Is this a compromise?

[cookielove]

I work in a nursery, i currently work in the 1-2 year room. Due to covid the rooms all kept within there own play spaces for the last 2 years. However since all rules have been lifted we now interact more.

When the nursery was built many years ago the oldest two rooms (2-3 and 3-5) had two small rooms and then shared a large play space which came off of all the rooms. This is where the children ate their meals and hung their coats.

At the beginning of lockdown the 2-3 switched rooms with the 1-2's. The 1-2's had very low numbers so at the time it made since. However the room has been getting alot busier over the last few months.

I have spoken to the room leader of the 3-5 room to ask for space in the shared play room to feed our children their meals. We are not asking to play in the space as that would be inappropriate due to the wide range of ages. But for our tables to be placed at our end permanently and for them to move their playing areas slightly up to accommodate this.

There compromise is to allow us to eat in the space but for us to move our tables in and out so they don't end up with wasted space.

I don't think this is a compromise, but i am open to being told i am wrong, also open to any ideas how to reaolve this problem.

No one?

I think you need to be talking to the manager rather than the 3-5 room leader. It sounds as if now your numbers have picked up in your age-group, the space isn't really large enough? Might swapping back with the 2-3s be the sensible thing?

Its an option but not necessarily a compromise. Moving tables in and out of the shared space is not ideal.

It’s a bit difficult to advise without more info. For example, If you moved back in to the original room would you have enough space to have the tables permanently out in that room?

Where do the older children eat? Do they have tables permanently out?

So the older children have 2 permanent tables within the space and then move 1 or 2 tables into the space for meal times.

If we moved back to the original room (which is much larger) we would be able to eat in that room with no issue.

We would love to be in the original room, the room leader is not open to switching.

Our manager is currently off work with a bereavement. Our deputy who is in charge i have spoken to (she is usually based half in the office half in 3-5's) and has agreed we should feed our children in the shared space but hasn't said much about moving the tables in and out.

OK that makes it clearer. Long term you need to talk to the manager and potentially swap rooms.

In the interim, if the older children have 2 permanent tables and 1/2 tables they move into the shared space there is no reason you can’t either use these tables or have 2 permanent tables for the 1-2s and if necessary move in additional tables.

If it is a shared space for the 2 smaller rooms the compromise is to have the same number of permanent and movable tables.

HTH

So we went in to the shared space and moved bits around so we could have a trail on Monday when we were less busy. If we had older children it would have been fine. But the chairs are too big and we were really squeezed in to a space that wasn't good enough.

So we are back to eating in our room.

They don't want to share at all and i am over it. I can't believe how selfish they are being. But i am off now for a week so will revist it when i get back in.

*trial not trail.

Not surprised by your update, as it came across as they were being unreasonable able.

Have a good holiday.