To feel angry at the 50% who ignore the sign to remove outdoor shoes in changing rooms??

[DippleSun]

Swimming lessons today and there is a big sign saying please remove outdoor shoes beyond this point and a tub of shoe covers.
I’d say approx 50% of parents covered/took off shoes and 50% didn’t. I start feeling unreasonably? angry with the 50% stood at the poolside who hadn’t bothered. Why not follow a simple hygiene rule? It’s so simple. And judging by the response by the pool - only 50% felt it was necessary. So I’m asking Mumsnet - I need to
understand the 50% who would ignore this rule!

This is society in general now, sadly. Self-centred, I’ll do what I want attitude.
Rules don’t apply to them.

Completely agree OP. People who don't follow this rule are incredibly selfish and lazy. It's not difficult or time consuming to put on the shoe covers (provided for free at my local pool) and buggies should be left in the buggy area (assuming one is provided - there is one at my local pool). No one wants to be walking in other people's dirt. I really cannot see any justifiable exceptions to this apart from for wheelchair users as I'm not sure how they would avoid bringing their chair in. But there aren't many wheelchair users at pools normally so I think we can live with any dirt they bring in.

I used to live in Paris and the pool changing rooms were staffed by fierce attendants who enforced the rules and kept the place spotless. Hugely superior standard of hygiene. We could do with some of those attendants in British pools.

I think it’s gross to wear shoes in swimming pool facilities, our pool has shoe covers or parents take their shoes off. I use the shoe covers as I don’t like walking barefoot on changing room floors 🤢 so no YANBU

So the fact that you’re too lazy to put plastic covers on or change into sliders means everyone else has to walk through your dirt? What kind of ‘fuck everyone but me’ attitude is that?

I think swimming pools vary in the extent to which they enforce this rule or even have it in the first place.
I can see the sense in it absolutely. Changing room floors are fucking rank. But going swimming, especially with kids, is a huge faff as it is and if you also have to take off and carry outdoor shoes, thus using up a free hand, while you manoeuvre young kids and all their shoes as well as bags and jackets, and helping everyone with shoe covers just to get to a cubicle, I can see why people don’t do it.
A better solution would be to have more staff cleaning the floors at regular intervals. I’ve also been at pools with pristine clean floors and no shoe cover rule. That’s probably why, because they actually clean their floors.
And let’s face it, it’s not only outdoor filth that’s on the floors. It’s plasters, clumps of hair, talcum powder, hair ties, pee and god knows what other bodily fluids.
Not to mention the plastic waste from all those shoe covers, as someone else rightly mentioned.

You wouldn’t be ‘trailing plastic behind you’ nor would it ‘do you in’ in any sense. You’re already going to a lot of hassle having three kids and an intense family swimming schedule, why would you not want to help keep the place as clean as possible?

Our pool has this sign too but they don’t keep the changing area clean at all, it’s grubby and smelly so I think most people think why bother, if it gets dirtier it might incentivise them to actually hire a cleaner!

But going swimming, especially with kids, is a huge faff as it is and if you also have to take off and carry outdoor shoes, thus using up a free hand, while you manoeuvre young kids and all their shoes as well as bags and jackets, and helping everyone with shoe covers just to get to a cubicle, I can see why people don’t do it.
I do it; it’s really not that dramatic. It’s one of the many annoying things about going swimming with kids. But that doesn’t mean you choose instead be a disrespectful dick and not do it.

YANBU. It’s exactly the same at my local pool. It’s really rude for many to disregard a simple rule

I think your numbers are off. Of the 50% you say follow the rules, I bet 25-30% are only following the rules because they are the rules and they don't want to get into trouble.
I think half the rule followers don't actually believe in the rules.

It's just a few people who are panicked about overkill on hygiene.

Swim nappies don't hold wee at all, they only hold poo.

This is how I feel about it, I hate taking my kids to swimming lessons and the fact I have to take my shoes off at the door is just one of many reasons, I still do it every time though cos I'm not a dick.

