'SOFT PLAY WORKER SAID 'WE DON'T CATER FOR CHILDREN LIKE THAT'

[Jenz9]

I recently went to a soft play area in St Albans (Am I allowed to name it?). I paid just under £12.00 to get in and then with minutes spent another £15.00 on food for my husband and older daughter. When it came I asked for a spare plate for my youngest child as she has milk and soya allergies and I had some safe food for her I had brought from home.
As I sat down a loud bossy worker came over in a very loud voice telling me she could not eat food that had not been purchased there. I explained about her having allergies and she said that it didn't matter and she couldn't eat it unless it had been bought it. when I asked again what I could feed her as she had to eat she replied she didn't know but couldn't eat the food I had brought. I asked again what to do and she just kept repeating we could not eat at the premises.

I had to take my daughter outside whilst my husband and daughter ate at the table (I didn't go fully outside due to wet and rain but fed her by the door where it was muddy and people kept knocking us as they came in. When my husband enquired further what they provided for children with allergies as nothing was on the menu with allergy information she said 'WE DO NOT CATER FOR CHILDREN LIKE THAT AND DO NOT PERTAIN TO'. when asked what we should do she said. Her final suggestion was that we eat before we come out.

Surely all soft play should be about inclusion and involvement?
I am writing to the manager and will let you know how I get on.

[melonribena]

As a parent of a child with a milk allergy I find this horrendous.

It is discrimination. They cannot cater for your child.

You bought food and drinks for everyone else there. You didn't choose not to buy something for your dd, you can't because of an allergy.

Either they provide a dish that is guaranteed dairy free or they allow you to bring your own food.

Having a child/ten with allergies is scary, hard work and stressful at times.

My experiences of soft play has been successful. They have shown me food packaging so I can check it's safe and also allowed me to bring food. I always buy ds a drink or a portion of chips to supplement and show that I'm not taking the piss

[ReallyTired]

I think that OP is on rocky ground in that its fairly easy to indentify where she means as st albans is not a large place. If it is the place I think it is the family is only allowed to stay two hours and surely its quite easy to surive without food for two hours provided the children have access to drinks. I sure that * sells water.

Having said that there is no need for rudeness from staff. I feel that compromise could have been reached. Paying £2.99 for the privilage of eating home made food seems a sensible compromise.

[JugglingFromHereToThere]

YANBU
They definitely have to be in the wrong here - the way they spoke to you about your dd is out of order to start with, and then making a 2 year old leave (with a parent) in order to not go hungry - obviously not right

[2tiredtocare]

I only know of one soft play area in St Albans

[ifyourehoppyandyouknowit]

But they did cater for the child, or at least they had made an attempt to cater for all children - the jacket potato was an option. Not a great one, but it was there.

They were still incredibly rude and I'd complain about that, but I think you've got less grounds to stand on RE the allergies when there was at least one menu option available.

[pinkdelight]

"The business has to "support inclusion and involvement" by law. All businesses do."

Tell that to the Groucho Club! Sorry, I'm not being obtuse, but it's only a two-hour sesh at a softplay. The level of anger here ("horrendous" etc) baffles me. And my DC have food allergies.

(I came back, briefly)

[OnlyLovers]

I'd complain and tell them you'll be going elsewhere for soft play from now on, and that you'll tell all your friends what you think of them. Make sure they know exactly why.

Businesses should weigh up the pros and cons of things like letting people bring in their own food (in special circumstances like allergies –I know it's not something that, generally speaking, makes great sense.) 'fair business decisions' are not just about how much money something will make them in the short term; businesses need to look to long-term returning custom and goodwill as well.

[WandaDoff]

If this is true, then I'd phone the local paper to see if they'd do a story about it.

[racmun]

I com

[RescueCack]

We have the same problem in our local one. I hide the food and let the children run up to the table nibbling like animals and running around with their mouths full whilst the dinner lady type behind the counter tries to bust us. It's a ridiculous situation. I would happily buy the food there if it wasn't horrendous, deep fried crap. As well as a gluten-fest. They don't even sell fruit because "it goes off".

