parking near the school. Nothing is off limits at all

She was certainly living up to the 4X4 owner stereotype. They so often do.

Do you lot never tire of giving the 4x4 digs?

Thought not.

The rav4 is wider and higher than a mini and around the same length

The Rav is narrower.

And no, it's not a crossover.

Parking across the driveway would be impressive. We have fuckwits park across the junction of an estate of 200 houses round here.

If it carries on, there will be WAR.

Our school has a side entrance as well as a main entrance , which is in a cul de sac . It's anarchy at picking up and dropping off time. People across drives , on pavements , all to save themselves another 100 yards , and it IS another 100 yards , to drive to the next side street , park perfectly correctly , not block anyone in , and saunter to the school . There are 5 prime suspects who abandon their vehicles as close as they can to the entrance daily , without actually parking in the playground . They drive respectively :

A Peugot 206 .
A Ford Fuckus .
A rover 800
A Mini.
An Audi TT .

You know who you are ! And so does the local SNT now , because I've rung them myself .

Me, I drive my hugely ostentatious Discovery to the side road , decant the 5 kids to go to their various schools , and saunter back . Me and my mate , with a just as big Chrysler voyager with her 5 kids , are the only two cars in the road . Ridiculous .

Going to see what tomorrow is like then there may be war!!

Offred - I don't know why most people drive their kids to High school - I drive my kid to High school as bullying in primary meant that he couldn't go to his local one through fear and therefore he now goes to a school 10 miles away with no public transport and no safe way to get there by bike.

I am sure that scenario doesn't apply to everyone but i am sure that there are people with valid reasons to drive. Equally there will be some people with kids in primary who have valid reasons.

None of that excuses people being ignorant and rude and causing problems for the locals - and I have always lived near schools

Yeah, sure there are valid reasons but the high school on the way to my primary school has a massive full car park and the whole street is double parked every morning.

i have this problem. we live on an estate which has a school just down the road and regularly have parents come to drop off/pick up their dcd and block my driveway, or park right on the junction to the estate so it makes it dangerous to get in or out of the estate especially with all the kids about.

i went out to work one day (at half 8) and a mum had parked across my drive so I said politely that I had to get out my drive to get to work - she just said she was late for work herself and had to get dc to school and she would 'only be 15 mins'. Errr, ok love - i'll be late for work for you!!

That does sound a bit excessive. I would say that most kids that go to my son's school walk or get the school bus (it doesn't go anywhere near us unfortunately) The drop off zone gets full but there is room in the staff car park for everyone else - some people seem to feel that they don't need to actually park and can just stop in the car park access roads which is a pita when you can't get out because of them - my fear is that they will end up causing an accident and then the school will not allow parents to use the car park anymore - it's always some selfish people that spoil it for everyone else.

YANBU

Please can someone explain why you need a massive 4x4 car in somewhere like London...?

Careful Iggly, you will get someone on here in a minute saying that once, 7 years ago, they used a 4x4 in London to rescue someone from the snow, or something like that

I'm in the luxurious position of having a driveway but no car, so this isn't an irritant for me personally. But on the days when I do school pick-up, I walk past the school half an hour before the kids come out. I'm always astonished at how many cars are already parked all down the road, often with babies strapped in, bored, in the back. This is an over-subscribed school which only takes in children living within 0.2 miles. I can understand that a few parents may have moved further away since their children started there, and that others may be on their way somewhere straight after. But this is a long road and it is chock a block with parents sitting waiting for half an hour. Very strange.

Long time lurker, 1st time poster , compelled to post!

Last house we lived in had a drive through (under) arch, which was shared by the 2 adjoining terraces as well as ours and a school at the end of the road, not 1 minute walk away.

On more than one occasion returned from school run (3 miles away) to find someone actually parked under the arch.

The irony (?) is, I had to drive my kids 3 miles to school, because they couldn't get into the one up the road!!!!!

YANBU

PMSL cinnamonnut

They are status cars, end of.

Maybe that's the problem, we don't have school buses here.

Iggly i have a 4X4 in London because I want to. it is a big status car! I have lots of money, so I buy a lovely beautiful 4X4! and what?...

Good for you Cows

But they're a PITA when driven by people who cannot park properly or even drive properly as they cannot see around them.

Well, that took longer that expected!

See previous comments about how it is inherently selfish and inconsiderate and dangerous for vulnerable road users especially around school two... So you are effectively saying you having an unnecessarily big car to show off you have money is more important than the safety or consideration of other people.

Do you like how I've been nice and quiet?

Offred - it is a public bus - well two actually but at school start and kicking out time they come up to the school as part of their routes. Seems to work well to get the kids who live farther away from the school (but in the catchment) to and from school though the fare is 2 pound each way or 40 pound for a pass per half term.

Iggly , little cars are also a pita when driven by people who cant drive maybe instead of getting all arsey about 4X4s you should get all arsey about people who cant drive?!

yes indeed offred, i am.