Fed up with motorists who nab all the parent/baby parking spots? Add a message to this thread to show your support of the Babyexpert S.O.S. save Our Spaces campaign.
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I think its disgraceful that people park in the parent/toddler spaces. I would never think to park in a disabled space, neither do I use the parent/toddler spaces if I am on my own.

Nothing makes me more irrate than see perfectly able-bodied young people parking in spaces desgined for parents with children. I always try to tackle people and shame them into moving but sadly it rarely works. Equally infuriating though are people who park in these spaces with their teenage children and think that this counts. I notice that our local Tesco has now made clear on its signs that the spaces are for people with babies and toddlers not teenagers - whether this does anything to stop these ignorant, arrogant and lazy people only time will tell.

Beware of the Bull Ring car park in Birmingham - I once had to ask a complete stranger to reverse my car out of its space because I had been hemmed in on both sides and, with bump and toddler, couldn't climb in or get my son in. I knew that I was risking allowing someone to just drive away with my car but, since we live about 20 miles from Birmingham, I would never have got home otherwise!

I personally think it is pathetic that people feel the needt oaprk in these spaces I have a six month old and a 2 year old and need the space to get my children out. Where I shop the spaces are not near the door so people dont need to park in them to be lazy as its closer to the door, but its mainly people with big 4x4s that park in them to get their precious cars in but dont have no children! (no offence to 4x4 drivers with children). I feel that if they are going to buy these big cars they should learn how to park them in regular spaces and not think they are superior for having them. I would never drem of parking in the spaces when I havnt got my children with me.

This really winds me up!!! I ALWAYS ask them if they realise they are parked in a parent and child space, only one woman has refused to move and I admit that I called her a fat selfish cow before walking off!! We also once challenged a guy at IKEA who claimed he was waiting for his wife and child (no child seat though) we took about 10 minutes setting up the buggy because we knew he would have to wait untill we had gone before he could walk off Tehehe.

people who use these spaces who dont have children are selfish, mums and dads need the extra room to get the car seats etc in and out. It really winds me up when parents with teenagers use these spaces too. I have started saying nice pram to these idiots when I catch them at it! Jo x

I am so glad that this topic is being addressed!! This has been something that has really bugged me since I was pregnant with my daughter 11 years ago!! Here I am pregnant with my third child and it really irritates me when able bodied people with no kids park in these spaces! My husband will actually approach people who park in these spaces and they can get really abusive! When my local Tesco store expanded, they got rid of a majority of their parent & child spaces ( I think there are only about 7 or 8) and added alot more disabled spaces!! Don't get me wrong, my mum is registered disabled and she has a blue badge and I don't begrudge her the spaces, but it annoys me when there are plenty of disabled spaces empty and people are fighting over the parent and child spaces! maybe there could be a scheme where some of the wider spaces could be used by blue badge holders and parents should be issued a badge so they can park in these spaces too. I'm not sure how this would work, maybe something in connection with the child benefit?? You could be issued with a badge thats valid until the childs 5th birthday?? I don't know, its just an idea :\?
All i know is something has to be done

I cant understand why none of the shop's i go to do anything about the people without children parking in parent & child. I shop in either Tesco's, Marks & Spencer or Asda and all have told me when i went in and complained about people parking in p&c spaces with no children, they wouldnt/couldnt do anything about it. I am a memeber of the tesco baby club & have a badge that allows me to park in a p&c space in tesco up untill my child is 5. I think this is a good idea and i just wish that the spaces would be monitered so only people with the badges could use it. I constantly challege people who park in p&c space without children and normally it ends up in a fight, I'm sick and tired of it. One man last week told me he would "knock me on my ass" after i said to him that the spaces are for Parents with Toddlers not a van full of workies.. Lovely way to speak to a 21 weeks pregnant woman & her 9 month old son.

Thank god someone has taken this on. There is nothing more irritating than having to carry your 1 month old baby right across a car park of snow (as i had to do over winter) while some lazy so and so who is more than capable of walking parks close to the supermarket doors. I have often encountered these people at my local sainsburys and find that my death glare and good condescending "TUT" normally works to make them move.
My point of view is that if the car does not contain a car seat, then the person should not be parked there. Most kids are in car seats now until about 10 years old under the new regulations, therefore, you can normally see which cars should or shouldnt be there as the majority should have car seats in them. I would be happy to stop using these spaces when my son reaches 6 ish or even younger and i think most mums would do the same out of consideration for fellow mummys with younger babies.
The supermarkets should do more to patrol this, especially for working mums who are busy when the supermarkets are quiet and rely on going at peak or busy times when these lazy people nick all the spots.
For my part, I will continue to TUT for us all!:evil:

I will admit to being one of those selfish people who occasionally use the baby and toddler spaces at Tesco's... Why? Because at 27 weeks I got hemmed in while using a regular space and the Tesco staff refused to move my car or put out an announcement to ask the offending vehicles to move. I complained and told them that as far as I was concerned a baby 'in utero' was still a baby that needed to be got in and out of the car. I also pointed out that, being disabled, I could, technically, use a disabled space though I try not to when possible, and park even closer!!! What really annoyed me was the attitude of the staff member I spoke to! And disabled people seem to think that it's OK to park in the P&C spaces even if there are disabled spaces available - and how do they react if someone who doesn't appear disabled parks in one of theirs. I have a friend with a false leg, I've been with him when he's been accosted for parking in a disabled space.

I have to admit, it doesnt bother me tbh!!!! I dont have any children im 28+ weeks with my first but i always had children around me & even when i used to take out other ppls children b4 i fell pg it didnt bother me!!! Sorry***

I have to admit, it doesnt bother me tbh!!!! I dont have any children im 28+ weeks with my first but i always had children around me & even when i used to take out other ppls children b4 i fell pg it didnt bother me!!! Sorry***

so selfish!!! i don't think that people really care or understand why they are there in the 1st place!!! there should be a fine for those sneeky drivers!!! they will soon stop.... hopefully!!! sadly is the society we live in... is all about me, me, me.

I'm with you guy's it really winds me up. I'd feel so guilty watching a mum or dad struggle with the kids whilst I was sat in the mother and baby space child free. But with the attitudes of my boss who says "why should i get my car scratched in a normal space when I can use a mother and baby space and it not get scratched" i doubt their selfish minds will be changed easily.

Loubielou, which shops does your boss use? I could happily arrange to have an 'acident' involving my pram and his car. Daska, I think thats disgusting, pregnant women should be allowed to use p and c spaces as well, you need the extra room as much as any one.


[Modified by: Bedhead on April 26, 2007 05:00 PM]

When I was shopping today I noticed 2 people park in the parent & child spaces - both elderly people - one of them even waited, blocking me in, to park in the space closest to the shop. There were spaces behind him - he didn't have a disabled sticker so presumed that he could park there instead. It really annoys me - I tackled someone once - again an older gentleman - he told me in no uncertain terms - 'tough, if the space is empty I'm going to park here - what are you going to do about it?' And they say youngsters have bad manners!!!

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Just wait until you have a little one, car seat and changing bag and it's tipping it down with rain and some so and so who obviously doesn't have a child nicks the last p&c spot forcing you to park further away from the shops than should be neccesary! Although to be honest, it's not really the distance from the shops that'll bug you the most - it's trying to get a car seat or sleeping baby out of a car parked in a regular space when the car next to you is a bit close.

I think the idea of a badge being issued when you apply for your maternity exemption certificate up until the child is 5 is a good idea. It could be policed in the same way as the disabled spots, by traffic wardens or members of the supermarket staff. They could be issued in a different colour every year much like the OAP's travel tokens to stop people abusing it for too long...

My OH does the food shopping because I absolutely hate it, he's a star, we save money if he goes as I'm a bit supermarket sweep when I go. We're thinking about internet shopping when baby arrives, have any of you tried it?

I have signed this petition and it was after a nasty incident in my local TESCO that prompted me to write in to the magazine about it.After trying to park in the p&c spaces but them all being snagged by lazy rude people i complained in store and was told by the guy who is in charge of the trolley collection people that 'tough! we cant stop anyone parking in them & we have no time to stop them anyway!'I was fuming!
And then last week i managed to park in the last space when a man on his own tried to ram me out of it so that he could park there,he stoppped just in time and had the chhek to swear at me,he called me a selfish f@@@in whore & i should learn to drive,all in front of my young baby and he was shouting quite loudly too.
It makes me sick,us mums seem to have no respect of anyone.

I have had a couple of run ins recently with inconsiderate parkers. I only gave birth 6 days ago, the day I went to hospital I ran out for some last minute bits. As I returned to my "parent to be" space (of which there are 2, with only 6 P&T) I saw a young boy get out of his car from a parent to be space. I asked if he was pleased at being the first pregnant male - to which he seemed a bit confused. I explained that the space was for people like me and asked him to move his car. He wasn't pleased but he did it. Then, 2 days ago, we had our first family trip to our local Sainsbury's. We had to park in the furthest P&T spaces, on returning to the car we saw a 2 door car with a man at the driver seat and his partner getting in with her dry cleaning - no wonder she was overweight as she was obviously lazy - when I asked why they were abusing a space meant for parents we were met by abuse - what a world - I just hope they didn't !!!!