It is really rude and I get annoyed with it too. In my local leisure centre though even the staff don’t obey the rule and walk around the swimming area in their shoes so until they do, I don’t see why I should be so worried about it if they won’t lead by example.

Hell would freeze over before I'd walk barefoot in a swimming pool changing room, however I have always worn shoe covers or taken flip flops. Thank goodness the days of having to take the kids to swimming lessons are over, we had years of them getting verrucas from the germ infested place! 🤮

I've never heard of this rule. I'd ignore it at DC swim school anyway, as the facilities are old and by the time my DC arrive at their evening classes, the change rooms are disgusting. I shudder seeing parents giving their DC their evening shower in those change rooms. The things I've seen that don't include shoes... Including kids weeing in the shower cubicles. DS picked up tinea once when changing after his lesson.

I'm keeping my shoes on!!

Shoe covers are dangerous. I've lost count of the number of people I've seen slip while wearing them, including my DD who slipped and fell wearing them
I tend to go swimming only in the summer because we all wear slip off shoes so easy enough to take them off before entering the changing room. In the winter it's a pain trying to get shoes and socks on, especially as there's nowhere to sit.
Thinking about it though schools go swimming at our local pool and none of them remove their shoes before entering the changing room so actually it's probably pointless asking others to do eom

It takes seconds to do, and it’s only when you are going poolside. I visit construction sites regularly where blue overshoes are required. We manage to do it every time.

I ignore the rule because the floor is absolutely vile and there is no way I’m walking on it bare foot it’s so grim. If they ever end up properly deep cleaning it and not just running a mop over it smearing the dirt I would be happy to oblige

I must admit I ignore this rule at our pool - I'd never go poolside with shoes of any kind, but the rule for the changing rooms is silly.

It says no outdoor shoes in the changing rooms, so you're either supposed to walk barefoot from the car park, or swap into a second pair of indoor only shoes at the door.

I only wear my sliders from the carpark, rub them on the mat, and into the building.

It's a shoes off rule at my local pool too. People typically just take their shoes/socks off and walk barefoot, or they bring a pair of sliders or flip flops to change into. You do see the occasional person not complying - these type of people are just entitled idiots, probably the same types who park on or over driveways on the school run, or park up with their engine idling. Utter selfishness.

I'm not aware that they have this rule at my local pool because there are no notices up and everyone wears trainers in the changing room. I've not seen anyone in dirty ones.

Fortunately everything always seems pretty clean. I have a pair of crocs in my swimming bag that are brand new and I only wear them in the changing room and poolside. Other people seem to do similar. I've seen flip-flops and other rubber indoor shoes used there, and sitting beside the pool for when the person gets out.

These crocs of mine never been worn outside at all and I keep them just for this.

I find the floor tiles in the changing room and beside the pool extremely slippery if I am barefoot and have nearly fallen on a number of occasions. The crocs solve this. I did check with staff that they would be allowed and told them why I needed to use them. They said it was fine.

This is very foreign. It is done in developing places with dirt roads where people piss and shit in the roads. And/or where they eat on the floor. It's not normal in the UK to be removing shoes.
We used to not have dog or human shit on the ground or men spitting everywhere. Now there is filth everywhere.
Can we deal with the problem by not having this problem in the first place rather than bend over backwards to fit in around people that do not know how to live in a society and have very little regard for anything other than themselves.

Drives me mad but not as much as children sitting inside a shopping trolley with their dirty shoes / trainers / boots. The rest of us have to put our food in there! Make your DC walk around the supermarket, it ain't hard

Literally no one listens to that rule at swimming lessons. Parents are just dipping in to grab their kids and go home. It's literally just a small standing area to grab your kid. I'm not standing in there like a puddle duck. No one else is either and I don't bat an eyelid. What are you scared of? Verrucas?

Any possible germs you're worried about in this small space are 100% in the pool times ten thousand and more. Plus everywhere else in the world. Sorry but I'm baffled and I do not adhere.

Spend a day in a supermarket warehouse out the back. Kids trainers are the least of your worries.