...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?

Op in my area they closed the clinic for weighing babies decided it encourages people to over feed babies and encourages obesity.

I think I'd give up getting them weighed and rely on wet nappies to tell you they are ok!

Might be worth asking someone there what they suggest, it likely is for a reasonable reason but if there's anything they can do to help you out that would be great. It can be stressful enough getting out of the door sometimes, let alone when things like this crop up. I know funding it extremely limited, but the ones around here are not very user friendly at all.

The woman on reception from our children's centre used to always offer help, even if you just had one! Or get someone else to help.

Sad to hear other places are being so difficult.

Take buggy inside, get all three kids out safely and then ask someone (staff) to take your buggy out to the buggy rack

When finished ask them to go and get it for you or carry one of your babies out for you.

Just stand and ask for help.

At our health visitor weigh ins where no one was ever allowed to bring a pram in, an exception was always made for twin mums with toddler. Note not twin mums but twin mum with toddler. Go talk to them and ask them to find a solution for you.

There are sometimes multiple clinics in an area, maybe see if there is another one with buggy space indoors?

I would definitely ask for help. Ask your health visitor what you should do - she might be able to visit you at home to weigh (I think this is unlikely as weekly - but you never know).

As an aside, how do you even get twins weighed without a toddler? It took both hands to undress and redress my singleton- what do you do with the other twin?

Phone your health visitor and tell her you can't go to the family centre anymore because of this rule. See if she can offer a solution.

Thanks all for sympathy and helpful suggestions. I didn’t know buggy locks existed! I asked the receptionist if she could help but she said she wasn’t allowed to leave reception unmanned. I don’t think the HV running the session would be able to come and help but I will ask.

The logistics of twins is an absolute bloody nightmare. Good job they’re cute.

Building not fit for purpose - ask your health visitor if they could send out someone to weigh them when necessary at home

Just explain the situation to the HV running clinic, they will find a way to help you!
We aren't monsters! 😊

Ask for help. And invest in a lock for when the pram is outside. There are probably other families going with several children and they can’t make exceptions, the rules are for health and safety reasons.
I had a similar situation many moons ago with a double pushchair plus eldest child. Just ask, surely someone can give you a hand

Just buy an at home baby weighing machine and plot the number in the red book.
Costs £25.
I had to weigh dd1 every 2 weeks for medication so it could be calibrated. Was much easier to do it at home

The clinic where I took my twins did not allow pushchairs inside but they made an exception for twins. I agree with some of the previous posters in that if they can't accommodate you at the centre due to the layout of the building and availability of staff to help you then they should come out to you at home to weigh your twins. It's tough with two newborns and you have a toddler as well. I hope you manage to find a solution.

Seriously? It's a children's centre that does baby clinics but you can't take prams in? That's just ridiculous! Do they not understand their target audience is? There are no H&S rules that would stop prams being taken into buildings. They're just being jobsworths and alienating people who need their services therefore putting themselves in line for the next round of council cuts.

I just wouldn’t go!

My children's centre sensibly allows twins to stay in their prams, i think the HV needs to come and help you.

Leaving the buggy though- everyone else has to do it and they might have ££ prams too. I got a brill lock off amazon for a fiver.

My own DS Doesnt walk and due dc2 next month so hoping to put dc2 in a sling and carry DS like a rugby ball, unless he finally masters walking!

My children’s centre had the same rules. If I had an appointment with the paediatrician I’d have one child walking and one in a pushchair, probably a bulky carrier, but was also told they didn’t let pushchairs inside the main building.

You need to ask the receptionist to help you.

I would definitely put it back in their court and ask what you are supposed to do as obviously HAHA you can’t leave a baby unattended!
My HV sent a nursery nurse to weigh my twins for
The first three months every 1/2 weeks until we were happy with weight gain... and they were my
Only children! So
Def worth taking further.
Congratulations btw :) x

Just a thought, while they're in the carry cot parts of the pram, can you just carry them in to the centre on those? Not sure what you'd do once older but they may work for now.

I had same problem 11 years ago! Buggy lock then a member of staff to help - but staff only did it out of kindness and kept saying we're not insured. I complained didn't help (it was a purpose built building)! I stopped going when I struggled to carry them the health visitors soon came knocking on my door!

Not helpful exactly but I had 2 children 18 months apart, I couldn't get there to weigh the second so I just monitored his weight myself with some scales and the chart. I didn't find them helpful with the first child who fell off the graph anyway (they did nothing!!) so didn't bother wasting my time. You can easily tell if they are gaining and following the line, it isn't rocket science.

Tbh if it was me I'd stay at home and weigh them on the bathroom scales.

Nice to see them being so family friendly! Our doctors says this but everyone ignores it as the peaks would just get stolen.
They surely can't be suggesting you leave a baby outside unattended? Never mind fire regs maybe they should look at their safe guarding policies.

Peaks not peaks.

And I am convinced this is also my children's centre from your description!