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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to get annoyed at parents who treat disabled parking bays as de facto parent & child bays?

116 replies

MsHighwater · 21/08/2007 21:52

Our council-run local leisure centre, where I take dd to a toddler group, has several disabled parking bays but no parent & child bays. I NEVER park in a disabled bay - I work for the council and used to issue the blue parking badges so am very aware of the rules - but I've noticed that a lot of the other parents with toddlers treat the disabled parking bays as de-facto parent & child bays. I think it's wrong. What do you think?

OP posts:
LazyLinePainterJane · 22/08/2007 21:19

Of course, if it's likely that you will need a load of space to get kids in the car, you could park at the far end of the car park where it is unlikely that anyone will park next to you.

It's not like it's a legal requirement to park as close to the shop as you can.

And dont give me chatchatchat about struggling to the shops with wayward children. Put them in a trolley, a buggy, rabbit hutch, whatever.

Your children are not a disability.

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 21:27

oooooooo I have just remembered that I have not renewed the kids blue badges for ages, so I don't park in the disabled bays atm, yet I still have one in a wheelchair. If I can get a 9 yesr disabled boy in and out of a normal bay, why can't people with toddlers and babies??

SleeplessInTheStaceym11House · 22/08/2007 21:30

sparkly, hear hear. cor we love a public car park compared to our private one for our flat, normally more room there to get the kids out, yet we manage it at home on a daily basis!

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 21:30

that said tho, my driveway is between our house and next doors, and its just the width of a car and the doors don't open fully, so plenty of practice each day for parking in narrow parking bays. I am also 29 weeks pregnant and have to squeeze myself in sometimes.

SleeplessInTheStaceym11House · 22/08/2007 21:33

sparkly i dont drive myself and when i was pregnant with ds i used to make dh drive out the space before i got in or i wouldnt fit

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 21:37

sometimes, depending on how I have pulled the car onto the drive, there is more space on the passenger side, so I have put all 3 kids in, climb in on the passenger side, climb into the back, strap them in and then climb into the driver's seat. I have done that in a public car park too.

BTW would I really get shot if I did park in the disabled bays with DS in his wheelchair? I don;t atm, because I haven't renewed his badge, but I do wonder..

SleeplessInTheStaceym11House · 22/08/2007 21:38

i doubt it very much, id just put the out of date one on display and put the wheelchair between you and anyone who challenges you so you can run them over if necessary (i cant spell ) !!

southeastastra · 22/08/2007 21:39

think people should write to the supermarket managers and complain, our new supermarket car park is really dangerously designed. they're just trying to cram in more and more spaces

2shoes · 22/08/2007 21:41

sparkly I should hope not. not as If you are abusing the system.

MyTwopenceworth · 22/08/2007 21:44

People come and people go on mimsnet all the time. I do get tired of reading alll the 'this has been done' stuff EVERYTHUINGS been done, if we were only alowed to discuss something once, beliecve me by now this board would be dead as a dodo.

Why should people be got at for talking about somnething that somebody else has talked about before, perhaps before they weven JOINED the bloody place?

So we've seen it all before, whoopdie doosies, that just means we're here too bloody much!

And it is sooooo unwelconing, to turn round to someone adn say, basically, shut up we've done this and now the topic is forbiddin because We have alreay debated it and we've bored""".

and click post and await beating....

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 21:44

lol I must get the photos sorted, its just trying to get DS and DD1 into the photo booth . Last time I cut the pics out of their school photos and then printed it out, but am out of printer ink atm, and I can't remember how I cut it to the correct size either

JodieG1 · 22/08/2007 21:49

Not read it all but Tori if there was room for you to get in the car then there was room for the 19 month old. I've put all 3 kids in the same door in my car before and just lean over from the front to do up the car seats.

Disabled spaces are for disabled people and not people with children. If you need more space park at the back where there is always space. My dad's disabled and he actually needs the space unlike other people. If anyone wants to swap with him so they can park in disabled spaces I'm sure that would be fine, anyone want to trade and be paralysed from the neck down forever?

2shoes · 22/08/2007 21:49

I did dd's photo myself. can you not do that

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 21:52

my printer is out of ink atm. I really must do it. I keep meaning to, but I keep forgeting to sort it out

2shoes · 22/08/2007 21:57

i would offer to do it. but by the time I print it and send it to you. The hols will be over.

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 22:08

could I possibly send the pics to you 2shoes, via MSN? The weather is so poor atm, and I haven't had a badge for so long now, tbh a few more weeks isn;t going to make much difference

tori32 · 22/08/2007 22:24

Jodie are all your kids under 2? In baby car seats with no space btween the back and middle seats in a zafira, due to using another baby seat in the 6th seat. I also had a four year old in the front seat. Please read my previous detailed posts then your facts are correct. If my children were able to get themselves in to their car seats that would be fine. They were 23 mths, 22mths and 19mths and 4 years. It was the 19mth I could not open the door to get in. But next to her was the 22mth child. Also, I don't have a badge but I do have times when my back goes ( went unloading my dd from car in another carpark) so I would hate to risk that with 3 children that are not mine. Also the car park was empty when I arrived and I did try to park as far from the middle as possible.

2shoes · 22/08/2007 22:27

sparkly You are on ttr?

2shoes · 22/08/2007 22:29

tori32 you have me confused(doesn't take much lol) are you saying you park in a disabeled bay with no badhe or disability. or have I got the wrong end of the stick?

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 22:30

ttr??

I have a zafira too, and manage fine.

2shoes · 22/08/2007 22:31

are you sparkly on my msn?

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 22:32

no, log in and I'll find you. My name starts with M

sparklygothkat · 22/08/2007 22:34

I have sent you an offline message

2shoes · 22/08/2007 22:41

got you now lol

tori32 · 22/08/2007 22:43

Noooo! I said that I thought about it because of events that happened in a car park where as a childminder with 3 under 2 yrs and a 4 yr old got blocked by a car on the driver side because the car parked after me was very diagonally parked, so I had lots of room but literally could not open the same side passenger door more than 2 inches to put the baby in her seat. Even at 19mths the baby would not fit!

I only said I had considered it so god knows what would have happened if god forbid I had ACTUALLY done it!!!LOL