parent and child spaces in sainsbury's car park

[Sharon_H]

I don't believe that the carpark is managed by Sainbury's but by a private company, Euro Car Parks maybe. So it's all their fault. :)

[northlondoner]

People raise children perfectly successfully without special patking for parents with children. In fact most people dont even notice the absence of this facility . Yet somehow in east dulwich.....Get some perspective. P & C street parking next ?

[helena handbasket]

Personally I use the family space so that I don't bash the sh&t out of the car door beside me trying to get my son out.

[dully]

There is the same problem in north london, in fact there are mums up and down the country who complain about the same thing. Parent and child spaces were bought in after a child got run over in a car park. Don't wait to be a parent to try and make parenting a bit safer. I appreciate people without children can be dismissive of a parent's job but trying to keep your child safe and alive is quite hard. We manage but not everyone makes it and there is nothing sadder than losing a child. Yes, overall we can parent without these spaces but considering parents are buying food for a family compared to single people buying for themselves and a lucky partner, we spend considerably more money in supermarkets and subsequently should have our needs (safety) met.

[spanglysteve]

While I may agree with your principle Dully that P&C spaces enhance safety, i dont agree with your assertion that you spend "considerably more" than a couple without children. You cant possibly know what couples spend their money on. The fac that they dont have children to cloth/educate etc means we have a higher disposable income. Therefore its entirely possible that we are spending more money in the supermarket than you on things like wine for entertaining and ready meals etc, or by buying more branded or luxury products (which also have a higher margin). Its probably also probable that we will buy more DVDs, CDs, etc. Your food shopping may be higher, but our non-food shopping is probably higher than yours and we all end up spending the same amount of moeny. Of course, in many cases this may not prove to be correct. But in no case do you have any basis to say that categorically families spend more in the supermarket than childless couples.

[zeban]

I'm with spanglysteve on this.

HH, that was my first thought about family parking. If the spaces are wider then isn't that the main reason why they're there?

[helena handbasket]

Isn't that what parents have been basically saying? Trying to get a child out of their car seat harness and then out of the car requires the door to open a bit wider. I have parked in a normal spot only to return with a toddler and groceries and find myself unable to get the door open wide enough to get him in. Is it wise to leave him in the road so I can back the car out before getting him in? Obviously not. So I open my door as far as the car next to me will allow and squeeze in. It's ridiculous and avoidable. When I am alone I don't care where I park, makes no difference. Can't it just be common sense to acknowledge the fact that some people require a bit more space for safety? It's not personal, it's practical.

For the life of me I can't see how something so obvious can be so hotly debated. What a bunch of Grinches!

[zeban]

It's definitely common sense and practical. Think it's pretty out of order if people without young children would use them if there are other spaces to use. That's just selfish and thoughtless really.

[????]

northlondoner Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> People raise children perfectly successfully

> without special patking for parents with children.

> In fact most people dont even notice the absence

> of this facility . Yet somehow in east

> dulwich.....Get some perspective. P & C street

> parking next ?

Do you just make stuff up??? erm,, I think you'll find that almost any supermarket in the country has P&C parking...a mixture of mainly knowing where their bread's buttered but perhaps a recognition that lumping young kids and babies out of cars is made a little bit easier with a bit more width and one that most people - including the majority of childless people don't seem to begrudge that much.

[????]

eg Tesco & Asda on the old Old Kent Road...Lidl Peckham, ASDA Waterlooville just a few others that I know...it's not some yummy mummy SE22 conspiracy you know it's the norm!

[DJKillaQueen]

Thank god we live in an affluent country where all parents have to worry about is whether sainsburrys has enough parent and toddler parking spaces....give me a break! What do parents without cars do? They walk their kids to the bus stop where they ahem...get a bus...and how many kids died or were injured walking to said bus stop? Exactly none....

Spoilt and pompous tripe.

[pk]

DJKillaQueen Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> What do parents without

> cars do? They walk their kids to the bus stop

> where they ahem...get a bus...and how many kids

> died or were injured walking to said bus stop?

> Exactly none....

>

so your saying that no chidren ever get injured as pedestrians?

and what has walking to bus stops got to do with anything?

[Pearson]

^

"and what has walking to bus stops got to do with anything?"

Walking to bus stops has everything to do with this debate when compared next to lazy sods complaining about not getting parking space right next to the front door of Sainsuburys.

I am surprised you failed to see this?

[zeban]

spanglysteve Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I think its good that Sainsbury's provide such

> spaces, they dont have to, but its a helpful

> gesture to their customers. They should not then

> be held responsible for not enforcing correct use

> of the spaces. We are all adults here and I think

> its a tad overdramtic to suggest that the breaking

> of this rule will lead to "Chaos". It comes down

> to personal responsibility. People will always

> break the rules, but that doesnt mean that we

> should expect Sainsbury's to act like some sort of

> gestapo-like parking officers.

