Lost my cool with school run mum

[Vanilladanish]

I’m at my absolute wits end. Recently bought a house near the kids primary school and like most primary schools the parking at school run time is a nightmare. There is one mum that constantly parks over my drive blocking me in or out. I work as an on call palliative care nurse and twice now have been late to call outs to provide pain relief and other things to patients at the end of life. I’ve tried to talk to her nicely and she just drives away. A few weeks ago my husband was trying to pull in the drive after work and she was blocking again. There was a queue of traffic behind him and he had to pull over and ask her to move so he could get off the road. She said she would when she was ready. Sometimes she’s there and there are spaces all the way up and down the road but she still blocks my drive.
today she blocked me again - I’ve just finished a night shift and I saw red. I asked her to stop parking and tried to explain I needed to get in and out quickly for work. She just shouted over me so I told her I would slash her tyres next time. I know I was unreasonable to say that and I am really ashamed of myself but I’m absolutely at my wits end. What do I do?!

I’m sure the police came out to our school. I’d take pictures each time it happens to keep a log.

Hi honey, I feel for you. I've had this problem for 26 years now and the only thing I've found that works is putting my wheelie bins across my white line witha notice pinned to them reading "NO PARKING. DRIVEWAY IN USE AT SCHOOL TIMES. THANKYOU". We have resident permit parking too but sadly school run parents believe this doesn't apply to them. If your driveway has a gate into the rear of your property, this is classed as off road access and it is illegal for anyone to block this access right. you can call the local parking enforcement office and they will send a low loader to remove offending vehicles. I've had dozens removed by them over the years. Personally, I recommend moving because each year it's the same crap,different parents!. I wish you all the best..x

My neighbour had a relative who kept parking directly across my dropped driveway a few months ago.
I contacted the police about it eventually, giving them the make, model and number plate of the car.
The police wrote a warning to the owner and it stopped.
I'd advise you to do the same op.

I'd be whacking her picture and picture of her car/reg plate up on local social media and the local police pages explaining the problem. Every time. She's blocking you in; you're an on call palliative care nurse; she's preventing seriously ill and dying people from getting emergency palliative nursing care on a regular basis.

Shame the crap out of her publicly. It will stop.

Put cones on the road outside your house

Better to let the air out of all the tyres then superglue the dustcaps back on.
That'll learn her.

Well yeah except then her car is stuck blocking in OP’s drive until she can get the tyres replaced 🙄

It's actually fineable to park over a dropped kerb so if that's going on. Report it. Pictures with dates and times.

Don't bother arguing with people like that. They are selfish and unpleasant.

Just take photos and ask the police to talk too her?

If you do say anything to her ask her if she'd like it if you blocked her driveway.

People ignore signs and move cones. Police is the best way. Unlikely to argue with authority.

If it’s not her it will be someone else just block your own drive during these times shouldn’t have to but your just gonna get increasingly stressed

I used to work for a local council and the police attended some of our meetings. One of the officers told the councillors that if someone is parked across your driveway it is not an offence. However, the minute you wish to leave your house and are prevented from doing so because of the parked car, it becomes an offence. Record dates, times, etc- get a video footage camera if possible and take it to the police. Also report it to the school - our head sends out regular polite rants to parents about parking in side streets!

Have you decided what you are going to do OP... Did she do it again ? You will have to let us all know if you manage to sort out the issue.

I live on a school road too so I know how u feel.... could u not just park where she parks instead of on your drive hopefully she will get the point after a few weeks

Oh please find her house and park across her drive and make her late! Especially if she lives in the middle of nowhere. Just park across her drive and go for a walk. Or call a taxi and go home!
Id be inclined to start taking photographs of her parked across your drive, while she was in the car or could at least see you doing it. It’s a public place and you can photograph whatever the heck you like. Then if she asks why you’re photographing her car, just say matter of factly that you’re taking it for evidence to give to the police because being polite wasn’t getting through to her.
she knows she’s in the wrong for parking there, why you need access to your car is kind of irrelevant but it really does make it so much worse how terribly people are affected by her holding you up!

I’m sorry, but things like this are just adding to the already immense pressure schools are feeling.

Yes they are so pressured they are checking waistbands on school uniform skirts to check they arent from Asda

Assuming this is is a primary school, due to parents picking up/dropping off. Haven’t heard of a single primary school doing this. They’re all busy trying to manage the massive wave of SEND, SEMH and financial needs that are passed on for schools to solve.

Our headteacher has spent the first two weeks of school trying to stop a new non-verbal child with the understanding of a 12 month old from hurting himself or others. Requires 2:1, EHCP only provides funding for a part time 1:1 and no SEND school within an hour’s drive has space for him. I’m sure she would love to solve everyone’s parking problems if she could find time to even eat her own lunch

Some academies might be faffing about about with draconian uniform policies brought in by overpaid CEOs. The rest of us are just trying to do our best, and a parking war is the least of our concerns.

My parents live a few doors up from a primary school and had the same issue until they got a white line put there by the council. I know it's not illegal to park on them but it's stopped people from doing so.

A quick google tells me that council can issue a PCN for blocking a dropped curb. I would take a photo of her car and reg and print it, pop it on her car with a note saying your car is illegally parked over a dropped curb, I have asked you nicely not to do it but you don’t seem to understand the impact this has on my patients when I can’t get out to administer their emergency pain relief so if you do it again I will share with council/police each time so that they can issue you with fines.

I would also report it to the school. We have major issues with this in our village (do you live near me?) as many parents are too lazy to park on the community centre car park like they are supposed to and walk 4 minutes! I live on the road with the community centre car park on it (although further away from the school than the car park) and it takes us 7 minutes to walk to school. It’s ridiculous how lazy and entitled people are that that’s rather block peoples drives than walk 4 minutes. It isn’t due to lack of time either as they are often at the school gate 20 minutes before pick up time anyway!

Have you been to see the school headteacher? She/he will be able to approach the parent in question and also remind all parents to be considerate when collecting their children.
Photos will help and if nothing is resolved, you do have a right to exit your property, so the police can talk with the person in question.

Speak to the school. They will
send out an email or letter. Then as others have said speak to the pcso. I would also probably park my car if I was in at school
Pick up time across my drive entrance so she couldn’t park there!