I have found myself parking in these spaces over the past few weeks at my local Tesco as apart from being heavily pregnant I also have severe SPD and I need the space to get in and out of the car. I have crutches and as I said it takes me a while. The parking attendant is very nice to me and allows this as I am not allowed to use a Disabled Badge as my disability is 'only temporary'!!! It's disgusting that ignorant people still stare at me though as if to say 'where's your baby then?' but don't worry, I always put these people right!!!

hi one supermarket i go too does have mother n baby passes up too age 5.. but i dont think anyone checks if u display them or not...u get them from their baby club...one gripe i do have is pregnat ladies should be able to park here too!!! as carrying heavy bags isnt good for them or as is squeezing into ur car when the spaces are too small....
swxx

Hi. what a great idea! I parked at my local shopping centre the other week, in a parent and child space and some complete idiot parked next to me, leaving roughly 1 inch between my car and his/hers. they had parked not even in a space. I had to leave my lo with the parking attendant so I could reverse out and park again to get my babs in the car. The centre used to clamp motorists who parked in these spaces but they've recently been taken over by another parking company that dont do this. What a shame, I must admit i left some choice words on the centre warning leaflet put on this car. Nic

i went to the supermarket today and copuln't park in mother and toddler spaces due to works vehicles parked there i have a 3yr old and 25 weeks prgnant with spd and find it difficult to walk far.:\?

If you park in a disabled area without a badge you can get fined, when are we going to see the same benefits for parents? The spaces are there for a reason, and should not be taken advantage of. Go Prima Baby!!

If you park in a disabled area without a badge you can get fined, when are we going to see the same benefits for parents? The spaces are there for a reason, and should not be taken advantage of. Go Prima Baby!!

I agree with Funky Rabbit!!!
People who park in Parent and Child bay's who do not have children, should be fined!

i shout pretty loudly when i see people without kids parkin in parent and child spaces when there are people with small children having to park at the other side of the car park.. the "wheres his/her children? they must be really small cause i cant see them" is a good one to shout

My mum does that one, either that or she taps them on the shoulder and asks them if they realise they have lost their baby

i dont personally drive but my partner and my parents do and it frustrates me when we go shopping and we have my son in the car that we cant use the spaces provided, when u go past the cars that are in the parent & child spaces u can clearly see that the majority of cars DONT have a child with them.

I think its disgusting that people with no children think they have the right to park in these spaces, I would never have dreamt of it before I had my lo. I usually glare at anyone I see doing this but I'm afraid I havn't had the guts to say anything to them. I think a badge like disabled people have is a great idea.

I think its disgusting that people with no children think they have the right to park in these spaces, I would never have dreamt of it before I had my lo. I usually glare at anyone I see doing this but I'm afraid I havn't had the guts to say anything to them. I think a badge like disabled people have is a great idea.

It really makes me mad when people without children with them park in these spaces we had to walk the length of Morrisons car park the other day to get a baby trolley which sensibly are next to the parent and child spaces and two people were returning to their cars there with no kids!!! They should be ashamed it's hard enough to shop with little ones without the added hassle of shoehorning them in and out of the car!

i completley agree with this, i am 20 weeks pregnant and unfortunatley my bump is gettin bigger and bigger by the day i reckon lol. I parked in a parent n baby parking space at sainsburys there was an awful lot of empty p&b spaces also, and as i got out the car this old lady started to shout at me i had my back to her and as soon as i turned around she started to apologise sayin she hadnt realised i was pregnant. Today i went to tescos and i have a p&b badge and i have to keep my booklet that i received with the badge in the car to show that it states that mums to be are allowed to park in the spaces, due to the amount of people who complain that i shouldnt be parking there, i wouldnt mind but it seems that the people i have had complain at me havent even got children, and dont need to park in those spaces anyway-- guess its jus laziness on their behalf and wantin to aprk close to the doors. My cousin has exactly the same issue and with 2 children and drivin a voyager she needs the space as much as anyone else. Stop these ignorant people from parkin in spaces that are clearly not for their use!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I HATE people who abuse the parent and child spaces (with the exception of disabled drivers who have had their spaces abused by selfish unthinking people)

I have a 5 mth old and an 18mth old, and getting them in and out of the car is enough of a challenge when I do get to park in a wide space. I did once mention it to the Customer Service Desk people in my local supermarket, and they said there was nothing they could do about it as they cannot legally enforce the spaces. So the nice little badge thing they sent me for my windscreen would be more useful as a coaster then. . . ?!

I really hope this petition gets results!

(Quote:) Just wait until you have a little one, car seat and changing bag and it's tipping it down with rain and some so and so who obviously doesn't have a child nicks the last p&c spot forcing you to park further away from the shops than should be neccesary! Although to be honest, it's not really the distance from the shops that'll bug you the most - it's trying to get a car seat or sleeping baby out of a car parked in a regular space when the car next to you is a bit close. (Unquote...)

Erinsmum, Maybe im just more relaxed about it. As i said in my post i do look after children that is my job. Babies mainly & i have stuggled getting in & out of my car & i struggle now being heavily pg. I just dont think there is any point wasting my time getting angry about it as i only upset myself. Id rather enjoy my day. Ppl are always parking in disabled bays & they are not disabled but there is nothing a disabled person can do about it.


[Modified by: tess1 on April 28, 2007 09:07 PM]

I hate it when people park in mother and baby spaces.Old people seem to think they have the right to and also some parents with teenage kids seems to think they should park there. Also people in big cars..... They should make more mother and baby spaces though..

I totally support this petition. I have two boys, 1 4yo and baby is 9m. It's so hard and half the time really dangerous crossing the lanes with the lil'uns when you have to park quite a way away from the entrance. What grates even more is when you do witness these selfish heartless gits park in the p&c spaces. I always feel like I want to give these inconsiderates a piece of my mind but when you're struggling with the kids plus baby bag, plus reusable shopping bags, it's just impossible! Plus there's always the fear that they will give you abuse instead and you're on your own with no backup! :x


[Modified by: buneenz on April 28, 2007 11:33 PM]

Hi, im already a mum of two and am expecting my third child. Our local Asda (Watford) has mum-to-be parking spaces which are taken up by those who have no children and are not even pregnant, and the mother and child spaces are just the same. Yesterday, a person with a disabled badge took the space next to me when there was loads of spaces available for her, its distgusting as people have common sense and curtosy not to park in their spaces.:x
I find people so rude and offensive, there are no morals anymore, nobody seems to care. I have about four weeks left to go til d-day and am struggling extremely badly with SPD that i need to be close to the shop entrance, but if i complain i dont get anywhere, its disgusting and really infuriating. I think most shopping centres should be brought to attention on this now - my partner and i both agree that the best way forward is for any mother to be or mother with young children should have a badge for instance like disable people do, so we can put in our cars. We shouldnt have to be made to feel like we are nobodys. Even today a woman took one look at my bump and ran to the cashpoint machine so she could get there before me..... i have no idea what is up with people these days, but it stinks, trouble is, our kids are growing up in this now and its sad.
SO COME ON SUPERMARKETS GET WITH IT AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO OUR LIVES AND HELP US OUT FOR ONCE AFTER ALL WE ALL SPEND ENOUGH MONEY WITH YOU!

I really hope people take notice of this petition. More needs to be done in carparks as the signs and designated bays don't seem to be working, maybe they need someone to patrol the car parking or threaten people with fines or clamping. I was at Tescos last week and observed several people without kids parking in the bays and there was able bodied people parking in the disabled spaces.
Leigh:evil:

This really does p me off! I waited, patiently, at my local Tesco store with my 3 kids in the car for a space. Eventually someone came out of a space and when they drove past, no kids and no car seats in the car!!!!!! I parked up, seething, only to look at the car next to me with a man sat there, reading his paper with no kids or seats in his car neither!!!! That was the icing on the cake. I got out and said loudly to my older children "oh look, another invisible child!" To make matters worse, the car next to him was exactly the same and then as I walked closer to the store, there was a massive van parked in the 1st parking space!!!!!

I wouldn't dream of parking in a disabled spot (I thought it was against the law anyway??) so why do others park in our p&c spots? It's morally wrong. When Im alone in my car or only got my older children (8 and 10) I don't park in the spaces. Only when Ive got my 4 month baby with me cos I can't get the car seat out to put in the trolley otherwise

I spoke to one of my mates who works in Tesco and he told me to take down the reg numbers and give it to customer services and they'd call them over the tannoy. Next time, I will!!! And sadly enough, there will be a next time

I'm 21 weeks pregnant and the only time I've ever parked in a P&C parking space is when my niece was much younger and came shopping with me. I'd never dream of parking there with her now (11 going on 21). On the note of parking in disabled spaces, I use a walking stick as I have problems with my joints - I can usually make into the supermarket ok but am usually in tremendous pain when I've finished. I spoke to someone on the customer services desk at Tesco Bangor (north Wales) and she told me to use a disabled space if I needed to - I will only use them if there are quite a few available and then only if the furthest 1 or 2 are free, I'd never park in the ones closest to the store. I can guarantee that I will have a go at people who use the P&C spaces once JJ arrives and if I'm subjected to abuse that most people seem to be objected to I will wave my stick at them!!!!

I took my baby to somerfield and because the next car was close to the line I had to park off centre in a space in order to open the door. When I returned the attendant had slapped a "please be more considerate" ticket on my car. I was in a P&C spot, with a seat visable and my wheels were just touching the white line between me and a chevroned area!! I was really upset and would have complained had my lad not been screaming already because he hates supermarket lights. Why not have joint use spaces for disabled OR mums. No-one likes to spaces empty..

i watched a lady park in the baby spaces next to me, she had a posh car and no children not even a babyseat in the back. so my hubby went to customer services this is asda by the way and they said they couldn't do anything about it. but said it was annoying. they should make spaces for mums to be as well or let them park in the disabled bays as when i was 38 weeks pregnant i could hardly walk as i was so big and normally had to park miles away from anything.:\(

I have just got back from my local Sainsburys where (as usual) as I was parking a fat builder in his van was parking in a P&C space. I didn't say anything because I was on my own with lo and he was bigger than me but I took down his reg and took it to customer services. I explained where he was parked and asked them if they could get him to move and to give them credit they took the number and put a call out asking him to go to customer services. It didn't do any good because he was just leaving any way (he was of couse just buying his sarnies!) but it is nice to know that some supermarkets will try and help and it made me feel better

I'm 30+4 weeks and am lucky enough to be mobile so walking across carpark is no prob. However, when Spud arrives I would like to be able to park outside my supermarket. I can't remember where I read it but someone had suggested that you register your pregnancy with local authority and they issue a badge with a four-year validity. You can then display this badge in your car and it allows access to P/T spaces throughout your pregnancy and up until the child is 3yrs old. It would also allow carpark wardens to warn/fine non-badge holders for parking in P/T space.
I think this is complete genius and would happily pledge my support for such a scheme.