I just saw this. The most sensible post on this thread

[Pearson]

^+1 I agree

[helena handbasket]

???? Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> eg Tesco & Asda on the old Old Kent Road...Lidl

> Peckham, ASDA Waterlooville just a few others that

> I know...it's not some yummy mummy SE22 conspiracy

> you know it's the norm!

Or how about everywhere I've ever lived, including other cities in other countries. I've never heard anyone elsewhere make a deal out of it but when it happens it ED well let's bitch it about until it unravels. Of course people take buses as well, but instead of a once or twice weekly trip it becomes every couple of days because you can't get much home in the bottom of a buggy. And yes there's online shopping etc blah de blah blah but seriously as someone pointed out there's enough sh*t and misery in the world I would hope that kicking a few tired beaten down mothers would be a bit less sporting. DJKillaQueen I'm sure there are loads of people out there wishing you WOULD take their child grocery shopping so you can get a "good" parking spot. It's super jolly fun taking small children to the shops (and on buses, and in cars and pretty much anywhere really) and you might get a better sense of what it's like to rely on the kindness of strangers.

[zeban]

Definitely agree HH

[Horsebox]

DJKillaQueen Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Thank god we live in an affluent country where all

> parents have to worry about is whether sainsburrys

> has enough parent and toddler parking

> spaces....give me a break! What do parents without

> cars do? They walk their kids to the bus stop

> where they ahem...get a bus...and how many kids

> died or were injured walking to said bus stop?

> Exactly none....

>

> Spoilt and pompous tripe.

This is surely post of the year.

If you're being ironic then it's not the worst effort I've seen.

If you're being serious then you're an idiot.

Either way, well done.

[DJKillaQueen]

I'll take ironic and idiot because it's a forum and I never lose sleep about anything I or anyone else posts. All views are welcome and valid.

So my view is that if kids really are such a burden that they require dorostop parking when shopping...then don't take them. Extreme I know but c'mon....does anyone seriously think it is really asking too much for a child to walk across what is a small car park? The car gives you the room to shop in one go, the trolley means you don't have to carry it to the car.....it's pretty easy really.

[buggie]

Ooo - are you now suggesting a babysitting service so we can go shopping without our children??

That'd be fab - sign me up!

[DJKillaQueen]

LOL ;) Mind you the swedes seem to like to provide creches everywhere. Not a bad idea for the bigger stores I think.

[peckhamboy]

DJKillaQueen Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

>

> So my view is that if kids really are such a

> burden that they require dorostop parking when

> shopping...then don't take them.

Aren't you missing the point here? (just by a couple of miles or so). Nobody seems to be saying "I have kids so I have to park next to the entrance". The point is that normal parking spaces are fairly narrow, meaning that getting kids (especially babies) in and out of the car is very difficult. I've had people park so close that I've had to scramble across from the passenger side just to get to the drivers seat - try doing that with a newborn in your arms!

So Sainsburys provide extra wide spaces to help. These happen to be close to the entrance (but don't have to be). As a result, a significant number of selfish idiots decide that they will park there despite having no need of the wide space, simply because it will save them an extra 30 seconds walk. And you're having a go at the parents?

[DJKillaQueen]

I can think of lots of people that need wider spaces...4x4 drivers for a start. I would agree that spaces are barely wide enough but childern are half the size of an adult so why do they need more room to get in and out of a car? The shopping/ buggy etc goes in the boot doesn't it? The only point that makes sense is regarding babies...but anything that can walk can get in and out just as easily as the rest of us.

[peterstorm1985]

I love parent and child parking spaces simply because I don't want small children in the rest of the car park.

Children have a horrible tendency to be distracted by anything - dog, other child, leaf, stone, reflection in a puddle etc and merrily skip away form the parents. They also tend to be below the sight level of wing mirrors which have been set for traffic level.

When I reverse out of a (non parent and child) space* I find it far less stressful that all those small things are near the shop entrance and not near the wheels of my car.

I really don't care a hoot if they somehow 'deserve' a bigger space or not.

*Thrice yearly shop in borrowed car so even the adults might be at some risk from my reversing.

[peckhamboy]

I don't disagree with you there DJKQ. In fact, I've previously said on this thread that the cut-off age should be 5 rather than 12. It annoys me as much to see parents with a 12 year old parking there as it does people with no kids. I suspect you've never had to get a child out of a car seat though - the problem is that whilst the child is half the size of an adult (or generally much less unless you're a very small adult), they're in these huge seats with side impact protection and childsafe buckles, so it needs an adult to get in there to undo the buckles and lift the kid out. So in fact you need space for one and a half adults rather than half an adult. And with forward facing seats especially (ie kids of about one year plus), if the car door is not fully extended, it's amost impossible to get the child out.