AIBU to use an unoccupied pool changing cubicle left full of belongings?

[Noddyslittleredcar]

Local authority pool, exclusively used for kids swimming lessons between 4 and 7. All lessons are 30 minutes, all starting and ending at the same time. 5 lessons with about 10 kids FS in each, so 50 kids. No idea how many cubicles, I'd estimate 50 but haven't counted.

Family changing rooms, so all cubicles. There are lockers and parents viewing area with chairs.

The pool periodically sends out emails telling people not to "reserve" changing room cubicles by leaving their clothes in for the duration of the lesson. Idea is the child changes and the adult takes their stuff to the viewing area. And yet, every week, almost all changing rooms have clothes, towels, bags and school book bags in them for the duration of the lesson. This means if you have to get your child changed before the lesson (like we do), there are no free spaces.

This week I went in a cubicle with stuff in it, because there were no free ones. Waiting would mean my child missed part of her lesson.

The parent shouted at me - actually shouted. "That's my changing room and you've taken it" and banging on the door. Her child was still in the water. I continued to get my child dressed, and came out - before the lesson got the children out the water. I explained she wasn't supposed to "reserve" cubicles like that. She said "it had my stuff in it".

So was I being unreasonable?

This is a weekly occurrence. They don't man the changing area so no employee to speak with, just reception and then the swim teachers who obviously can't come and police the changing rooms.

I have complained to the pool before now and an email goes out, but nothing changes.

brave? yes

Unreasonable? absolutely not

You're not unreasonable, but the chances of the other parents not being dickheads are slim.

YANBU. Next time put her stuff on the floor outside and tell the staff.

She's far more special. She actually owns the pool, and is kind to let you use it. Well, no, but she's had a child, so is much more special than everyone else.
Of course it's not unreasonable, if those are the rules. Maybe ask the staff to stick a notice up, as well as emailing, or print copies of the email so you can hand her one.
Tell her thanks for the contribution to the entitled parents of today competition.

I used to do this all the time when my DC got out of swimming lessons. I did get quite a lot of abuse from other parents for DARING to use their 'reserved' changing cubicle but I'd just point to the many signs they had that stated saving changing cubicles was not permitted.
It tended to be the 'well off' parents who thought the rules didn't apply to them.

YANU. Not by a long shot. These parents need to get over themselves.

I have removed stuff from cubicles before

I'm so proud of you 😂
[Im being serious]

I absolutely hate this.
It happens with adults too.

Well done op.

You should have thrown their stuff out on the floor, YANBU at all

Next time put the stuff outside the cubicle ( preferably in a nice puddle). Good luck.

a woman on a very crowded airport bus this morning took up four seats for her and her cases while others stood.

I was ok because I had a seat and no case but I don’t think I would’ve challenged her anyway as she looked very scary and clearly didn’t give a shit.

So well done op. You are a better woman than me.

I'd be tempted to film all the cubicles full of stuff and send it to the office to be attached to their next email.

Is it the kids in an earlier session that hog all the cubicles?

I’ve never had to do this, but I would. I can’t believe the audacity of her shouting at you when her kid was still in the pool, the worst that would happen is she’d have to wait five minutes to get ‘her’ cubicle back. Complain in writing to the centre manager and say how ‘terribly upset’ your child was by the banging and shouting, and that they now need to ensure a cubicle is reserved especially for you from now on so it doesn’t happen again.

Yeh I hate this too. At the pool I use, because of the shape of the changing room, there is one very nice (a lot bigger) cubicle and one fairly nice (a bit bigger) cubicle; the others are all too small to turn round in and you can't keep a patch of floor dry to stand on. So ofc everyone wants the very nice cubicle. But get out if you think you can reserve it by leaving clothes in there (I mean while you swim, it's fine while you shower ofc). I have before now moved clothes left in there on to the bench outside. #stroppymare No one has said anything to me tho. Woman sounds unhinged @Noddyslittleredcar

YANBU, obviously.
Are there signs up in the changing rooms making this clear? If not, speak/write to the centre and say they need them. Tell them you've been shouted at/verbally assaulted over it. Involve local councillors too.

It's not fine while you shower either! If you're getting changed it's yours. Otherwise it's not.

Oh I am OK with it in the shower. After all you need to get your stuff out of the locker and I put away things (hat, goggles) and set my clothes and towel ready – do people leave their clothes in the locker and then get them out with dripping wet hair? Not doing that (I swim in a hat so my hair is much dryer as I leave the pool than after my shower).

Yes I shower as I come out the pool and THEN get my things from the locker. I never reserve any cubicle

I may have been known to sit my child straight onto a pile of clothes while wet from the pool in a similar situation, knowing i would be gone before they returned to a pile of wet stuff.

Agree with this. My gym has one changing room and last week, I got out of the shower and was RAGING (disproportionately so, tbf) that the woman who had got into the shower AFTER me had put all her belongings in the changing room so I could not use it. There were only two of us, which made it worse somehow.

Ha that's brilliant

Ah OK but then I would be getting all my clothes wet with my super-drippy hair. Anyway it’s not an issue as there are only four showers and you can see if anyone is in them – I always assume the showerers have put their stuff in a cubicle. Worried now that I am committing a pool faux-pas.

I used to do this with leisure centre swim classes when my child was a young toddler.

If a family change cubicle wasn’t locked (quite often people would throw their stuff in and saunter off to the showers for 10-15 minutes) it was fair game as far as I was concerned. To be fair, it was only once that the belonging owners returned whilst I was in there and I just ignored their knocks until my child was dressed.

I always manage to not get my clothes wet so it's pretty doable 😆

well if there is only one changing room then that's a bit different. Also in my defence to the post-shower locker ladies, I am in the shower for about two minutes – in fact I usually am in there after someone and yet get out before them. Have never understood the concept of a 10-min shower.