We frequently have problems at our local supermarket with people parking in the parent and child spaces when they clearly do not have a child with them. I went through a period of complaining at the 'help desk' each time, but that does no good and have been told for the past 6 months that they will be introducing some sort of scheme or clamping - but this is yet to happen.
I have even tackled the occassional person, but this also seems to do no good - I even had one guy tell me he had to park there as he needs to keep an eye on his dog who was in the back seat! and two young woman said they only have 1/2 hr for their lunch and it was quicker to park in a spot nearer the supermarker door!

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I completely agree that these people who part in mother and toddler spaces should be ashamed of themselves. I have a 4 year old, a 3 year old, and a 16 week old, and am tired of trying to get them all in and out of the car safely, while just anyone parks in the mother and toddler spaces. It makes me really cross, as I would never dream of using these spaces if my children weren't in the car with me, and that goes equally for the disabled spaces! People should spare a thought for others, and realise that the spaces are there for a genuine reason, and maybe oe day they may need them themselves - hopefully someone equally as thoughtless won't be in them!!

I challenged somebody again today, man and woman in dodgy old ford escort and apparantly it was ok for them to park there because she was having dental surgery later today???????? Hello? what the f*** has that got to do with anything?

We would never dream of parking in a disabled space so why is it that some disabled people feel its ok to park in the parent and baby spaces. I have seen this happen on numerous occasions and had to park right at the back of the car park so I could get my son and his buggy out with ease and not to damage anyones car!!
Just 2 days ago a car with 3 able bodied adults were parked next to me and were unloading their trolley, I din't have the guts to confront them but I made sure they heard me speaking to my fiancee saying how annoying and lazy it is to use them, lets just say they looked sheepish!!

I have only just passed my driving test and am pregnant with my first child, so as yet this hasn't affected me with the P+C spaces. However, my husband is registered disabled as is my MIL and when we go out with them we have terrible trouble finding a disabled parking space. Also, the looks we get are terrible. It's not too bad for my MIL as she has obvious mobility problems but if it just my husband in the car, as he doesn't look disabled (he is visually impaired) we get people glaring at us and talking behind our backs because we walk out of the car with no obvious disabilities, people just make assumptions. Can't wait for baby then I can moan about disabled spaces and Parent + child!

Thank you to everyone who has signed up so far, we appreciate your support! However, almost 800 Babyexpert users have viewed this thread, but not left their name (that's all we need!). Please, please, add your name and help our cause! Thanks

It totaly angers me as well i have a few run in with people who have taken a space that i am just about to take and they dont have children with them. i end up waiting 20 mins for a child parking space its not on. Just this friday gone i was waiting that long for a parking space the car parking attendent at my local tesco told me to go and park in a disabled parking space i didnt like to do as i felt a bit cheeky but he also told me that parent and child and disabled are allowed to share parking spaces as long as we show that we have children. Lets hope something can be sorted!!!!!!!!!!!!!

at my local tesco there are only 4 p&c spaces and about 10 disabled spaces,the disabled are never full up and the p&c spaces are always full i have only used the p&c spaces when i have my friends 1yr old with me but i have a baby on the way and would hope to be able to get a space once i have my baby.i dont mind if the p&c spaces are the furthest ones from the store as long as they are wider for us with pushchairs and not abused by people without children.

hello. I have read through this thread and one lady does state correctly that if you join the Tesco parent and baby club you get your sticker for your car and can park in these spaces whilst pregnant. (I do also have a "Mum to Be On Board" sign in the back of my car!!) I have been suffering with mobility and muscular pains whilst walking and getting in and out of my car and so we have parked in the P&C space. But this is only if there are a couple free and not much other parking around the store.
One thing that REALLY gets my goat about my local Tesco (I will name and shame the Leighton Buzzard branch here!) is that about 6 months ago they expanded their home delivery service.... no prizes for where it was expanded - over about 6-7 P&C spaces. And yes you have guessed it - they haven't been replaced in any other areas of the car park. At the same time there are at least 15 disabled spaces that I have never seen more that 2/3 full. Why haven't they either changed the use of some of the disabled spaces or have them as shared use. Also since these spaces are the nearest to the cash machines guess who blocks them up.....
Phew rant over - Lou

i shop at tesco n most of the time we have 2 wait 2 park in a parent n child space i have 2 daughters of 14mths n 6yrs n im 26wks pregnant. quite often at our tesco u find disabled people parkin in the child spaces.:\( i once told a bloke who'd parked in the wrong space 2 move his car 2 the main carpark n not 2 b so lazy as he could walk 2 the store only 2 b told that as he works in tesco he can park where he wants:o n that if i wasn't so fat i could do the walk 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! did try n point out 2 him i was pregnant n tryin 2 park with 2 young chrildren!!!! i did complain 2 tesco but nothing was done about it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:oops::evil::x:cry:

this is my biggest bugbear. it is just lazy inconsiderate people who park there when there are spaces elsewhere. It would not kill them to walk a bit further. There are never enough spaces. I think supermarkets should be more considerate to parents as we must make up alot od their customers and provide more spaces and clamp people who park wrongly the same as they would a disbaled space.:oops:

I am 35yrs and have always respected disabled and parent & child parking spaces, so now im 28 weeks pregnant I get really angry when I discover I am in the minority! Even in the car park at work where everyone knows im 28 weeks pregnant I have cars parked right up to my car door and on occasions have had to wait for the person to come back to their car so I can get in mine - why are people so selfish?

I havent started using the P&C spaces at our local supermarkets yet (we have a Tesco & Sainsburys local to us) so im not sure how strict they are on people using the spaces when they shouldnt, but rest assured when the time comes I will be 'having my say' if I see people using them inappropriately!

Why cant we have designated spaces in ALL areas and not just in supermarkets eg: town centre's, child friendly places like zoo's etc.., like disabled people do?

Maybe Prima Baby should find out which places are the worst offenders and arrange for local Parents & Children to stage a protest and really show the 'offenders' up!!!!!! What do you think Prima Baby?

You have my support 100% on this one. I am 27 weeks and I think there should be spaces for mums to be also, I'm sick of people, yes mainly 4x4 parking so close it kills my back to get in the car, annoys me so much i feel like bashing their car with my door lol.

I think its disgusting that people wihout kids think they have a right to park in parent & baby parking spaces. I would like to see these people fined.

Hi just to let all u mums to be that at tescos p&c spaces you are allowed to park in them as i read in the baby club book so dont feel u have to wait to have ur baby to park in them you do have ur baby just that no one can see him or her yet. Pregant women need those spaces to i know i did as i was a big as a cow lol i had to push my door wide open to get out there was no way i was parking in a normal space i couldnt get out of my car. Tesco do parking permits so either join the baby club or ask at customer services.

I went to morrisons today and there was one parent and child space left and a man and myself both wanted it, as he had got there a bit before me I went and parked somewhere else and struggled to get my daughter in her car seat out of the car due to the space. As I walsed to the shop I saw the man and his 15 year old son getting out of the car, no baby or small child in site. I was so annoyed that he still took the space when he saw that I had a baby seat etc in my car. I think it is unfair the way people abuse the spaces.

I totally agree with everything that has been said by every-one. I came out of Tescos a few weeks ago and saw this guy pull up in his car into a P&C space with a prescription in his hand I challenged him and he said he was picking up his wife and kids. Blatantly lying as he still hand the script in his hand in plain view. The older generation wonder why the youth of today are so rude no wonder with them as role models.

More needs to be done. if supermarkets are designating P&C spaces alongside disabled one they should be enforcing the use of them to the general public .

i hate that people park in the parent spaces just because they have a car seat in the car when they havnt brought the child with them. never mind the fact that my local super market doent have enough spaces any way

Had a run in with an old couple at Sainsbury's - they parked next to me just as I was getting Toby out of the car.
When I asked them politely if they realised that they'd parked in the parent/baby area the wife said "Yes" (oh & looked down her nose at me )

She then said that they were collecting their grandchildren who were in Homebase..... Now the nearest one to where we were is a good 10 miles away..... I suppose she could have been telling the truth but then that means they were breaking the law as they didn't have childseats (which I did point out to her....)

She then asked what business it was of mine - so I said oh none - it's just annoying when people who should genuinely be parking there can't as other people have parked there......

To which her husband said "thanks for the information" as they left the car there and went into do their shopping

grrrrrrrrr
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Had a run in with an old couple at Sainsbury's - they parked next to me just as I was getting Toby out of the car.
When I asked them politely if they realised that they'd parked in the parent/baby area the wife said "Yes" (oh & looked down her nose at me )

She then said that they were collecting their grandchildren who were in Homebase..... Now the nearest one to where we were is a good 10 miles away..... I suppose she could have been telling the truth but then that means they were breaking the law as they didn't have childseats (which I did point out to her....)

She then asked what business it was of mine - so I said oh none - it's just annoying when people who should genuinely be parking there can't as other people have parked there......

