Soft play. Lack of supervision

[mysterytoddler]

I take my 19 month old DD to soft play most weeks since they’ve reopened. I’m 7 months pregnant with DC2.

I’m so sick of parents not supervising their kids properly. Today was a classic. Another mum with 2 boys, at a guess I’d say that the oldest was 7, youngest 3. Both really boisterous kids. The mum spent most of the time sat at her table on her phone. She checked on them now and again but mostly left them to it. At one point she even took the toddler to the toilet and left the older one completely unsupervised.
I took DD to the large bit of the soft play that’s recommended for older ones which is my own doing but DD is really headstrong and finds the baby bit really boring now. But they were running all over the place and she got knocked over twice.

I also don’t understand why the 7 year old wasn’t at school. Part of the reason we go on weekdays is because it’s quieter and usually full of toddlers. I wouldn’t go on weekends cos I accept that there will be school age kids there.

I’m just sick of it. I manage to clamber all over the equipment and supervise my toddler despite being heavily pregnant. I don’t understand why it’s so difficult for others to do the same

I forgot to mention that the area the boys were in was an over 5s area. So the 3 year old (who was the one who knocked over my toddler) shouldn’t have been in there unsupervised.

It’s not an inset day in my town and i didn’t get the impression they were homeschooled. The mum looked very young maybe late 20s

It is not needed for a 7 year old to be supervised in soft play. 3 year old would depend on the size and busyness of the soft play. If I had a 7 year old and a 3 year old, I'd be tempted to rely on the 7 year old to be able to keep an eye on the 3 year old.

If every adult was in with their child, the soft play would get far too busy and would be less fun for the kids.

19 months is a difficult age for soft play. My dd definitely found the baby section too boring by then. But the larger sections are full of older kids. I think more interesting areas for toddlers, that older kids are definitely not allowed in, is the answer.

😅 I’d leave my 7 year old too. And doubtlessly you will too when they get that age.

The beauty of soft play is so that my little darlings can run themselves ragged without me having to join in/I can ignore them and drink coffee, usually while doing domestic admin.

Yes, if they’re fighting/pushing/being unreasonable then they get bollocked but if they’re just being kids then fair game to them.

Inset days are school specific.

Seven is more than old enough to leave for a few minutes. Very normal for children to run all over the place, that's what soft play is for.

19 months is likely too young for the older section, especially if she clearly can't hold her own in there, parents shouldn't have to closely supervise children who are the right age because another parent has their toddler in the wrong section. My child was early in gross motor development, crawling at 5 months, at the top of those giant nets independently at three. I did let him in the older section early, but he could hold his own, and I would have taken him out if the age mix meant he was getting in the way.

You’re right in that maybe it’s the wrong soft play for us. The baby section is tiny and I feel like DD is too old for it but the larger area is aimed at bigger kids I will admit. But I’ve never had an issue before, I guess I was just used to it being full of toddlers

I hate it when parents take toddlers into the big section. Adults take up space and get in the way and children have to worry about little ones getting hurt. The whole point of soft play is to run around.

To be fair OP you took a toddler into the older kid section, what was you expecting?

At one point she even took the toddler to the toilet and left the older one completely unsupervised

What's the problem with this???

Also maybe he's home schooled? My neighbour home schools their child as they were severely bullied at school, I often see them out enjoying things.

It’s not an inset day in my town and i didn’t get the impression they were homeschooled. The mum looked very young maybe late 20s
Ooh watch you don't get chaffing from having your judgey pants hoiked up so high OP.

Keep your young toddler out of the big kid frame and let the rest of us enjoy our coffee in peace.

@mysterytoddler

I forgot to mention that the area the boys were in was an over 5s area. So the 3 year old (who was the one who knocked over my toddler) shouldn’t have been in there unsupervised.

