Parent and toddler parking

[mumbojumbo]

I completely lost the plot today at my local M&S / Tesco in Camberley. I had been hunting a parking space for some time when I spotted a parent and toddler space become vacant. Before I could get there, another car nicked the spot. I noticed pretty quickly that it was full of adults (senior citizens). I have nothing against seniors but being 39+1 weeks pregnant with a 23 month old toddler in tow, the red mist decended! I went over and had a word with the driver to the tune of.....did he realise that this was a space for parents with young children.....the reply from one of the passengers was that they had someone who couldn't walk very far and there were no disabled spaces (no disabled badge either). Normally I'm quite laid back about this, but I did point out that I'm 39 weeks pregnant and I can't walk that far either.......!

OMG, I've never taken it out on someone before, it must be those pregnancy hormones again .

What got me even more incensed was I spotted another car with adults in and no kids hogging a parent and toddler space on my way out!

There, rant over feel much better now.

I am sure some of them are genuine who use them, just not all. As I say the ones who had been shopping, carry their own shopping, doing the driving they were the ones going into cars on their own which didn't have badges on them.

and we have two disabled badges

Some people are very rude mieow. As I said I would never say anything anyway, but especially not to diabled space users - just in case.

Maybe the supermarkets should have car park attendants checking these things out a bit more though.

wait til you hear this, it is the pits

my MIL, yes MIL, drives a convertible and a TT (not your normal mommy and child cars! to go shopping in)and when ever i go to our local sainsburys, where she too has a shop in the centre, who is always parked in the first space of the parent & child nearest the door? MIL -
so the 1st time it happened i went and asked her wheres her baby? shes so blase, they should have the attendants/secutiy guards monitoring it.

shes atrocious?

The staff at supermarkets don't give a toss about mother & baby/toddler parking or disabled bays. At my local Sainsburys I've seen, several times, mothers with babies/kids realise that there's no space in the M&B/T spaces and go into the disabled parking instead. Granted there aren't enough M&B/T spaces but REALLY, having a child is NOT the same as having a disabilitiy. I have a blue badge for my autistic son and he is NOT physically disabled, in fact quite the opposite but he is genuinely entitled to a blue badge. People need to realise that disability is not just physcial and being extremely physically able without the congnitive development to match is a problem in itself. ALSO not all people who are entitled to blue badges are drivers they may be driven, e.g. kids......

hermykne - not fair RE the car. I drive an Audi A4 cabriolet (convertible) and I do have a toddler and I am a mummy!!! I have heard people commeent on things like that before and it does kind of get to me. Mind, it is better now, as at least a toddler car seat is always attached in the back seat - mind you, not always very obvious as the back seats are quite low compared to the windows.

Agree with you on MILs actions though, not good at all. I did tell my MIL once about using a P&T place. She did as she was with her elderly step mother (well into her 80s) but, even so. I have to say she doesn't do it now - or at least not when me or DH are around!

davros - do you get much hassle form people? the thought of it has really put me off applying.

CNR YOU HAVE A SEAT IN YOURS FOR YOUR TODDLER, SHE DOESNT. AND ONCE YOU HAVE NO NEED FOR SEATS ANYMORE I AM SURE YOU WONT BE PARKING IN M&B SPOTS.
ITS QUITE OBVIOUS, WHEN YOU LOOK CARS TO KNOW WHETHER KIDS TRAVEL IN THEM OR NOT. MY MIL DOES IT REPEATEDLY AND SHE OWNS A SHOP IN THE CENTRE SO ITS SO UMSYPATHETIC OF HER TO THE/HER CUSTOMERS IN MY OPINION.
I DROVE AN AUDI QUATTRO COUPE AND HAD TO CHANGE IT, MY BACK WAS BROKEN WITH ONLY TWO DOORS! LUCKY YOU

Oh I agree. Even though I have the car seat in if DD isn't with me I still wouldn't dream of using one of the P&T places at all.

I am lucky. Although the car has only 2 doors (very wide mind) as I am pretty short I can actually stand inside the car to put DD in the car seat - so I actually find it easier than putting into MILs car seat in their 4 door car.

My shopping centre has 2 places for mother and baby parking out of 600. I did a quick survey once whilst breastfeeding in the centre and 60% of people had prams. How do they work that out. There are 20 disabled spaces right next to the lift, which makes sense, but the mother and baby spaces are in the darkest corner (so not safe and you can't see what you are doing with the straps etc.) and right next to the car ramp and the 5 minute spaces, which obviously have people coming and going all the time. It's weird because the parent room is amazing and even has lights you can turn off in the feeding rooms if your baby is having one of those "I'm starving but I just can't stop looking at the Christmas decorations" moments. Then again the supermarket puts infant formula on special even though they support a children's health charity, but that's another story...

