Anyone else's nursery say they shouldn't be bringing child to nursery in a buggy?

[Gizmo2015]

As per the title really, just wondering if anyone else has been told the same?

I started my DS turned 3 end of June to my older childs primary schools nursery in September. Received an email addressed to all parents a few weeks later to say they were shocked to see parents bringing kids in in buggies, and we should only be doing so if they have special need. Buggies are recommended up to the age of 3 and all kids are over this age now and children should be learning to gain strength in their legs etc etc. Now we have a 15 min walk in to school (30 mins if little one is on foot) and I have to get both kids in on time. We do usually walk home. Many parents drive their kids in to school or drag them in on a scooter, is this better? My eldest went to the same nursery and I initially brought him in in a buggy no issues, we stopped using a buggy before the end of nursery which is what I planned on doing with my youngest.
So, I'm just wondering if this is becoming quite widespread now among nursery aged kids?

@StarSlinger Exactly what I came to say 👏

The normal definition is one to under 3 the question is why so many are hanging onto the description for preschoolers.

None of which will be solved by an email.

Can you not think of any reasons why parents in deprived areas might keep their children in buggies for longer?

Because they are often developmentally delayed now. And so many parents are in denial.

Just because it can be done in theory, doesn’t mean the op’s younger dc will have read that memo and be fully on board!
..and that is where you need to step up and be a parent!

Oh I am well aware of the reasons- see it every day.

Ridiculous, mornings usually are about rushing to get everything sorted and be wherever you need to be on time! How you achieve that is up to you.

Ah, it was all fields round these parts the last time I saw an 'older kids in buggies' thread... It's making me all nostalgic!
IMO, that is a badly thought out, judgemental email that does nothing to build relationships with families (which is a key part of their remit)

• Sometime kids do get stuck in buggies for ages, sometimes they get stuck in a car for ages... neither is great.
• whilst it good to get little ones walking, often the busy school/work run with multiple kids is not that time.
• children all develop at different rates and all families have different needs
• Not all children with special needs will have an identified or diagnosed need by this age
• 20, 30, 40 and even 50 years ago kids were arriving to playschool and nurseries in buggies, despite the fact that the world was very different (but people are the same as they ever were)

Ask them why they sent it out?
My guess it's council or someone telling them too. I have a feeling this is some sort of government guidance from people who have very walked a 3yo anywhere.

Really nurseries couldn't care how your child gets there.

Do you think an email such as the one OP got would have helped at all?

It’s not always clear at 3 if a child does have additional needs. I rushed DS out of a buggy when he was about 2.5 because I felt pressure to make him walk. He is 15 now and his needs mean he still uses a wheelchair for any longer spells of walking.

for many parents hopping in the car for the length of a 15 minute walk is normal. I have seen parents drive for much shorter walks. At least with a buggy they can hop in and out and they are learning that walking to places is normal.

Depends how bad the situation is. Could be a last resort. Probably seeing this alongside kids having a multitude of other delays and at wits end! I know the nurseries were I work are full of exhausted and frustrated staff.

I agree I care for children one now 12 who are never given a cup using the same sports bottle at home it's ridiculous

Exactly, a walk in a buggy is preferable to a car, so why target the buggy parents not the car drivers?

A nudge and encouragement towards active travel where feasible - fine. Bossy pronouncements from on high that don’t take into consideration individual circumstances and parental autonomy - not fine.

Do you take the buggy home with you after. I've worked in some nurseries where we have had no storage for buggies and parents get arsey that it got wet or we folded it down to stop it blowing away.

We used the buggy quite a lot because it was a way to rush quickly to the park and get some nice active time in between pickup and dinner.

If we had walked the journey to the park, and the journey from the park to home, would have taken far longer, meaning we would have had far less time running about in a nice park, and more time stressfully picking our way along a street with cars, litter and traffic fumes, with me nagging every step of the way to come ON, put that down, don’t go near the cars, hurry up, stop running ahead….

