To think standing outside of a class where children are is not a child protection issue

[Autumndaisies]

I’m still a bit pissed off by this so wondering if anyone can shed any light.

I took my DD to a baby class at a village community centre on Friday, and left her coat behind. Went back Saturday morning and a dance class was going on.

As I pulled up outside a woman came out and started shouting at me that I couldn’t park there, I couldn’t be here and she would have to stay there until I left as children were coming in and out and it was a ‘child protection issue.’

Anyone? I’m lost!

Are you a man? Did you have your child with you?

I'm baffled as to why her mind instantly went there

She's batshit.

I’m female and had DD in my arms! But to be honest surely a man going past the community centre shouldn’t in itself be a CP issue - if he was looking in through the windows or I was then obviously that isn’t on.

Whether you're a man or woman is irrelevant, she's an idiot.

Was it where you were parked was the issue? Child protection as in road crossing zig zag lines place ect?

What did you say back to her OP?

No, the hall has its own car park, I think she probably didn’t want me parking there but really odd!

In schools people who aren't crb checked cannot be left unsupervised with children. I expect that the dance class staff have to be crb checkled and that it is their responsibility to ensure no one else is on the premises at the time of their lessons. That said, she could easily have said 'can I help you' and when you explained why you were there accompanied you in whilst you looked for the cost. I suspect she has taken her training a bit too literally op.

I hope you ignored her

Do you mean inside the venue? If they have exclusive use she's right - they could be sending children off to the toilet assuming the building was empty.

She's off her head

But she wasn't even in the building, she'd only just parked when the woman started going batshit.

She's an idiot. Parking in a carpark is nothing to do with child protection. What does she think might happen ?

Yes that’s right, I wasn’t in the building. I can see that could be problematic, but the car park surely not.

Our local hall doesn’t let parents in the building even when their children have classes on, so that children can roam the building without meeting strangers in the loo etc.

But the car park?! If their kids are roaming the car park without supervision then they’ve got much bigger problems than you parking there.

Sounds weird. I reckon she’s got fed up of constantly telling strangers they can’t pop into the hall to use the loo, for safeguarding reasons (and she’d be quite right to do so) and now she’s trying to police the carpark as well.

If they’ve rented the entire carpark as well as the building then she’d be within her rights to ask you to leave though. So depends on what the hall hires out.

But if you’d gone back for the coat I’m assuming you were planning on going in the building? Maybe it was obvious to her from where you’d parked that you were going in so I can see why she might be worried.

DD’s secondary school were recently made to hire a security guard to ensure nobody entered the premises without being checked as it was a safeguarding issue…..like not even allowed to enter the foyer by the office which has a locked door into the school. They ended up having to get a security fence and gate before the main door with an intercom.

I wouldn’t have just walked in though, @QuebecBagnet ! As I say I can quite see that could be a problem.

Crackers. Also she need to learn the difference between safeguarding and child protection.

How did she know you weren’t picking your child up from the dance class?

The dance class would have hired the facilities which potentially includes the car parking. I used to hire a school hall and would occasionally have parents whose children attended other activities in different days or football on the playing fields trying to come in for various reasons from lost property to wanting to use the toilets.

my own policies, procedures & insurance did not allow this.

However what I would have done was to enquire if I could help you and explained that sorry the car park/community centre was privately hired and I could not allow access at this time.

I'm guessing she thought you might have been there to kidnap one of the kiddies on the way out.

What if you were just late for the class or something?

Did you get the coat back or were you arrested on the spot?

Honestly, it was very strange. She just kept repeating ‘you shouldn’t be here!’

At least I know what DD will NOT be doing in the future!