Our Kwiksave has 2 Mum & Baby spaces, and 2 disabled, out of a total of about 10.

It's a bit uneven, isn't it!

Jimjams, no I don't get any hassle. I'm always (as usual) READY FOR 'EM but its actually never happened..... Any problem is usually me huffing and complaining about people using the disabled bays who don't have badges. Its a mystery as I was really expecting it and even now I think about what I'll say if anyone challenges me but, so far, no problem. I've had the badge for a year. Maybe I'm just too thick skinned to notice but don't think so, more like over sensitive in that area

my dad has a blue badge, and also checks to see who doesnt have a badge in the disabled bays.

once we wer3e in asda, dd2 was very young, and we saw an emplyee take the last b&t space. we took her number plate and reported her at the deak. silly moo.

Bobthebaby, its illegal to put infant formula on special offer (though not follow on) you should report them.

When I complained they read me the NZ code for infant feeding. I feel it falls somewhat short of the UK code. It allows them to put up a temporary reduction aslong as they don't promote it. Isn't putting a big sticker on saying "special offer" promotion? I feel they have found the loophole in our law and are exploiting it. The week after I complained about a 5 cent reduction on a trial pack they put all of them on offer. Even if it isn't illegal here its morally bad when you support the charity that provides health visitors for the under 5s and you do this.

bobthebaby, I was going to make the same point about the ratio of M+B to Disabled spaces. Our local John Lewis (Glasgow) is in a shopping centre with a car park, and has an exit straight into the carpark on level 5. On this level there are many (around 20)disabled spaces, but only 3 M+B spaces. There have been many occasions when we've arrived to find all of the M+B spaces full, but most of the disabled spaces empty. On one occasion (I'm ashamed to say), when I had dd in a pram and no dh to help me) I parked in a disabled space and got a snotty note put on my car by the carpark attendant. There were still empty disabled spaces and he hadn't put snotty notes on the cars of two cars in the M+B spaces who didn't have any sign of children in them. I don't know if there are any official rules about how many disabled and M+B spaces they need to include in a car park, but I think they do need to be a little flexible, and maybe cordon off areas for use by parents or disabled drivers. At our local hospital, you can get into a barrier car park, but to get out again you have to show your disabled badge at the front desk, and get a token for the barrier. I'm sure that car parks in shopping cenres could do something similar for parents of toddlers- if you have a pushcahair or pram you get a token, if not you have to park elsewhere.

I don't think there are are laws at all regarding P&T places. I know disabled places there does have to be some (no idea if it said how many) and they can impose fines on miused places. I think maybe something needs doing more about P&T places too. Maybe some sort of age guide should be given too?

At Meadowhall shopping cventre there are several P&T places really close to entrance but they are normal sized spaces which clearly isn't the point of them is it?

At the other ASDA I go to when redone they mmoved the P&T places a little further away from the main door. This has actually helped. Other people don't automatically use them as they are not as conveniently located as they used to be. They are now a bit further of a walk away but child and baby trollers are close by, there is a covered walkway and the spaces are much much wider. Maybe this is the answer?

I once asked a woman in her childless car whether she'd forgotten something as she left the parent/child car parking space in safeways.(I was 38 wks pregnant, and had dd1 in tow)..she pretended not to understand and then replied that she was ON HER WAY to collect her children. oh that makes it ok then!

At our Tesco you can park in the P&T spaces until your youngest child is 5 years old, obviously child should be in the car with you ! I would think that this is a national thing for all Tesco branches.

There's a sign to that effect at our Asda too WSM. Not widely adhered too though. At the moment with DS (2.9) I park in an ordinary space near a trolley return bay further away because its easier for me than waiting for a child space that I don't really need. Once bump starts to develop though will struggle to get DS out of back of two door car and so will have to risk my blood pressure trying to find a child space.

Last time I saw a middle aged couple in a posh Mercedes parked in a parent and toddler space. I nudged DP and started cooing REALLY loudly about the gorgeous baby they had in the car.

If course there was no baby (or child paraphenalia) anywhere to be seen but it made me feel better to make them feel so uncomfortable.

Anyone else find that if they can't get a P&T space and park miles away from the store with loads of empty spaces all around the car, there will ALWAYS be another car parked next to yours when you get back ??

If I can't get into the P+T spaces at our new Tesco's, I park quite far from the entrance/exit and take up two spaces. The car park is never full and that way I can at least open the car door to lever ds in and out. I may look like I can't park, but at least I can get ds sorted!

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Interestingly enough, there's a garden centre near us that has a parent & child sticker combined with disabled on several bays (plus some bays that are specifically disabled only) - I thought that was a really good compromise.

I think by law, isn't it a certain percentage of spaces that need to be disabled bays? Whereas I think P&T are just at shop's discretion/PR exercise.