It’s not an inset day in my town and i didn’t get the impression they were homeschooled. The mum looked very young maybe late 20s

Very young, maybe late 20s

The other mum decided to allow the under 3 in the over 5 area unsupervised that’s her choice. A 7 year old doesn’t need to be supervised at soft play - you’ll learn that as yours gets older.
You made the decision to allow your toddler into the older children area with unsupervised children - you could have taken them out of there is you wanted.
It’s part of soft play that children sometimes get knocked over that’s why if you don’t want them to be knocked over you keep them out of the area where supervision is limited / non existent.
As for why a 7 year old was there that’s really non on your business there could be many reasons. A local school near us is closed for cleaning but not all classes have to isolate, schools have random inset days, our school is moving sites shortly and we have 3 random days off while they pack up : unpack. That’s just 3 reasons I can give you loads more potentially valid reasons.

I just mean that the (few) families I know who homeschool the kids have much older parents who have built up money so they can afford to have one parent at home. Also I guess I assumed kids who were being homeschooled would actually, you know, be at home being educated rather than knocking over toddlers

Most 3.5 on year olds are fine in the bigger area. My DD is nearly 4 and is tall and the same height as most 5 year olds, so she’s fine in there unsupervised. You shouldn’t have taken a 1 year old in to an area designed for much bigger, more active children.

The mum looked very young maybe late 20s

So what? That means she’s not capable of parenting properly? Judgemental much?

Come back in 5 years time and let's hear how much of a close eye you keep on your kids when they're let loose in the softplay. That is why parents take their kids there - so they get time to drink a coffee and stare at their phone while the kids let off steam.

And 7 is a fine age to leave alone for a few mins while you go to the toilet.

Yabu. The whole point of softplay is you leave them to it. Imagine having to man mark a 7 year old at softplay!

Wow defo a bit pfb. Most people go to soft play to get a bit of a break and the kids can run wild. Sounds like she's doing better than most if she's regularly checking in. I wouldn't even think twice about leaving a big one while I took a little one to loo. Honestly you're overthinking it but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt as you only have a tiny one. Honestly you will get to a point when you'll relax a bit and probably do the same and you'll silently cringe at this post lol sorry

So you took your 1 year old in the over 5s section and now you're complaining that a boisterous 3 year old was in there?

The whole point of softplay is that you send your boisterous over 3s in to burn off some energy while you drink a coffee in peace.

If you have an under 2 you need to supervise, keep them in the baby area.

@mysterytoddler

I just mean that the (few) families I know who homeschool the kids have much older parents who have built up money so they can afford to have one parent at home. Also I guess I assumed kids who were being homeschooled would actually, you know, be at home being educated rather than knocking over toddlers

Sounds like you have a lot of prejudices about things you know nothing about...

In 5 years time my kids will be at school during the week! Although tbf I didn’t realise inset days were school specific. I assumed they were all tagged on to the beginning and end of holidays

I had to read this twice to check it wasn't me! I took my 3 and 8 year old to soft play today. First time in 18 months. I even left my 8 year old alone while I took my 3 year old to the toilet. The only thing that makes me thing that it isn't is that it was straight after school!!

If it was an over five area then your toddler certainly shouldn't have been in there! Three year old may have been four. I believe it's fine to 'play up' an age group if they can handle the equipment independently and not get in the way because they are too young. It's even more annoying when you have parents in the way of the children playing (unless they are supervising a child of the right age with additional needs).

How do you even know how old the children were? The 3-year-old in the over 5s area could have been a 5 year old small for his age. The 7-year-old not at school could have been pre-school age but just taller than average. Also plenty of reasons why the kids could have not been at school even if they are school age, they could be home-schooled, at a private school with different holidays, on holiday from an area already in school holidays, at an INSET day etc. Plus with covid loads of schools are closing entire year groups/ bubbles etc as a precaution but without a need for the students to isolate so it’s possible their school was closed.

You can’t really take a baby in an area designed for over 5s to run and charge about in and then complain when they get knocked into.

You aren't really supposed to be clambering over all the equipment to supervise, that is making it more dangerous for other children.

Not sure why you feel the need to point out the mum's age either.