[pinkdelight]

And if it's the softplay in St Albans that came up when I googled, it also does carrot and cucumber sticks, toast (without butter) and various other non-dairy/soya stuff.

I guess I'm just less outraged because I know parents who regularly bring packed lunches to softplay purely for non-allergy reasons and I'm always (silently) agog at their cheek because there are signs saying it's not allowed and they can afford it, but would just rather not pay. If I worked there it'd wind me up.

[NigellasDealer]

but what does 'and do not pertain to' actually mean? does it mean anything at all, other than indicating that this worker was a pompous ass.
you should have asked to speak to the manager, that is outrageous!!
now you should compose a letter of complaint, we will help you

[ProudAS]

A non allergic child who didn't fancy the jacket potato could have had something else. The OP's DD didn't have that option. Allergic children are never going to have as many options as non allergic but just one is insufficient if they are expected to purchase food there. Even if the child had liked jacket potatoes sounds like she would have gone hungry had they sold out.

The idea of a small charge for people to eat own food sounds sensible though. Means special diets get catered for but venue don't lose revenue to piss takers.

[ProudAS]

A non allergic child who didn't fancy the jacket potato could have had something else. The OP's DD didn't have that option. Allergic children are never going to have as many options as non allergic but just one is insufficient if they are expected to purchase food there. Even if the child had liked jacket potatoes sounds like she would have gone hungry had they sold out.

The idea of a small charge for people to eat own food sounds sensible though. Means special diets get catered for but venue don't lose revenue to piss takers.

[winterhat]

YANBU. Complain and phone the local paper.

[hiddenhome]

I think it's the attitude of places like this that causes upset.

Ds1 has a severe nut allergy and I've had people who were serving being hostile and argumentative with me when I made a polite enquiry into the ingredients of their foods in order to try and avoid nuts/nut contamination.

If a person with one leg or a learning disability was spoken to like that there'd be an outcry, but people with allergies are seen as being awkward and faddy

Fair enough, the OP's soft play place might not have been able to cater for her child, but manners cost nothing.

I'd slay them on Trip Advisor

[StealthPolarBear]

I assume she meant intend

[neolara]

I think part of the problem is that some parents bring up the "my child has allergies" line when they want to feed their kids food brought from home instead of playbarn food, when in fact the child doesn't really have allergies at all. So the employee may not have believed you. (And I say this as someone who's dc has a severe nut allergy.)

[Jenz9]

I don't mind buying food. I did buy food. Spent £15.00 on food. I just didn't buy food for my child with allergies. I know some people lie about allergies but I wasn't lying. I don't want to be up all night with her vomiting and crying which happened once at a venue when I bought supposedly suitable food. At least that time it must have had dairy in. She has a more serious reaction with soya. This is m daughters health we are talking about. Who takes risks with that?

[melonribena]

Toast or a jacket potato without topping or spread is not really a viable option. Would you want that while everyone else is tucking into delicious things?

[neolara]

I'm pretty sure that allergies don't count as a disability and therefore there is no need for businesses to make "reasonable adjustments" by law.

[rockybalboa]

What a bitch. I just wouldn't have shifted and would just have kept on feeding my child at the table. Silly cow.

[Bumbershoot]

That is appalling. YANBU. If they can't cater for children with allergies they have no right to stop you bringing your own food. It's discrimination.

[ifyourehoppyandyouknowit]

I'm not saying it's a great option, just that it was there. So when the OP is saying that there wasn't anything she could eat, that wasn't really true. Did they sell fresh fruit? It would, of course, be better if there were a variety of options. And if there was nothing then the OP should have been allowed to use the food she had brought, and of course there was no need for them to be so rude and nasty about it. But if they have provided an option or two, then it's fair enough for them to say no to lunch boxes (in my opinion).

[FunLovinBunster]

I HATE soft play and thank Buddha that DD is too old for it now!!
The bloody food rules.
The crappy deep fried shite.
The huge amount they charge.
The dirty floors.
The filthy play equipment.
There is one place here in a Chester suburb where I saw babies crawling out of the so called security gate. The lock was broken. So not secure at all. And every time we've been there DD has had vomiting bug within 12 hours. (It's name includes a zoo animal...)