To which her husband said "thanks for the information" as they left the car there and went into do their shopping

grrrrrrrrr
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there is nothing I enjoy more than walking for miles in the pouring rain with a wonky trolley and a stroppy toddler. My "enjoyment" is confounded when walking past the mother and toddler spaces I spy a mother with her teenage son getting out of the car, a works van stopping to pick up lunch and someone just sat there waiting for their passenger to return. To say my blood boils is an understatement. If I don't have the baby with me I don't park in the mother and toddler, simple! We should have permits for the first three or four years to use these spaces!!:evil:


[Modified by: mel t on May 14, 2007 07:16 PM]

Quote:

I also think that it should be policed. We went to our local Matalan the other day and there were not any parent and child spaces left and so we parked elsewhere, it was lashing down with rain and I had trouble getting my 5 month old out. i didn't have enough space to get his car seat out, so I just had to get him out and run for shelter. When we came out of the store I noticed a man in a two seater sports car, parked in one of the P & C spaces, talking opn his mobile phone. I was fuming. I went over with my son and asked him why he was parked there as us parents struggle to get our babies and equipment ot. Well, he was very rude and shushed me away. He told me in no uncertain terms that he could park wherever he liked and if I didn't like it, tough!!
It just goes to show what our world is coming to!!! What happened to old fashioned manners!!

The reason for me joining this discussion board/ website was to sign up for the Save Our Spaces campaign - as like everybody else am sick to death of people parking in Mother and Baby spaces, when they don't have children - like a porsche that I saw - now where would you stick a) the baby seat and b) the shopping for a family !!! in a 2 seater car !!! - people with posh cars like to park there, so there cars don't get damaged - well I have news for them if you can afford a card costing that much, then surely you can afford to get it repaired !!!

I have just come back from my local asda, as i walked past the mother and baby spaces (i'd walked up, determined to get this little 'un out somehow!!!) i saw one of the asda workers, who was by herself get into her car that she'd parked in the mother and baby space!!!! I was gob smacked, if the staff are doing it they aren't going to care if the customers do it!!

Here here

I wouldn't park in a disabled space (of which there are far more then parent spaces anyway) sp why should they park in a parent space without a child...it's just plain rude and lazy!

What a God-damn joke you lot are. Have your legs lost the will to walk?
I have 2 young kids and it doesn't exactly kill me to walk an extra 20 metres :roll:
To hear you lot whinging on like you are makes me ashamed. Why should we get special treatment just cos we have kidz?

You claim to speak for all parents, but you don't. Where's the petition to get rid of parent parking?
Fairs' fare after all.

Darren.

I think these spaces should be policed in exactly the same way as disabled bays. I also agree with poster who suggested we get the same parking rights as disabled people, as we clearly also have mobility problems. Its a great idea that we should be issued with passes when we get our NHS maternity exemption cards. I think the ability to park in these spaces should be granted from pregnancy. Im 9 months pregnant and have SPD. Getting in and out of the car in a normal bay is almost impossible.

As for the people who park in the bays to save their cars from dents, perhaps they would get less dents if people with bumps/kids could get in & out more easily???

Perhaps shops should be encouraged to have all their spaces generally wider, and provide more p&c spaces? How many times do you see row after row of unused disabled spaces, for example??

If a shop had generally wider spaces and advertised this, they may well get more customers?

I don't drive myself, and my better half has dropped me off by the doors of the supermarket before parking cos he's a star :) I'm 25 weeks and 5 days.

I think it's really sad that folk don't have any respect for things like spaces for parents with kids. It's great that supermarkets have tried to do something nice for folk like us that need more space to get in and out. I only realised how inconsiderate folk were once I got pregnant and have had to ask to get a seat on the bus after work one day.

I sincerely hope that all those lazy goits that park in spaces reserved for somebody else have the same thing happen to them to see how they like it.

Quote:

I walk miles with my lo,i do not object to walking an 'extra 20m' i object to struggling with getting my baby out of the car.
I am not 'whingeing' as you so eloquently put it.I just want to be able to safely get my baby out and put him in the trolley/pram at the side of the car and not at the back in the flow of traffic.
I speak for myself with this and have never claimed to be speaking on behalf of parents everywhere,why would you want to get rid of parent parking?
I know everyone is entitled to their opinion but i don't understand where you are coming from with your comments,unless it was meant to stir up emotions...:roll:

Here, here. I have said before that I think the P&C spaces should be at the back of the car park. I have legs, on average I walk about 10 miles a week with my pushchair, and I have no problem with walking to the shop. I do have a problem with having to leave my baby in the middle of the car park while I move my car so that I can open the door because some selfish bastard has parked too close. This thread is for people who agree with the petition, if you don't agree sod off and start your own thread.

I'm with you bed head I have no problem with walking and it wouldnt bother me if the spaces were further away from the shop, its the extra space we need to get the children in and out of the car without bashing our car or the one next to it and you are right, if you dont agree with it start your own thread.

me and my sister both have children she has a 14 month old and my baby is 4 months. we get very angry at people who park in mother and baby spaces that dont have children!
The other day i was in tesco i was parked in a mother and baby bayand as i was putting my shopping and baby into the car, a man speed into the space beside me which also was a mother and baby bay he got out his car looked at me at started to walk towards the shop i said to him you shouldnt park there these bays are for parents with babies and children and he turn round to me and told me to f**k off.
Anther time when my baby was newborn and i was driving round and round the carpark untill a mother and baby space became free, i was driving around the car park for 20 mins and gave up and had to park far away from the shop and in a same space, when i finally got to the entrance of the shop there was a free mother and baby space and a woman with no children pulled straight into it, i looked at her and shock my head because that made me very made, and she repled to me im not going to be long thats not an reason to park in that space which clearly marked as a mother and baby space. My sister has the smae problem and also you find place have a lot more disable bays than mother and baby bays , nothing against disable people as they need there spaces aswell but there are lots of parents out there with, same children and babies so why dont they make more and they would get more buisness, me and alot of friends avoid shops and shopping centres that dont have many moyher and baby spaces as you know there all be taking and you have to wait ages for one>>>>:evil::evil:

i recently visited my local and was shocked to see a member of staff park in a parent and child parking apace and just walk into work. i went to customer services and told the young girl but she didnt seem that bothered. i am fed up of seeing ppl park in these when they dont have young children but havent ever said anything as i would probably only get abuse thrown back in my face.

just reading the past postings and want to reply to CoolHands posting about why should we have parent and child parking spaces. its not about being close to the store its about having the extra room either side of the car to make it easier to get baby or child out of the car. as all mums and dads will know not all babies/children sit still while you try and get them straped up properly so having the extra room to actually have the car door fully open is good. especially if you have just given birth and your movement is maybe restricted, from having stiches and trying to squeeze into small spaces is difficult . and on a final note you are a man, need i say more!!!!

[Modified by: emmamed on May 18, 2007 01:18 PM]

Im so glad this issue is being addressed at last. A few weeks ago I reminded an elderly man that the space he was parked in was a mother and maby space and that the disabled space were on the other side. He was not impressed with my comments and went off in a huff! Im sure he would have had enough to say if I had parked in a disabled space, or banged his door when trying to get my baby out of my car! Go Prima!!!

Hi there,

I'm disgusted at the people who park in mother&baby spots as much as I am at people who park in disabled spots.

When my daughter was 6months old I had been driving around looking for a space and was about to pull into the mother&baby spot when a guy in a white transit pulled in. I got out and asked him if he realised that the space wasn't for him and all I got was "what are you gonna do about it?"
With offensive replies like that what are we supposed to do? I mentioned to the store what happened and the woman shrugged her shoulders........:evil:..

I really get ticked off with people without children nabbing parking spaces to protect their nice shiny big cars and would rather see a heavily pregnant woman and toddler struggle out of a normal space. Every time I see this happening in my local supermarket I always remind the offender (politely......at first) what they've done but occasionally they get a bit rude back but when I said that was about to start labour any time and couldn't physically get out of the car in a normal space the bloke couldn't apologise and move quick enough!! Most peolpes response is that they couldn't be bothered to wait for a normal space but I just embarass them (loudly) into moving. These spaces need to be protected properly, if I used a disabled space I would soon be asked to move!!

It drives me absolutely bonkers when you go shopping, especially in the evenings and all the parent and child spaces are being taaken up by lazy people who can't be bothered to walk a bit further to the supermarket from a normal space. Even worse are the people who use these spaces to nip to the cashpoint.

I'm a mum of three and childminder and sometimes I can have as many as four children under five, I need parent and child spaces.:evil


[Modified by: Purple Princess on May 23, 2007 08:54 AM]

Hi everyone,

No-one seems to be mentioning the most important reason for the use and placement of P&C spaces and that is safety. Disabled people and small children are unable to safely negotiate busy carparks hence why P&C spaces were created and located near to the entrance of the facility in question. I think this needs to be made clear to other motorists as they only see the spaces as an extra width space and don't think about the safety implications of forcing someone with a small child to park elsewhere. I think this should be clearly incorporated into the 'shame the driver form'.

Really pleased someone is doing something about this!
At my local supermarket I recently saw a woman park in the parent space with a car seat in the car but no baby! Really not helping the cause...grrrr!
In Australia the large shopping malls provide mums with badges to allow them to park in the parent bays.

It really REALLY hacks me off! There aren't enough spaces by half! Now i'm disabled and have a choice, but even when i park in a disabled bay i get tutted at, my disability isnt visible, im in pain every day of my life but i look normal, walk relatively normal..And when i have my kids with me they think i have done it because there are no spaces left! I complained at tesco customer services as a member of staff was constantly parking in the P&C spaces and they made him move his car, and he was warned and he never did it again...Workmen parkin their to eat their pre packed sarnies, and read their zoo mags...and of course the people with sports cars who race into the spaces! I have had to move my trolley about 5 times because they have mis judged it and nearly hit the trolley with my babies in!! Its horrific!

If you were parked in a disabled bay without being disabled, you would get a fine, so we need that enforcement for parent child parking! It shouldn't be a privalige, it should be a right!! Every parent and child has a right to safely get in and out of the car, how can we do this when there are so many idiots on the road...Selfish idiots who only care about the extra 10 steps it would cause them to have to take if they parked in a regular space!

Well one thing for sure, if my daughter happens to have my keys and she happens to scrape them all down the side of their car, i won't care one bit! Accidents happen regardless of wether you are parked in a regular bay or a child bay!

