Kids playing football on the road!

[offmybush]

There seems to be one family that really are so entitled.

And whenever the weather is not raining, their kids, 7&13 are playing out on the front. Today for 8 hours has been consistent banging their football against the side of my house. (My side wall faces opposite their homes and pavement)

I said nicely once "please stop" but they didn't, their mother didn't seem too bothered.

They've even hit the top of my back garden wall so much the top brick came off.
Their neighbours brand new car has been hit on the bonnet about 40 times (they've been out all day so are completely unaware)

There are cars parked up and they are just kicking the ball on the road and against my home.

They only just stopped one hour ago.

There are no signs to say "no balls" so I probably don't have a leg to stand on but I can't cope with this now until winter arrives again.

Anyone with any advice? Am I being a moany neighbour!

So what do people think back gardens and parks are for if not for kids to play games?

This is a genuine question for those that think the streets should be used for their playground.

Of course they should be used for playing in! Our garden was used by DM for me and DB to play in, had a swing, then seesaw and had a collapsible pool there too.

Yes, we used the local parks too.

NDN who had 3 DC under 10 and a big garden often took them out to parks as she found it was easier for 2 boisterous boys to burn off steam there and more space. Even now she's moved to Canada, she still takes them out a lot to play.

Depends whether it is grass or concrete.

Grass is OK in the summer, but if it is waterlogged and muddy it can be hard to play on and you get covered in mud and soaking wet pretty quickly when you do. Concrete or tarmac is better to play one on one compared with muddy grass where the ball just sticks and you can't move it around.

I could equally ask why people park their cars on the public street when they've got a perfectly good garage attached to their house.

The boys next door do this when their cousins come over. Huge park two minutes away but they bash the bloody football around the road, hitting parked cars on drives, running over front gardens. The park also has enormous tarmac area.

Of course I bloody look out for kids when I drive but if they’re playing football in the street and I don’t see them, that is on the parents and children really? I can't believe you;re saying that. If they're playing on the road and your eyesight is adequate for driving , you will see them. And if you see them you'll slow right down, no? Even if they're playing on the pavement, you'll be slowing down and keeping an eye out for someone darting into the road after a football.

A quiet road like mine is can have cars speeding there any time. And if a speeding car hits someone, it's 100% the fault of the driver.

This isn't an argument about whether it's wise to let your kids play on the road, it's an argument about who is allowed to use the road and whose fault it is if someone gets hurt. You seem to be saying "I am carrying out a dangerous activity but if I hurt anyone, it's their fault for being near me, even though they have every right to be there".

That's presupposing everyone has a back garden or a nearby park. And it's the areas which are least likely to have a back garden who are least well served by park

The signs don't help necessarily - our management company is constantly reminding resident parents of the "no ball games" rule/signs but they don't care as long as their kids aren't near their property. I've seen a fair few windows smashed, cars dented and my own letterbox was taken off by a football hitting the door - when parents are confronted they just shrug and do the very MN "it's better than them being inside on Playstation" or "how dare you tell off MY kids!" thing.

I wish I could move but as it is I'm just praying they get too old for it soon.

YANBU in the least - a lot of parents these days are selfish and don't care as long as it's not bothering them or risking their own property.

Generally people seem to want "the village" when it is about contributing to their kids upbringing in terms of time and effort or cost, but not when it is about calling them out on their anti social behaviour.

Agree. Same way as on MN everyone's always banging on about the "Mediterranean" and how much they love kids there, whilst ignoring the fact that in those countries, adults are allowed and encouraged to discipline other people's kids.

Generally people seem to want "the village" when it is about contributing to their kids upbringing in terms of time and effort or cost, but not when it is about calling them out on their anti social behaviour.
Agreed and on MN many people want the village when it comes to free childcare and endless favours but don't seem to think they should do anything for anyone else and that people asking them for favours are rude.
Or they make limited effort to get to know anyone, don't raise a smile on the school run, don't talk to anyone when their children are young, want 6 months notice of a phone call and then sit on here moaning that other people have a village and they don't.

I think it's unreasonable to kick the ball against your wall, but reasonable to play in the street.

I'd have told them more than once to stop and then if they didn't, warned them that I was going to call the police about anti-social behaviour.