I've become a parking wanker - AIBU re school car parking.

[Hidinginthebath]

I bought a house right next to my children's primary school. I thought it was an excellent idea. But now I'm not too sure!

It's a new build and it's in a row of houses. It was wasteland/garages before with no access. It's a cul de sac. The developers built a shiny new road with private car parking spaces for each of the properties on the left of the row and visitor parking for about 2 cars on the right, which is right next to my house. We each pay £500 a year service for maintenance of the common areas, binstore, a back passage way, and the private road.

AIBU to be slightly miffed that school parents are now using it, basically as a schoolcar park? We have told them directly it's a private road and have been met with shrugs and even a 'there's no sign' (it hasn't been put up yet!).

AIBU? Am I a parking wanker? I wouldn't mind so much if it was a public road and I wasn't paying a hefty sum for it (for me, a LP with 3dcs)

Why should OP be inconvenienced by having to open and close gates every time she wants to leave the house? Just because some school parents are selfish tossers?

Tbh I don't think you can do anything about it til there's a sign up.

She shouldn't have to be inconvenienced but sadly she is, precisely because of selfish wankers (not bankers, silly autocorrect. Although...) who don't care about inconveniencing her.
Which is why action is needed. Not fair and very annoying, but also necessary.

Agree about the sign.
I am not a parking wanker but I see an unmarked street I jump at the chance. Isn't the idea no sign= parking allowed without restriction?

There was talk here of having an electric barrier with fobs for each house but nothing has come of it. Would that be an option for you OP? All the owners club together to pay for it?

One of those pop up bollards with all, residents having a zapper to drop it when you turn into the roads. Frankly the only thing that will stop them parking all over your road twice a day.

There's not even a road sign with the name of the place (it's not on google maps either so deliveries have been a PITA) so I think the sign might be a long time coming...I might have to create my own sign like a proper parking wanker!

Barrier!

Actually, it's got absolutely nothing to do with the school. It's not "school parents" who are parking in your road, but members of the public.

You could have so much fun with sarcastic notes and photos uploaded to community website, at least the inconvenience will be fun. And hopefully shame offenders into parking elsewhere. At least enough of them to make it a little less convenient.

One of the reasons we moved, our quite rural road became a driving/parking nightmare because of **hole parents usually female.

Speed limit - doesn’t apply to me! Parking - doesn’t apply to me. Load of entitled x insert swear word here. Also HAVE to have the biggest car they can afford and mostly can’t drive

They should have their car confiscated for a couple of months and retake their driving test.

No schools near me now thank goodness

Put up a barrier. If you suspect any one is the worse for wear let the police know- a few easy convictions for being over the limit will soon stop this.

Club together with thy neighbours form a company, get a jobsworth in private parking!, car to be calmped 150 quid removal fee loadsa money:)

Just block them in. I know from experience they won't do it twice.

If there's no sign they they probably have no idea it's private parking; in fact they won't.
You need a sign ASAP

Me, my mum and my sister have approached them all but the same people keep doing it. So they do know. My sister has even put a note on the school parents FB thing (my sis is a bit more assertive than me!) I guess they are taking advantage of the no sign situation. Parking cones might be the way for now

A school that names and shames! Awesome!

I would chase a new sign and make a temporary one. Get ither residents on board with you. Get dome signatures and send them off to the developer.
I would also email the school (start politely as I suspect this may be the start of many emails and the you need the school on your side). Explain yo the school that it is a private road and not for use by tgevpublic not even for car parking. Ask the school to inform parents at the end of the next correspondence/school letter home/school magazine etc etc.

My kids primary school used to remind parents a few time a term, mind you despite our school being on the middle of a 500 house housing estate only a handful of people walked and parking was hideous in the streets around the school. You would have had to have been a total CF not yo feel sorry for the people living in those streets. I recall a RangRover actually parking on some poor persons front lawn!!!

Get to grips with it NOW! Before done CFs tells all the other parents they've been parking there fine without incident for X months etc etc. Use cones, makeshift signs, billiards etc and get your neighbours on board too.

Does the school have a FB group? You could post pics "naming" and shaming them.

Buy a clamp, clamp your own car with a fixed penalty notice on your window (that you put there) and maybe that’ll put them off.

Can you block them in?

A lot of similar small developments in my local area have gated the access road - would this be an option you could propose to the developer?

If there’s no sign then there not doing anything wrong parking in visitors.

If you own part of the road stick up signs that they will be clamped and it's a £100 release fee. You could make a packet.

A sign probably won’t make much difference. Unfortunately without enforcement powers they are unlikely to give a crap.

You have to speak to CFs in language they’ll understand. Block them in. We did this once with parents parking in a (clearly marked) private car park opposite a school (double whammy as the CF in question parked in our only disabled space). The woman blocked in was raging! Tough.