THERE'S NOTHING MORE INFURIATING THAN PEOPLE WHO PARK IN OUR SPACES. WHAT'S WORSE IS WHEN PEOPLE PARK IN THE SPACES, WITHOUT A BABY OR A TODDLER AND SIT IN THE CAR, WHILST YOU HAVE TO KEEP CIRCLING THE CAR PARK LOOKING FOR A SPACE. I HATE IT & IT DRIVES MY BONKERS!
I CONFRONTED A GUY ONCE IN OUR LOCAL MULTI-STOREY & WAS TOLD THAT HIS MERC WAS IMPORTANT THAT MY BABY. THE CHEEK OF IT, SO I FOLLOWED HIM TO THE SHOPS & FOUND A PARKING ATTENDANT ALONG THE WAY, WHO PROMPTLY TOLD HIM TO MOVE HIS CAR OR HE WOULD BE CLAMPED. HE ABUSED THE PARKING ATTENDANT & WHEN I RETURNED TO MY CAR ABOUT AN HOUR LATER THERE WAS A NICE, BIG, FAT YELLOW CLAMP ON HIS WHEEL.

MUMS & BABIES 1
ARROGANT OLD GITS 0 ( & £150 TO GET THE CLAMP OFF!)

I think its terrible that people abuse the parent and toddler parking spaces. Its also annoying that a lot of car parks in my area don't provide any parent and toddler spaces or very few. Something needs to be done.

I can quite understand parents getting cross when someone other than a person with child uses the parent and child spaces, we have often moaned when we have seen the elderly use these spaces! But I have a new gripe! One evening a few months ago, we went to Morrisons in Cambourne, near Cambridge. We had to use my husband's painting and decorating van because our car was off the road. It was a wet and windy evening and we were glad to have found a space in the parent and child parking. We took our very small son IN HIS CAR SEAT WITH IT'S RAIN COVER ON, out of the van and did our shopping. When we got back home, some woman had had the nerve to take my husband's number off the side of his van and leave a message on our answermachine to complain that she thought it was disgusting he had taken a space when she could see he had no baby, child or car seat in the van!!!! We were so cross that just because she could see no seat she just presumed we didn't have the right to be there. She didn't even have the nerve to phone his mobile, where we could have come out of the shop and proved we had a baby and the right to be there! Painters and Decorators have babies too, you know!!! And what's more, we couldn't call her back to say so. We spoke to staff at Morrisons, just in case they were able to put our point across if she ever said anything. OOHH, I was soooooooo CROSS! !

People who park in these spaces have no idea what it is like to be a new mum, no idea how hard it is to manage baby, shopping etc... It makes my blood boil!

It would help if the shops provided more parent & child spaces in the first place and did something more to enforce them.

Actually guys I think I have a workable solution. I emailed my MP with this the other day.:roll:
What if we were given a windscreen card like a 'disabled parking' permit when the child was born, valid for 18 months or so until the child is able to get out of the car himself. This would prove our validity to park in Mother&Child spaces.
Also, make all the 'disabled' and 'mother&child' spaces dual purpose so that either group could use the space.
I don't know about your local towns, but in my town the other day I walked past 3 car parks and saw a dozen or so spaces in each for disabled users and NONE for mothers and children. I don't want to take any spaces away from disabled users (subject for a different thread) but surely we are in the same boat here to some extent - we need to open our car doors fully.
So as I was saying - given a windscreen permit with a dated validity would dissuade freeloaders from using our facilities. This could be given to us with the child's birth certificate.
I saw a comment about expectant mothers being able to use these spaces. surely they could be worked into the system. My wife had issues getting in and out of the car when she was expecting.

There's hardly enough p & c spaces as it is, then to have a couple in a 2 seater van, with no children with them pull into a space we were waiting for was very anoying. My husband challenged them but they just walked off. We never park in the spaces if we are on our own, so why should others.


[Modified by: jewels on June 19, 2007 03:56 PM]

I have just written to my local shopping centre which houses a Tesco where I shop every week because every week I see at least 1 person abusing the P & C spaces. I regularly challenge these people and im usually met with abuse infront of my 8 month old baby. These people simply do not care and they are never ashamed enough to move their car. These people are just lazy and selfish and think they have a right to park wherever they please. Im not adverse to walking its just the extra space we need which you dont get in the regular spaces so Ive suggested they put the P & C spaces further from the store and have all the baby trolleys near these spaces too. Will it ever happen? I doubt it, the response from the manager was "yes we know theres a problem but cant do much about it" Great. Rant over, I feel better now!:::D

It makes me SOOO mad when people with no kids park in our spaces. Also when disabled people park in parent and child spaces. I would never dream of parking in a disabled space.

The supermarkets often have staff members outside collecting trollys etc, they should be monitoring who parks in parent and child spaces.

I couldn't care less if the parent and child spaces were the furthest from the store - we just need the extra room to negotiate the buggys and car seats.

More should be done to protect our spaces.

I'm so pleased that this issue is gaining support and public recognition as a genuine concern. I'm constantly amazed at the selfishness of the people who park in the parent and child spaces, and even more astonished at their reaction when you pull them up on it.

The worst offenders are people with older children, who clearly don't need to use the spaces, they should know better than anyone how valuable these spaces are, and shouldn't abuse the privilege.

Another thing that drives me mad at my local supermarket, are the tight fisted idiots who insist on using the precious baby trolleys as they don't require a £1 deposit, meaning people who genuinely need them have to wait until they've finished. I've waited up to twenty minutes for a trolley before.

Where has peoples common decency and consideration gone?

I'm so pleased that this issue is gaining support and public recognition as a genuine concern. I'm constantly amazed at the selfishness of the people who park in the parent and child spaces, and even more astonished at their reaction when you pull them up on it.

The worst offenders are people with older children, who clearly don't need to use the spaces, they should know better than anyone how valuable these spaces are, and shouldn't abuse the privilege.

Another thing that drives me mad at my local supermarket, are the tight fisted idiots who insist on using the precious baby trolleys as they don't require a £1 deposit, meaning people who genuinely need them have to wait until they've finished. I've waited up to twenty minutes for a trolley before.

Where has peoples common decency and consideration gone?

:x I get so annoyed when I see someone using a parent & child space when they haven't got chilren with them. I have challenged people on a few occassions. Only once have I had an argument with one lady - she claimed she had just dropped her grandson off at nursery. Don't care he wasn't in the car at the supermarket so don't use the space. :x

One local supermarket has a tannoy system for the disabled bays that loudly asked if you were entitled to use the space. Why can't we have these for P&C spaces too? I wouldn't dream of using a disabled space so why do people use our P&C spaces. I wouldn't object if there were no disabled spaces and a disabled person needed to use the P&C space - they have priority.

The other annoying thing is the amount of spaces there are compared to the amount of disabled spaces - why can't we have the same number?

Quote:

Tesco Bbay Club does provide car badges that are valid for 5 years but not all stores have the signs displayed in the carparks or enforce them so they are basically a waste of time. If you were issued with an official one in your Bounty Pack or something then that would make it easier to enforce.

This is very selfish..... I drive a big car and have 3 children.. if I don't have any of my children I park in a regular parking space...

I think it's great the supermarkets do this but the offenders need to be tackled by people other than us liary mums!!!

Quote:

I do often go shopping with my mum or friends with my 4 year old and 5 month old children and we are generally unable to park there because of selfish so and so's, however i do get out of the car and walk up and down the cars checking which ones have any sign of children with them! I then wait and give them a mouthful, generally the get a bit embarrassed and leave sharpishly other times they give me a mouthful back but to be honest i dont care what they say in return as they're the ones in the wrong:x

I beleive it should be illegal to park there without having children with you, it is if you park in disabled bays!

I'm currently learning to drive as i've just found out im pregnant with my 3rd child so certainly need a car now, so hopefully something will be done about this soon....but it needs to be inforced properly!

This is my greatest annoyance. Struggling to put my 3 month old in the back of the car when there's not enough room to open the door to get the car seat through the gap - this is usually because there are not any available parent and child spaces (beacuse lazy/ignorant people decide to use them to save their legs!) and I have to use a standard space. Why do people park so closely when they can see you have a child - the clues are with the sunshades and window mobiles! I have had to bite my lip a few times to avoid arguments - I must admit the 'run-ins' I have are with the elderly they seems totoally ignorant to the purpose of the spaces. One finally rant - I totally appreciate that disabled people also need to be nearer the shops (and need wider spaces) but why is there such a greater number than parent and child spaces - wherever I go there are always plenty of unused disabled spots left. I like your window stickers and will take great pleasure in using them!!!

the last time i went shopping there was no child spaces left . as a mother of a six week old baby i was so angry to see the majority of the people using the spaces had no children .something has to be done to deter these people.

FINALLY I've found somewhere that is making a stance against people sneaking in the parent parking spaces who clearly do not have children!! I have lost count the number of times (specifically at Tesco's) that I have seen people parking in the more convenient closer parking spaces, that do not have children with them. I have also seen Tesco STAFF in the Tesco carpark parking there....I saw one member of staff go to her car and have a smoke, then go back into the store (I was waiting for a space and was hopeful when she went to her car but she then got out again - clearly with no children!) I have mentioned it to their customer services but only to be told that its impossible for them to police. I can't believe the cheek and would not dream of using the spaces if I didn't have my son with me. People don't realise that its not only the fact that its difficult to manoevere a supermarket trolley too far into the carpark but especially with the extra weight of a baby/child....but the parent parking is closer to the store because a baby/child's attention span is very limited, so usually by the time you've got through checkout, you are RUNNING to your car to get your shopping and baby/child in and home, before the tantrums start!! I also find it rather annoying when there are many more disabled parking spaces than parent parking spaces....especially at places like Mothercare or Toys R Us where (no disrespect to disabled drivers but in this case...) the majority of customers will be those with children so it doesn't make much sense to me! Aaaaarrrrggggg!!!!

