Man walking around outside nursery each morning

[SMLSML]

Not sure if I'm over thinking... For the last 3 months or so, every morning without fail when I drop my daughter at nursery there is a man who is walking past it, then when I come out he's doing a loop the other way back past again. The nursery is on a business park so he could just be walking to work or getting his steps in but I do find it that he seems to do constant loops at exactly the same time every morning. I've stayed and watched from the car this morning and this is his fourth loop around the nursery building again... He doesn't appear to have a uniform or lanyard of any of the businesses on the estate... Am I thinking too badly given everything in the news at the moment 🙃 would you mention it to the nursery?

He might be doing loops in this particular place as the ground is more even and he can walk straight lines. It’s important in some circumstances.
However I would mention it to staff at nursery because there might be something else they know/ notice etc. I obviously wouldn’t demand him stop walking or call the police at this stage but as a matter of fact mentioning would be ok.
It certainly looked unusual otherwise you wouldn’t notice it.

i believe the op started it by calling this guy 'shifty' for walking along minding his own business but don't let that change your narrative.

Saying what?
"Hi, I'm just ringing to let you know there's a man that keeps walking past nursery every morning at the same time?"
There's no law against that.

I’m afraid the truth is that although, of course, not all men who walk past schools are paedophiles - that would be ridiculous - paedophiles do seek out areas with lots of children - play parks, schools etc.There’s obviously something about this particular man which has put the op on alert. If she is seeing him every morning for months on end, and he isn’t just walking on past at a regular time, but looping round the building repeatedly at nursery drop off time (read the op), I would find that… unusual. If it were me, and I felt uneasy, I would definitely mention it to nursery staff.

You could mention it to nursery staff in a casual conversation eg I've noticed a guy outside each day walking loops around the premises do you know him/why he does it? They may well know him and that will put your mind at rest.
If I felt strongly enough to start a thread on a subject I'd want to resolve it in some way.

He might have a child in the nursery. I often used to do loops and look in the nursery my child was in when I went walking.

If he’s been doing it regularly it does just seem like he’s going for a walk.

I've stayed a little later to watch

I think this is weirder than what the bloke is doing 😐

Man posts; every day I’m out getting my steps in and there’s this woman who sits in her car outside a nursery watching , should I be worried??

I understand being a bit wary of people hanging round a nursery but at the same time, even if he is dodgy, there's not actually anything we/police/the nursery can do about people looking at children from a public footpath.

Woman posts "AIBU to be furious that my poor DH has had a visit from the police after someone has reported him as a potential pervert because he does loops of the business park to get his steps in every morning before he starts work?"

Honestly I have zero inclination to give men the benefit of the doubt for pretty much anything, and I still think the OP is being ridiculous here.

Christ, you can’t even go for a walk now if you’ve got a penis? I don’t usually come down on the side of men but this is ridiculous!

My partner is walking loops like this for recuperation after heart attack / cardiac arrest / pacemaker insertion and trying to increase speed and distance over time.

He walked into the village hall to read the noticeboard in the corridor looking for gentle exercise classes - a lady in a toddler group in another room came out and said he “shouldn’t be there”…(humiliating for a respectful older man in a public space)

I spend a LOT of time observing men, (when on my own and in potentially vulnerable situations) IME most men are just looking ahead, quietly going about their business, walking in a straight line and with purpose - towards their destination, not overly interested in their surroundings.

The bad men that I (frequently) encounter are different. I find it very easy to spot the suspicious men - they stand out; those who are overly-observing, turning their heads side to side, they do more than just a fleeting passing glance, looking at me or others more than once, looking back over their shoulder, walking random or circuitous routes - not in a direct straight line, paying too much attention to the people and their surroundings - these are the ones that absolutely stand out.

I probably get seen by dozens of mums & dads every day as they walk to infants and junior school, sometimes walking amongst them, I walk to a paper shop to get my elderly neighbour her morning Daily Mail newspaper, my home backs on to the school, but the parents don’t know where i live or go too & some must be curious but no one has ever questioned my existence I often wonder if i am invisible to them as I never get a smile or good morning from them, maybe they are demonstrating to their children that you don’t speak to strangers.

We had something similar in my area a few years ago. Due to things getting very stirred up on local Facebook, a group of people confronted two men near a primary school, and the police got involved. To cut a very long story short, the men were fencing contractors, who were there at the request of the school.

Unfortunately their pictures were briefly added to Facebook. Nasty business.

@VWT7 no doubt she’s on MN, some ppl look for an issue where there is none.

A man exists.

CALL THE POLICE !!!

It doesn't say he's "looking at children" though.
It says he sometimes looks over at the fence. 😕

It doesn't matter. I'm speaking generally. If someone wants to look at kids from a distance they'll do it and you can't stop them walking by on public land.

Some of these replies are nuts. I cannot believe someone would 'log' a man walking with the police.

He is walking. So what?

OMG, I can't actually believe what I'm reading here.

My DH does the same loop daily, going past a local childminder. My DD does the same loop daily to help her stroke recovery because she knows where the area is easiest to walk.

My recommendation, if you have a penis you must stay indoors forever more

If he is not on the nursery grounds and not stopping and staring or being weird, he probably has a good reason to have a routine in the area.

On another note, are you OK? You talk about everything in the news - what are you referring to? Are you naturally anxious?

as if someone suggested the police, my god. he's walking in a public place. If you really feel you need to offload your worries, tell the nursery manager. but i'm not sure what you think they can do, they can't stop someone walking around outside. and please don't let your irrational concerns rub off on your child.

Why don’t you actually start a conversation with him? ‘Morning’ a few times then ‘oh do you get your steps around here?’ Something like that may get to the bottom of it.

I suppose there is a big difference between someone just walking by a building daily at the same time (the same would actually make me worry less as it is more likely he is going somewhere or just getting his steps in in the morning) and lingering, staring, acting creepy.

I have also come across at least two situations where the vibe felt "off" too, so I know what you mean. You had to be there to understand. Hard to convey in words, that's why many posters are trying to ridicule you. I completely get what you mean though. Always trust your instinct it never lets you down.

If he’s been doing it every day for 3 months and has something nefarious planned, he is certainly playing the long game. My guess is he’s getting some exercise before being stuck sitting at a desk all day. I often do weird laps places to get some steps in.