...to take pram inside children’s centre?

[Marigo]

My 7w old twins have been gaining weight slowly and I have to take them to be weighed at the children’s centre every week. I also have a 2y3m toddler with me. There’s no car park and no street parking so I walk with pushchair and DD on buggy board because she can’t walk for 25 minutes. There are signs up asking parents to leave pushchairs in sheds outside but I cannot manage to carry both babies and my bag and hold toddler’s hand so I have been bringing buggy in and parking it next to some cabinets in the corridor outside the weigh room.

Today a member of staff told me I couldn’t bring the pushchair in because it’s a fire hazard in the corridor. It’s about 6 inches wider than the cabinets it’s next to in a very wide corridor (children’s centre is an ex-primary school). She then went on to tell me that the fire service could carry out a check and they could shut the children’s centre down if there was a pram in the corridor. She said I should leave buggy in shed (unsecured) and make two trips inside. Not keen to do this - buggy cost more than a month’s SMP plus who do I take inside first etc.

I don’t know what to do! I don’t think the fire service are in the business of closing down children’s centres - would I BU to ignore member of staff and keep bringing pram?

The twin mums at my children centre take the pram into the weigh room. (Everyone else isn’t allowed inside with them) Is it worth asking/can you fit the buggy in the room?

Gobsmacked that people are suggesting leaving a baby in the pram outside and then leaving one unattended inside! That's dangerous and shit really. Absolutely no way. I have twins and a singleton with a 12 month gap and if someone wouldn't help me I used to just bring the pram in, leaving a child unattended anywhere especially a car park is outrageous.

I can't believe they don't either make an exception or offer to help you. Honest to god, almost every time I've had to attend one of these 'children's centres' the staff have reduced me to tears. They are often so unhelpful and monosyllabic. I can't imagine how hard it must be for you with twins and a toddler - why can't these women (I'm sure they are women,!after all) offer some assistance?!!

I fully appreciate the fire regulations, but they need to be pragmatic and offer a solution. Why are people so unkind?!

Ha ha. The Fire Brigade can’t shut just down the children’s centre, they would need to apply to the courts.

They can offer the centre advice though, and not allowing buggies in is a fairly standard, sensible rule. The centre themselves have probably written this into their fire safety documents.

As PP have said, ask the children’s centre what they think the best solution would be.

It’s not a car park @Nomoremilk it’s a buggy park. A sheltered area outside the door usually

So where does she put the first baby? On the floor?

It’s not a car park @Nomoremilk it’s a buggy park. A sheltered area outside the door usually

Still not a safe place to leave an infant or small child unattended.

Having previously done a job involving health and safety in communal buildings I can confirm that prams in corridors are a breach of h&s regs.... its rare any spot checks are undertaken though unless theyve failed previous inspections or there has been a fire recently. Reason being that people do do crazy things when panicking to get out a building and as well as potentially being flammable they're also an obstruction. This is also why they aren't allowed in the communal corridors of blocks of flats.

(Sorry to be the boring h&s nag)

I suppose it depends on the set up of the children’s centre but ours the weigh ins are always part of the stay and play sessions so there would be lots of play mats etc about. A HV / CC worker would hold them anyway, they love cuddling a baby IME.

Why wouldn’t it be safe to leave a baby there for a minute or two? Do you thkk someone is going to steal it?

I just stopped going. It was more hassle than it's worth to be honest. I weighed her at home.

I have to say in OPs exact situation I’d stop going too but I assume she has a pressing need to attend otherwise she would’ve stopped Herself

Why wouldn’t it be safe to leave a baby there for a minute or two? Do you thkk someone is going to steal it?

Hey, it's happened before.

When?

@feelingsicknow I totally agree with you, it's like a place that harbours miserable people to make you feel bad about how you're doing as a mum. I went twice then stopped going and part of the reason was the faffing about not being allowed to bring the buggy in!

@passthecherrycoke

www.thesun.co.uk/news/8255235/six-month-old-baby-snatched-from-pram-outside-nursery-when-mum-left-child-alone-to-pick-up-an-older-sibling/

FFS! There are quite a few people on here who simply have no understanding that having multiples is completely different!! IMO the stupid “no prams” rule does not apply to twin babies - I certainly ignored it when my twins were babies! I once had a long conversation with a children’s centre manager who was proposing the same as yours OP. She said “but if you drive here and park on the premises why do you need a buggy?” My response was “Well, because they can’t walk!! And I certainly can’t safely carry them both.” To which she said “Oh yeah, I hadn’t thought of that”. Stupid cow

I bet the people giving advice on this about leaving one inside and one outside unsupervised have never had multiples or 3 under 2. But for those of us that have, why should we put our children at risk because of poor layout and planning? If something happened to the child you left outside how could you even live with yourself? For what? A jobsworth receptionist and getting a bloody baby weighed?

The main theme of this thread so far is that people stop going to children’s centres / seeing HVs because it’s too logistically difficult! Children’s centres really do need to have a good hard think about what and who they are actually for!

Ummm is that once in the world not really a risk worth worrying about IMO. No one is making you leave your baby in the buggy

Exactly @mumtomaxwell no wonder the mums of multiples groups on Facebook are full of mums moaning about stupid advice from singleton parents!

@passthecherrycoke

Ummm is that once in the world

Nah, that's literally the first one that popped up on Google. From this country. And this year. There are loads. Glad you think it's a laughing matter though.

And the woman from the children's centre was trying to make the OP do just that.

@passthecherrycoke you're very blasé about such a horrible story! Things like this are too common occurrence for twin mums, having to book 2 gp appointments at separate times, not being able to get your buggy in doctors doors, struggling on public transport, it's constant risks and risk assessment and stress. So just keep your stupid grins to yourself.

I wonder if someone who works in a childrens centre will read this thread and think "yep need to make some serious changes" and actually take this on board??

It’s from Sweden. Where people always leave their babies outside shops and other businesses

@Apologies, Sweden. Makes it totally OK. We used to do it all the the here too. Then stopped doing it as much because some people have a tendency to nick babies.