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.

Yes but these can apparently be opened by anybody, not just staff. I don't think that's normal?

100% not unreasonable. I absolutely hate these people. I put their stuff outside the changing room and use it. It’s so selfish, I can’t wrap my head around the entitlement of someone who does that. It’s like people who listen to phone calls/computer games/ social media/tv shows on their devices in public places on full volume. Grr. Bad parenting!

The ancient old school pool where my kids used to have lessons had no cubicles, all communal changing (separated by sex). I suppose the one benefit of that is not having to navigate this issue!

I mean looks like they were just lost there so… 🤷🏼‍♀️🤣

100% take the stuff to reception!

I am so impressed by you! I remember once at swimming a woman did exactly what you did and a kids father went absolutely apeshit at her that his poor boy was so cold after his shower and couldn’t get in the cubicle. The woman calmly walked out HOLDING THE SIGN that said “do not leave belongings in the cubicle”, handed it to him and walked out. Fucking legend.

I hate people who leave all their stuff in the cubicle - whatever they leave in there should be drop kicked into the shallow end

It tended to be the 'well off' parents who thought the rules didn't apply to them.

Imagine that comment in reverse…
It tends to be the poor parents with no manners that do this.

I dare you to mix up everyone's belongings next time

Yanbu I hate this it's so selfish. I sometimes just chuck the stuff left in there outside, in a basket if I'm feeling generous. Generally though I just get the kids changed with the stuff in there if they have to wait while we change tough. But I'm not adverse to telling someone they're a bellend when they're being a bellend.

One of the mums in our lessons sits locked in the changing room for the whole lesson very weird .

I get my towel and shampoo from the locker, put hat/goggles inside, lock it again, then get my clothes once I'm done in the shower. I take a large shopping bag to put all my clothes in to make to easier to transfer. I'd never risk leaving my belongings in the open!

All the swimming pool staff need to do is to go in to the changing rooms halfway through the lessons, and remove everything left in a cubicle to a large box outside the cubicles. If they did this once a term, it might be enough! If they don't have enough staff, perhaps they could authorise one of the waiting parents to do it for them!

Happens to me all the time. 3 cubicles in separate gender changing room. Had a full blown argument once with an entitled bitch who's 8 year old son wanted to use a cubicle that I was already in. He should have been in the men's at this age anyway. I had my period at the time and didn't want to be on show for everyone else to see. But no, none of that mattered, obviously.

What do you mean your hair will be super-drippy wet? Nothing to stop you putting your towel outside your locker, or at the top so you can grab it first

I have had quite a few shouty episodes over this. Only about 5 cubicles and no benches to put stuff out side.

I either got changed with their stuff in there. Or lifted the stuff and dumped it in one of the vast arrays of empty lockers.

At our local pool staff remove items left by those trying to reserve a changing room.

This reminds me of when I was at school... We used to have some assemblies in the gymnasium but, before we could go in, we had to take our shoes off. The corridors would be lined with 300+ pairs of shoes.

One "muck up day" (last day for Year 13) it was lower school's assembly and the Year 13s took all the shoes and threw them into a big pile on the school field. Absolute carnage. It was hilarious.

I feel something similar should be done with all the crap left in the changing rooms.

Or ask the Leisure Centre to put an enormous Lost Property box in the changing area so everything can go in there... And, of course, don't group the items from the cubicles when filling up the box 🤭

Yes. That's what the staff do in those circumstances like a full ferry. It's what the staff should be doing here but probably understaffed like most places.
Maybe now you have had an actual confrontation with someone complain again and say if something doesn't change immediately you will take it higher like to the council or whoever owns the pool. You shouldn't have to do the staff's job when you pay so much for lessons.

Yes. I put everything in a waterproof swimming bag. Then just have to grab it. Put my towel on top so I don't have to search with wet hands.

My son's lesson is right before a swimming club. So many entitled little brats there, they know his lesson is first and all crowd round the entrance of the pool staring at him 10 minutes before his lesson finishes, then when he comes out they don't move out of his way and he has to push through while they all decide to go onto poolside while he's trying to get through like he's not even there. Then we go to get him changed and they've blocked off every single cubicle in the girls and nearly all of them in the boys with their clothes. I might tell him to just get changed in one with clothes next time, he'll find it hilarious to do that! The adults that run that club aren't any better than the kids, tried to talk to them before about it and been completely blanked. Major superiority complex in that club...

I did wonder what these people do the other 50 weeks of the year when they’re not up at 5am reserving sun beds on holiday… 🫠

How did she even know? Why was she hanging round the changing room instead of being in the viewing area?

Genuinely never seen this for the duration of a lesson. I see it at the end of the lesson when they collect kids and work them tk showers and chuck stuff into a changing room 5 mins before the end. That doesn’t bother me because it’s about ease as they’re taking them to the shower - they haven’t hogged it all lesson.

I can’t believe they all do this and think it’s reasonable. I would go further and take their stuff out to the receptionist and make it their problem so they deal with the shouter. I imagine they come up with a resolution being sending an email if their own staff suffered the repercussions of bad policy/management.

When shouter came “oh sorry there was not a single cubicle. I didn’t want to leave your things or pop them on a dirty floor so they’re with the receptionist.”

Been there. I now go to lessons with him in a dry robe, so no changing cubicle needed because otherwise I was going to end up in a fight lol.
My son didn’t shower after lessons and gets changed super quick. One night there were no changing cubicles without clothes in, so I just went in one with him. The dad instantly appeared knocking on the door, told him to wait, he asked me to hand his son’s clothes out as he didn’t feel comfortable leaving them in there with us. I handed them out and told him he shouldn’t have reserved a cubicle. I was honestly ready for a fight but luckily the dad stayed calm, if he’d come in raging I would have been in fight mode.

an 8 year old boy should have been using the men’s? Get a grip are you serious.

Just to offer a different perspective, we have a similar situation after swimming lessons. I have two kids who swim simultaneously. I had everything in the changing room, my eldest was changing. Then I went to collect my 4 year old from her lesson and get her in the shower. Unbeknownst to me, the 9 year old popped to the toilet. When I came back, someone had locked themself in my changing room with all our possessions.
I knocked on the door, he opened it a tiny bit and said