AHHH this drives me mad!! Only this morning I parked in asda and as i was sorting out the baby 3 people without children parked next to me!! Also the baby spaces are right next to the cashpoint so people are always using them for that. I find its always white van men, boy rasers, elderly people and disabled badge holders who use the spaces. I complained in asda and was told its not a legal requirement to have parent and child spaces but it is to provide disabled spaces. I understand that but everyone takes up the wider spaces!! I have also not been able to get my daughter intothe car when its parked in a normal space as inconsiderate people park way to close. Even though they can see there is a car seat and a childrens sun visor in the window.

Interesting reading, new to all this even though have had internet access for years now, i am now expecting baby no3. Whilst i have found this frustrating too i can only suggest as you all have internet access to be able to leave messages that you take all the stress out of shopping and do it online. i have now for months and hate going instore now. I have found that i have more time without the dreaded supermarket run, i don't end up with extras in the trolley from my 2 year old and having it delivered in the evening means my husband helps to put it all away and knows what i have bought. I am also spending alot less each week even including the delivery charge.

If you have to go and no spaces are available, just take up two normal ones.;\)

Along with all the other parents out there - it really does get my goat up when I see people parking in P&C spaces - there ususally is'nt enough of them anyway so they are at a permium. To be honest there are usually more disabled spaces then P&C spaces - but do mindless people park in them???? 9 times out of 10 i'd say no. I onces challanged a woman at my local Asda who was in one of them really really too big 4x4 landrover people carrier things - she got into the space seconds before me and refused to move - she said she was waiting for her husband and child! yeah right! I gave her a mouthfull. Meanwile I had to walk from the far end of the carpark with my 11 month old in arms in the rain! Nice!!!

The supermarkets need to do somthing about this sooner rather than later - why not have a specific area sectioned off with an entry key - then mums and dads who regularly use that store can get a pass key for the area - then everyone will be happy

I have to say before I became pregnant I used to go mad at people for parking in parent and baby spaces!!! Now i'm pregnant I feel even more angry to see people in sporty cars parking in these spaces just to stop them from being marked and people who just can't be bothered to walk that extra couple of feet!!

I pleased to see that something is now being done to stop this. I will be downloading the poster and putting them on all the cars that shouldn't be parked in these spaces and I will enjoy watching their faces when they see it and realise they shouldn't of parked there!!!!:lol:

sign me up fully behind the campaign.

Hi i agree with the fact of people parking in these spaces but i have to disagree with what some of u have said about disabled spaces......my mum is disabled and 9 times out of 10 when i take her out there are no disabled spaces as round my way there is only 6-10 in any one carpark whereas the mother and baby spaces seem to go on forever......ill be glad when my baby arrives especially if i have my mum with me as we wont have to struggle in a normal space. But i have seen people parking in both mother and baby and disabled spaces who clearly have no children nor a disablitly!! It makes me so mad as they just dont care.
I was sat in tescos car park~(actually managed to get in a disabled) and saw at least 10 people getting into cars who had no kids!! Round my area it seems to be young boy racers (which im to scared to confront!) and couples in flash cars who obviously have far to much money to have kids!! Bentley convertable type drivers!!
But YES i am completly behind the petition!

I've previously had to park at the very back of a car park with a young baby, a trolly full of shopping and the most rainfall seen in weeks. All because a car that contained four teenage boys didn't want to get wet and used a mother and baby space! Mind you under new laws a least two of them needed a bosster seat!

I think it is about time supermarkets started taking this issue seriously if they are to bother at all. They take the plaudits for providings the places and say how wonderful they are for doing so, well it is about time those plaudits were better earned. They can do something about the issue. The car parks are private and they can set the rules. Wheel clamps and tow trucks anybody?

Tesco are perhaps the most frustrating in that they issue 'car parking passes' to their Mother & Baby club members which they claim are required to park in their parent and child spaces. Are they enforced? No. Could they be enforced? Well they could, though they'd have to take things more seriously and not issue 'passes' that you write your own car registration on (what if you change car?) and more importantly your own expiry date on.

Perhaps the supermarkets should group together and create a national parent and child parking permit and make it a requirement that it is displayed when parking in their parent and child spaces. It should also be a requirement that a car seat be clearly visible in the car of course. Oh yes, and a child really ought to be a requirement too though that isn't so easy to check. No permit then they can be free to take punitive action.

I think there also has to be a move to encourage other car parks to take parent and child parking a bit more seriously if they do it at all. For example the 'Allders' car park in Croydon has a few P&C spaces but they aren't any wider than any other ones. The 'Whitgift' car park has some wider ones but they are full nine times out of ten and outnumbered by what seems at least ten to one by disabled parking spaces that are usually 90% empty. I don't have a problem with the number of disable spaces, I have a problem that it proves they have room to provide more P&C spaces. If they want to boast about having them, then provide a sensible amount.

I agree that people shouldn't park in these spaces unless they have need. I also think that the stores should police them afterall families are big spenders in their stores .

Quote:

My suggestion is this:
All parents are issued a parking permit when they register their child or claim child benefit.
It could be valid for 5 years and work along the same lines as the disabled parking permit.
This would help check the validity of people parking in parent/child spaces.

I am in great support of this subject regarding parent parking.... I am pregnant and huge for 34 weeks and also have a toddler of 23 months so need the space for leaving my vehicle, we go shopping to our local Asda and it is always my luck that someone is usually sat in their car or have just left their car with no children with them. This makes me really mad as I also suffer from Siatica and SPD and find walking a great distance difficult. They are inconsiderate and I feel helpless, something needs to be done and I will support this in anyway I can.

Its terrible that people who don't have children park in the child & parent spaces & if you say anything to the people who do you get a mouth full of abuse or worse! I do think the supermarkets do have to do more to help cos when i've complained to staff they've said theres nothing they can do about it.Which is stupid if somebody had parked right in front of the entrance they'd do something then! It just makes shopping that bit easier when you don't have to battle to get your child out of the car.

I back this petition too. I'm 35 weeks pregnant with my first child and I am finding it hard to get out of my car in the normal spaces. I wouldn't dream of parking in the C&P spaces until my baby arrives. My hubby says that I could as I struggle on my own to get out of the car (if i'm with him he can always let me out before he parks). I'd feel guilty parking even with this bump as at last I don't have a crying baby and seat to get out!

There should be pregnancy spaces too!

Policing these spaces may help but around here people don't seem to bother parking in disabled space so I can't see it helping. Bradford Mothercare is a nightmare and nobody seems to take any noitce there! There was a programe on tele a while back that said that people are braking into cars for the disabled badges and then sell them! it's disgusting!

If you could only park with a car seat in the car either people would go out and buy one without having a child or parents who are taking their baby into the store in the car seat wouldn't beable to park!

Rant over - and I don't even have my baby yet!

Ka Ka

I have a 2 year old & am currently 15 weeks pregnant. I joined Tesco's Baby & Child club when I was expecting my daughter & displayed the badge in the window as requested to do so. Tesco's stipulate that you have to have the badge displayed in your window to be able to park in the P&C spaces, yet they don't enforce it! I've lost count of the number of times I have been upto Customer Services to complain about people without children using the P&C spaces while I've had to park further away just so I can park in a space without cars either side so I could get the car seat out of the car or get my toddler out , but they do nothing about it.

There should be more P&C spaces - maybe they should all be towards the back of the store as opposed to near the front. Let's face it, the people who shouldn't be parking in them are using them literally for nipping in to get a sandwich or because they need to use the cash machine. This would cut the problem in half almost immediately - as they want to park closer to the store as opposed to further away.

I like the idea of getting a national badge to display in your car - however I don't think it's fair to wait until you've claimed child benefit. I think all mothers to be should receive it once you've applied for the free prescription charge card. Maybe it could last for 3 or 4 years. I also think that women diagnosed with SPD should be given a temporary disabled badge as soon as they're diagnosed so they can park in disabled spaces.

I also think P&C spaces should be policed like disabled spaces - fine people for using them.

I am fully behind this campaign. This isn't a lazy mum's campaign - it's about protecting the safety of our babies & toddlers.

Jenny x

i just wish i had the guts some of you have i would love to shout as these people but i dont. i do alot of staring but never say anything. it gets me so angry i end up going home and ranting at my oh about it. i would never dream of using a disabled parking space or using a p&c if didnt have lo with me. although i do have sympathy for claire weston a few times i parked the car while heavily pregnant and worried about going back and not being able to get back into my car.

I think its disgraceful that people park in parent/toddler spaces & its even more disgraceful that supermarkets dont enforce it because there are never enough of them in the 1st place. I would never park in a disabled space but have noticed disabled people parking in parent/toddler spaces even when there are disabled spaces free! Its near time something was done to save our spaces x

defo save our spaces it is annoying when u have to do the shopping and u struggle to do evreything specially when youve got a 3 year old and your 8 months pregnant trying to put your child in their car seat is a task and a half in the normal spaces!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I agree the other day I went to Tescos and there was a man parked in a P&T bay he was putting his shopping in his car so I waited (he didn't have a children) He said that he wasn't finished shopping. I went to Tescos another time there weren't any child spaces so I parked in a normal space and took up 2 when I came back to the car someone had put a note on my car saying either you can't park properly or you fell from space, they don't like it if we take up to many spaces so they shouldn't park in the child bays then.