As for scooters, kids should not be using scooters on pavements until they can use the safely, which was around the the 5th birthday for us.

I’m amazed that some nurseries don’t have adequate buggy storage facilities. Quite a basic requirement for parents who drop children on the way to work. I don’t think any of the nurseries in my area lack a facility to store buggies and they’d likely find themselves scrabbling to get enough kids enrolled if they did. We’re in an inner suburb where most people don’t use cars so would be arriving on foot, bus or cycle instead.

Agree.

There are a lot of reasons and while it may not have seemed obvious from that short answer I have endless compassion for people in those circumstances.

Children and adults living in substandard housing which is cold and without adequate space and in all honesty is just a bit depressing to be in naturally want to get out of the house and so if you go to any bus station, shopping centre or similar in the day you’ll see children in pushchairs.

You’ll probably rightly say I’m dodging your question and I could be awkward and agree the children sitting in the buggies with juice and crisps and a phone are probably going home with their tired looking mothers to do educational activities stopping at the park on the way back but they’re not: you know it and I know it.

The blame for that is only slightly to do with their parents. It’s societal problem and so there is no judgement here. But pretending that problem doesn’t exist isn’t going to solve it.

Used to take buggy for if they got tired along the way until they started school.
Is there a problem with buggies in the nursery doorway?
Alot of teachers live far away and drive in (so don't meet children and parents on days off,) so might not think about dynamics of walking eg local hills

I booted my older one out of the travel system buggy when the new baby came when he was 2.5 and honestly I just made life so difficult for myself. My younger one still goes in a buggy at 3.5 because the school run for the eldest is over 4 miles of hilly walking a day. Sometimes they bike it (yes my buggy bound 3 year old can still manage to ride a proper pedal bike without stabilisers) but sometimes they don't fancy that. Most other people drive so I don't feel bad.

The Reception teacher where I work has made comments in the staffroom about pre-schoolers in buggies. She doesn't have children herself and clearly hadn't thought through what she was saying when I challenged it. No one judges all the parents in cars but the ones walking with several little ones are an easy target. I don't even have an issue with 4 year olds in Reception having the odd buggy ride if it's a long way after a long day and their younger sibling is there in the double buggy anyway.

Maybe it depends on the culture of the area. Where I live many parents are running with kids in buggies so they are very much active healthy families and I just assume that's the only way they can fit the run into their day.

I wasn't familiar with the other association but obviously that's a thing.

Oh wow! I wasn't expecting so many replies! I will try and reply to as many as I can later on when I have more free time.

In response to a couple of questions, we are not allowed to leave buggies there so it isn't to do with lack of space.

Also, someone mentioned the recent news report regarding kids starting reception in nappies and buggies and not having skills required to start school. Its possible that this was sent out on the back of this although I'm not certain. However that was regarding children starting full time school. My child is in preschool for 3 hours. If I didn't use a buggy we would do this trip 4 times a day as I need to pick my eldest up later in the day, which is too much for my DS at this stage. We will be buiilding up to walking both journeys before the end of preschool as I did with my eldest.

I feel it could be handled much differently, perhaps by asking ALL parents to consider their journeys into school before they start reception, and maybe much later in the year as opposed to 3 weeks in when they are still settling. Why throw everything at the children at the same time?

As already stated, many kids are dropped in by car but it is the parents with buggies that are specifically being targeted here which makes me think it is in issue with the buggy itself, perhaps because they think parents are babying them??

Oh, and we do walk home for most of the journey and in for some of the journey aswell when we are not short for time. He does lots of walking and gets lots of other exercise (parks/softplay) when not at walk so he is not in the buggy 24/7 either.

There just seems to be an assumption I feel, that it is lazy parenting and that the child doesn't ever get to walk. But no similar assumption with children who are driven in which I find strange.

"...when not walking to nursery" **