Kids playing in roads and carparks

[Mumofonesoontobetwo]

Why is this suddenly acceptable? Where I live my car has to be parked around the back which is accessible via a cul de sac and by driving through a tight passage way to a car park for at least 10 houses. For some reason the people that live on cul de sac think it's acceptable for numerous children under 5 to be running in and out of car park and using scooters across what is the blind entrance and exit. All houses have gardens and the large park is only 5 mins walk away. AIBU to think these kids shouldn't be playing there? Sometimes parents have to leg it into road as children just scoot wherever when cars are coming!

There are kids playing everywhere, its wonderful on a hot sunny evening. Just slow down, to a crawl. Soon enough it will be raining again. I still remember the summer of '76, let these kids have memories too.

They can play in their gardens, not a road!

I never played in the road as a child because it was a busy main road. I went to the park two minutes away instead.

I don't even remember my friends who lived in cul de sacs playing in the road, everyone just went to the school fields or the park.

\link{https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/a1/5d/ce/a15dcefa93f495969b801bb8b3372e43.jpg\this was the kind of signs they have in the US}

Thread is already ace

You can't play kerby without a road

If you live in a kiddy friendly cul de sac the kids will play out...

How dare children use communal, public spaces to get some fresh air, exercise and socialise with each other. It's disgusting behaviour. Don't they remember Maggie Thatcher telling them there is no such thing as society?

I'd report them to the police too. I'm sure the coppers will be beating down their doors first things the morning.

My Mum said in days of yore there were play streets.

op do you live in my road
i am shocked that people allow their tiny children to play in the middle of a road . they are so tiny and have np road sense at all( I see them from my window(
one will get knocked over soon

It's the place where all of the children can play, theres very few parents who even if they had the room would allow hoards of kids in their garden!
Maybe some aren't allowed to the park or its across a busy road.
Maybe playing in the street is more fun, more places to hide, run ect
Maybe the parents like all the kids around where they can see/hear them.
My dd, almost 14 has come in today from playing cops and robbers for a couple if hours or more, probably 8 ish kids from 6 to 14, I think it's bloody brilliant kids can be kids out in the fresh air, close to.the parents yet independent, what the hell is wrong with that?!

i have no problem with kids playing out, mine did. but letting a small child play on a not safe bit of road*where I am talking about , its a road, 30 mph speed limit and a lot of people reversing and stuff.
and yep a park a few mins away *and only that very road to cross.

Children playing really isn't the "most beautiful sound in the world" to a lot of us. If they are lucky enough to have access to gardens and a park, then surely they should use these rather than a road?

It's not suddenly acceptable. It's always been acceptable. If it's a safe street i.e not a main road, children play in it. This is how children slowly learn to become independent. At 5 I won't let my child and his friend go unsupervised to the park 5 minutes away. I will however let them play out front as long as they follow the rules I set. Me and the other parents of the children playing out all keep an eye out and check on them regularly although may not sit out side and supervised them constantly but it is what I judge safe street in a nice area. I can appreciate some people may not be comfortable with that but my opinion, for my circumstances is it's fine. In fact it's fucking brilliant.

I'm only sad that we live in a kerb - less cul-de-sac and my children may never know the joy of playing kerbie until the street lights come on.

Hardly recent. I was playing kick the can and such in the street with my mates back in the 80s and 90s.

Love the sound of children playing out in the street - last night they were on the dirt track behind my house, often coming in my backgarden (no fence) having a water fight - love it and I filled up the water guns for them happily.

*Tiger do you actually like anything?

You seem to hate everything apart from yourself and your son..*

No, just people who let their children and/or dogs cause a nuisance to others. No way should they be kicking balls near parked cars or obstructing drivers.
OP said they all have big gardens and a park nearby. Even if they didn't, a car-park isn't a safe or suitable place to play! The parents need to stop being lazy and take them somewhere to play.

Ironic someone mentioned upthread they can't use their park due to unleashed dogs

As for the sound of children playing being a "screeching racket", words fail me, it is the most beautiful sound in the world

Ha ha! I assume you are being sarcastic or joking. Much as I like children, the sound of them screeching, shouting, fighting and screaming all day as they race round on bikes/scooters/tricycles is far from beautiful. It is very very annoying. Children need to learn to respect other people and save the screaming/yelling for parks, not residential areas. Have you ever tried to write a dissertation, get a baby to sleep or enjoy your garden when there's a pack of screaming kids running wild in the street/car-park outside?

I reported the children outside my old house (they were using an empty car-park as a playground) and a few days later they stopped playing there. Peace was restored!

Not the neighbours fault if you choose to live in a house without a garden.

It's beyond me how the sound of children playing could be regarded as unsuitable in a residential area ie where said kids bloody live!

Tiger you sound astonishingly miserable.

I live next to a school playground and I can't say it bothers me at all (I work from home)

I don't understand why you would let your kids play in a car park accessible by s narrow track...

At my old house we have a square block out the back with garages accesed by a nearly blind corner wide enough for one car, and parents still let their children play there and then used to shout at car drivers who dared to try and get to their own garages.

Sure play kirby in a clear stretch where care can clearly see you and slow down and ride scooters up and down the paths but to take over a car park with narrow or hard to see access is just stupidity.

You are totally right op, carparks and roads are not playgrounds, this is not the 1960's when cars were few and less powerful.We are lucky that we are surrounded where I live by green open spaces and parks, so no excuse to play in roads.

It's a pity this never caught on...

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/411797.stm

agree with Tiger and OP.

I wish we'd give more space to children's play and less to cars. Makes me sad that as a society we've chosen traffic over play"

Utterly agree with this!

They are reintroducing play streets near us.