I've commented on here before, but went to my local tescos yesterday, and 4 of their 'new' delivery vans were parked in the mother and baby spaces. Luckily we managed to park in a space, when we came out they had been moved. Then at our morrisons store, where they do seem to have more mother and baby spaces than disabled, a elderly gentleman and his disabled wife parked quite blatantly in a mother and baby space - when asked why he was parking there when there were disabled spaces free - he told me 'there are more important things in the world to worry about than where to park your car!' I agree but he still should've parked in a disabled space!!

i am not lazy and would happily walk a few extra feet from a normal space-if it was safe to do so, but trying to get 2 kids and shopping across a busy car park is just plain dangerous-that's if you can get out of your car in the first place

as far as i'm concerned, being heavily pregnant counts as a parent and should carry same priviledges(not that you'd get to use them-hence this topic!). i feel that when you get your maternity exemption card, it should come with a p&c parking permit-enforcable with a fine for people using parking spaces with no permit or clear sign of parenthood such as carseat etc. i could go on all night about this topic as it makes me so mad(but won't)

i agree on a lot of points raised - that lazy inconsiderate people park in our places and should be fined, embarrassed, beaten with wet nappies......
also that you cant just ask people to leave their car seat in the car.

I know if my lo is asleep i would rather click his seat into our travel system and take the pram round than wake him up to leave the seat in the car.

I went and stood behind a car parked in one of our spaces, as i'd just watched him park and his wife get out, without a child in sight or even a bump. I waited till they wanted to move and wouldn't budge. when they asked me why i told them they had parked in a p+c space and had no children with them.

they apologised and said they thought they had parked in a disable bay just to nip in for a few items!!!!

with regards to tescos parking permit things - we're a member of bby club and haven't recieved one of them.......

xxx

should(hopefully) be appearing on local tv show to address this issue. any particular gripes?

the lack of policing from the stores!

I agree these people are very selfish and bone idle being too lazy to park further away and walk the distance, its usually boy racers or 4x4 or flashy mercs with people thinking they are above the rest of us,it serves them right if there car gets scratched!

they should have pregnancy spaces aswell lol theres hardly room 2 fit out of the car without crushing the bump

as far as i'm concerned bump counts as baby x x

I've not had the pleasure of using these spaces yet as first baby due anytime now, but it does annoy me when I see perfectly able bodied people usin them when I have to hobble for miles to the shop! (Got spd and also huge bump!) I'd never dream of using these spaces without a child as i've seen plenty of parents struggling in these spaces let alone in normal size spaces! Have given plenty of dirty looks out though....lets just hope that the government do something about it!! Lets just hope if they do they enforce the rules as well!

Oh my god... This makes me soooo angry, I actually had a woman start on me once when i told her she should move...and then when i squared up to her-she called the police on me! Cheeky mare! Unfortunately for her, they were more sympathetic to me and she got a ticking off...Still wouldn't stop me from doing it again, quite frankly, i would of enjoyed slapping her, it makes me so angry-she said that her merc was more valuable than my baby-tbh she's lucky she did call the police when she did!
I totally think that we should get permits to park there...and people who dont have a young child with them should be fined...or worse!
Wow, Im not normally an angry person-honestly...this is the one thing which really makes me mad!!!
xxx:evil:

wow this is great it was about a year ago i had my first rant about this lol that old bat doesnt know what she started

maybe we should arrange a march!!!!!!!!just to show how serious we all feel about this

I truely hope the new scheme with ASDA works out and becomes counrtywide! Mind you, with 1 of the governments new guidelines for maternity care is for hospital staff to be 'more curteous', I'm not sure how they will tackle this growing problem!!!

As a mum of 4 young children, (7, 6, 3 and 7months), I understand and sympathise with all of you - especially those of you that are heavily prgnant. My hubby and I have always said the child spaces should include pregnant ladies too! I can remember many a time when I had to wait in the rain for my oh to pull the car out of a space so I could get in! Plus, even worse, having to stand there, babe in arms, trying to protect them from the elements because someone has parked so close. The parking area for P&C at my local Tesco is also quite small number-wise and quite frequently you will encounter cars parked illegally on hatchings etc or creating a traffic hazard coz they're waiting on a space. WE NEED MORE OF THESE SPACES!! Yes there are many disabled ppl that need their spaces but child safety has become more apparent in this day and age so why are the powers that be doing their utmost to ignore the problem - at least, that's what it feels like!!!

Have read with interest all the postings up till now and felt compelled to express my own agreement. I was particularly infuriated one day at Asda when I tackled an elderly woman for parking in a P+C space without children. I was rewarded for my efforts by her screaming at me why did nobody bother to ask befor making accusations and that she was there to pick up her grand-daughter. I kept an eye out and saw her merrily skipping round the store with a handy shopper then waited and watched as she returned to the car without a child. When she saw me she had the gall to pretend that she was calling to a child to hurry up.
I would like to add some points not yet mentioned:
1. When I was pregnant with my youngest and suffering severe exhaustion and barely able to move, I asked at Tesco if I was entitled to use the P+C spaces and they said "NO, sorry!"
2. When my baby was 2.5 wks old I got a call from my son's school saying he was ill and I had to abandon her feed, rush out to the car and to the school. The school helpfully has THREE disabled spaces, but not one P+C space. I decided to park in the disabled space at the door, being still very sore from the delivery and was immediately set upon by a jannie for parking in a disabled space. I responded that I had just had a baby and was here only momentarily to collect my son, and was told that that didn't count for anything as the space was for disabled users only.
3. Why, oh why, are so many P+C spaces taken up with people, with children, when one parent "nips in quickly" leaving OH and kids in the car? Surely these are the worst offenders as this goes beyond normal ignorance?

We get fined if we use a disabled parking space illegally, but we need the same amount of space to get a baby out of the car as a wheelchair user needs. It's about time something was done

I just had to reply to this and get this off my chest! I know the original thread was about Asda but I need a moan!

I was sat in Tesco car park in a parent and baby spot feeding my 2 week old newborn and was watching who parked in the other baby spaces around me. I was the only one with a parent and baby pass thing stuck on their windscreen. There was a disabled driver (i counted at least 7 disabled spaces that were free), a 20 something bloke, an older couple (in their 60's) and 5 cars which contained a mother and children in senior school uniforms! Not 1 car contained a hild under the age of 5, apart from mine!!!! I was exremely irritated as no one was watching and enforcing any rules! I only hope that if Asda manage to enforce strict usage of parent and baby spaces that Tesco and other shops will follow suit!!!!!

Calling anyone who gets annoyed about parking as I do. I have discovered that there is an e-petition on the Downing Street website relating to this most emotive of subjects. PLEASE PLEASE do us all a favour and sign up - then pass the link on to anyone and everyone you know who feels the same as you. It really is such a worthy cause - parents sanity!!!!!!!!

Happy petitioning! I am happy to say that I only use a space when my baby is in the car and that I use the SOS sheets on any cars who do not have baby seats - including those with boosters as this means the child is no longer in need of the same level of assistance that a normal space can't be used (sorry if you don't agree but it's sooooooo true). Today I was told by one "mother" that I approached that her child was at home, when I said that I often struggled with my 5 month baby she said her child was of the same age - yet she only had a booster seat - my reply was a little offensive about her age (something about grandparenting I think!) but I could not help myself.:evil::x Let's work together to get a solution!

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/childparking/

it really annoys me when we can't get a parent and child space. it is so difficult to get out of the car in a regular space as i have newborn who needs the door opened to full extent and i have to sit in the back between 2 baby seats and climb over my 15 month old to get out which is difficult under normal circumstances without having to worry about the door swinging open into the side of somebodies car. and listening to non-parents commenting that parents do not need these spaces as it's not like they have a disability just children. but it's not even as though the spaces are any closer it is just that we have wide cars and need the extra door room.

Quote:

i was just flicking through this post and saw this. made me lol. ive already posted my opinion on this post but what kind of an excuse was this. people these days.xx

I was doing my regular shopping trip about 2 weeks ago and I parked in a child bay as I had 2 of my children with me and there was a car parked opposite and they had a parking ticket on their windscreen cause they didn't have any children with them but were parked in a child bay. I think that everyone who has a child and after they have been rgistered should get a badge just the same as you do when you are disabled.

I have got to agree, it is nonsence that other people use the parent and child spaces. A baby car seat takes up alot of room when trying to get out of the car. Im 28wks pregnant but my sister has a little boy who is 3 months. I have signed up for tesco and i agree with tweety pie that when you registar the birth we should get a parking badge just like the disabiled do. xx

I have noticed this especially with men parking in the mom to be spaces and being disabled and pegnant and not being able to park in either spaces because they are being abused shows how bad it it
My local asda, has approx 6 MTB spaces and approx 25 disabled spaces and they are regularily filled up with car parking abusers whilst the staff do nothing, and people who need these spaces have to park quite a distance .Its their car park, if local councils are making such good pocket money from targeting people who park longer than 2 secs , then why Supermarkets fail to act on persistent abusers in private car parks is beyond belief.

ooohhh am so cross, managed to get a parent space at my local sainsbury(for a change) & when i came out what did i see-a flippin' employee loading their shopping ito the car which was parked in a parent space & must have been there all shift!!!!!!!!!!! no wonder always short of spaces if this is what goes on!

It really annoys me too,
I work at tesco and never park in the m+b spaces unless i have my 18 month old daughter with me. I agree they should put the spaces at the other end of the car park I dont mind walking a bit further to the shop it is the extra space that I need.
I have seen members of staff park in the m+b spaces and disabled spaces before the start of the shift. If i see it happening again you can be assured that their reg no will be passed onto the store manager with a few choice words

yesterday i told a woman off for using the only free parent and child space outside my local morrisons. my little boy 6months, but he weighs a tonne in his car seat, why should i trapse across the whole car park when these spaces are designed for people with babies??!! if i parked in a disabled space, people would go mad!! its the same thing!! not only that, if i park in a normal space, other peoples cars end up getting damaged as i get the car seat out of my car and bash their car doors in!! when i said to this lady "excuse me this is a parent and child space" she just replied "yeah, ive got 2 car seats in the back"!! as if that made it ok!!!!!!! when i go shopping without my son, i park in regular spaces!!! i was infuriated!!!!!!!!!

I also confronted a woman parked in Asda's parent and baby section with her son who was about 18! I politely asked her was she aware this area was meant for parents and children. Her reply? "He is my child".
Yes and what a shining example she's setting him for when he gets his own car!
Now I either state rather loudly to my children "Oh look, another car with no children in it" or huff and puff when getting them both out of the car with my large 33 week pregnant belly! It's surprising how many people have no conscience...

I support the Save our Spaces, I shop at Asda in Watford and they have many Parent and Baby parking spaces, but the amount of people I see getting out of the cars and there is no Baby or Child with them and no car seat or sticker on the car to say they have a child.
I also don't park in these spaces if I haven't got my little Boy with me.
Keep up the good work Prima Baby & Pregnancy.
Regards
Marie Stout and Baby George:roll:

i'm a mom2b and i'm signing the petition as i think there should be more wasdening for these spaces i've never parked in them and my friend who at the time had a 2yrold a 4 yr old and a 7 yr old had to park in one of the furthest spaces away from the shop due to lots of inconsiderate drivers... my main concern is my OH is very protective and gets angry at people being abusive towards me i can see him geting into fist fights over the space. (he's very stubborn and will park so that they are either blocked or can't manoeuver very easily and then sits and waits for them to hit his car so he can prove his point!) i'd rather not have this problem with a baby as well :(

I really hope something can be done. It is so frustrating:x. I've emailed my local council about it. I think we should all keep the pressure up.

I support this campaign, must admit I have never parked in one of these spaces, or on yellow lies etc, just one of them people I guess, but when I met my other half he used to park in them, when I asked him why he said it was easier to get parked, after explaining that it may be easier for him but not for a mum with her child and he eventually paid it some thought he realised that he shouldnt be parking there. How do we educate everyone who uses them that shouldnt. I think supermarkets should fine people who use these spaces without a child

I think if they moved the spaces further away they wouldn't gte misused so much, i find that it's not the distance i'm worried about it's the fact that i can't get LO out if i'm not parked in a wider space.

mind you went to car park other day and they had lots of parent and baby spaces but all the same size and width as regular spaces, whats that all about?!

IT IS NOT FAIR THAT SOME PEOPLES PICTURES ARE ON THE VOTING SYSTEM MORE THAN ONCE. ITS HARD TO FIND MY PICTURE BECAUSE ITS ALL THE WAY AT THE END. 1 PERSON ALONE HAS LIKE 4-6 PICTURES ON THERE. ITS NOT FAIR.


[Modified by: keshastennet on November 20, 2007 11:11 AM]

Hi,

About time somene took issue with this topic!

I use the local Sainsburys, and we are often prevented from parking in the P&C spot, by people who clearly have no small children (or courtesy).

When you challenge them, it adds nothing but stress and they tend to be defensive because know they are in the wrong.

Perhaps the government should create a law for P&C parking, with fines and tickets issued, as is with disabled parking.

I also think the carpark owners should take responsibility for these parking spaces, as they could easily monitor it.

I have thought about taking it up with sansburys head office, but from the responses I've already seen, it might not be worth it!

I think this ais a flagrant abuse of something that should be a law, just like with disbled parking spots.

i agree totally with this, i think passes should be given from a certain point in pregnancy up to five years old. Im not a mother but i know how difficult it is to go shopping with a little one and how you need to get the door open quite wide to get them in and out. Obviously these spaces are there for a reason so i never use them if i dont have a child with me.

However i have to say that a woman at work was having a rant about never being able to get in the parent and child spaces cos people without kids park in them so she often parks miles away, then she told us her daughter is 10!!!!! I think parents should also use a bit of common and if your child is of a certain age and perfectly capable of getting in and out the car unaided that they should park in a normal space. These spaces are for parents and YOUNG children.

This really pisses me off, but my husband says "stop moaning" whenever i comment on it.
I live about five minutes walk from a Tesco store, and for a big shop we take the car, and some of the 8 Parent&Child spaces are more often than not taken up by either parents with children over the 5 years stated the spaces are dedicated for, single people or couples minus children, elderly people (even thought there are disabled and other spaces nearby) and vans, 4x4's and anyone else who doesnt care where they park. :evil:
I found this really annoying when by baby was in his car seat, but find it no easier now he's a year.
We need the room to get in to lift them out/buckle them up, and/or take out car seats/buggies etc.
I too have complained to Customer Services to no avail and am glad to hear ASDA are picking up on the matter.
I never park in the P&Ch space if my baby is not with me, nor do i take up a disabled space if no P&Ch spaces are avaliable for us-mind you, if i did, something would get done about it!!
I hope something gets done to help all of us parents

I have printed off a load of the Prima Baby SOS posters, and I always carry them with me and put them on offenders cars. Im renowned in my family for being a bit of a hot-head and always ready to challenge people who abuse the p&c spaces. I was getting into my car recently at the local Sommerfield (who are one of the worst I know for not enforcing the spaces!!!!) and found a note on my windscreen saying that I was in a 'non-parent parking space' and to phone a number! I phoned the number and started to rant about how normal spaces were for anyone and that the p&c spaces were the ones being misused. The person on the other end was arguing back at fist, then burst out laughing. It was my nephew!! He knows about my 'campaign', had spotted my car, and decided to wind me up!! (it worked too!! )

I wonder if the supermarkets started putting the spaces further away from the stores, whether people would still abuse them?

Its horrendous people who dont have babies/toddlers use the parking spaces! I get so annoyed, you dont realise how much room you need until you have a child of your own! I think you should be given a car badge to park in them just like disabled spaces! I get parent and child parking rage now and tell people to move if I see them parking in a parent and child space without a child:x

Add me to the list!
I have a 7month old and the spaces are invaluble when getting my baby in when he's in his carrier car seat...why don't supermarkets make some of these spaces further away from the store? I don't mind walking a bit further, all I care about is having enough space to open my car door wide enough.
x

I'm pleased to read the news all Asda stores are going to patrol parent and baby spaces and fine the lazy people who park there! I'll be interested to see if it works in one of the stores which I used to use though (Carcroft Doncaster) as I've had upteen rows with offenders, managers and have written to head office several times, only to be told its the 'Store greeters' job, but he obviously didn't think this was the case! I even complained as I'd seen staff parking in there (and they presumably would be taking up that space for their entire shift!!!) when the staff car park had building work in it! So things can only get better. I shop at Tesco now where I have a permit or get my shopping delivered! It always seems to be a certain type of person (obviously selfish!) overweight middleaged women or younger guys who don't want to scratch their cars (who does???)
I have tried to shame everyone I see into moving, much to my OH's disgust (and fear for my safety) but the more people who do it, the better, maybe the message will get through!
Sorry for the rant, but I feel better now, baby no 2 due anyday, so its obviously the hormones!

I think if the spaces were further away from the door then people wouldnt use them so much if they didnt really need them. Personally, I wouldnt care if they were furthest away from the door as long as I could get one. As long as I had room to open my car doors fully, get car seat and 3 kids in and out and open my boot to get pram in/out then I would be happy to park further away from the door. I think it is too tempting for lazy people as the spaces are always so close to the main entrance.

Like disabled spaces - the car must display a badge/pass - then why not get customers with babies/toddlers - or pregnant as big bumps need room to get in and out too! - to apply for a permit - it may be easier to police then.

xxx

I get so aggrevated when people who have no children or even just have an empty car seat use the parent child spaces. I am seven months pregnant and have a two and half year old. It is difficult enough trying to get myself and my bump out of the car without struggling to wrestle my toddler through a narrow gap as well. If i don't have my daughter with me i use a different space as I am aware of the inconvenience it causes so why don't others have the same mentality.

on our local news it said Asda Leeds were the only store to do the patrolling thing??? I have e mailed Asda to ask if its all stores as reported on your web site, but haven't heard anything yet! And couldn't agree more re people using spaces when haven't got their children with them, they should know better! I am 9 months pregnant with a 19 month old and shopping is something I now avoid like the plague!

This really annoys me and I have been known to have arguments in the middle of the car park with inconsiderate people using the Parent & Child/Disabled Spaces who are basically lazy and obviously shrink if they get wet in the rain.

My son is 8 years old and I dont use the Parent & Child spaces as I know how valuable they are to those with young babies. When my second child is born (within the next four weeks) I will restart using them but only if the baby is with me.

I think this petition should be directed at all Car Parks where there are designated Parent & Child and Disabled Spaces and not just Supermarkets. Getting all the large supermarkets to join Asda in this petition would be so advantageous too.

people who use parent and baby spaces are bloody selfish.
i have 3 children all who need their seatblets doing for them and when its a tight fit to open the car door its awful. i dont think ive been able to find an empty space for at least two weeks and ive seen childless people use the spaces provided for us. i must say they do get an ear bashing off me when i do catch them ggrrrrr!!! these spaces are for people with children or expectant mums how hard is that to understand????????????

count me in. People seen to think that parents with children r 2 lazy to walk. However, it not about that. Its about safety and needing the extra space 2 open car doors. Only exception should be pregnant ladies which I think is accepted anyway and disabled badge holders if there are no available disabled spaces.

count me in. People seen to think that parents with children r 2 lazy to walk. However, it not about that. Its about safety and needing the extra space 2 open car doors. Only exception should be pregnant ladies which I think is accepted anyway and disabled badge holders if there are no available disabled spaces.

Well done Asda! lets hope the other shops follow suit...

I now always have some of the Prima Baby / Baby Expert leaflets with me that I have printed out from this website...as it really makes my blood boil when having had to park far away and squeeze in out of a normal space I then walk past somebody getting out of their car who shouldn't be parked there.

I will happily take them to task on this but if they're not there then at least I can pop the bright yellow leaflet (shame them!) on their windscreen!

We should keep 'bumping' this on to the home page to get more sign ups and help drive the awareness - if we were issued with car badges (like disability badges) it would certainly make all those ignorant, selfish people think twice!

Tesco do do badges but I don't think anyone pays attention to them.

I hate it when pepole park in the spaces, it is so annoying especially when there are other spaces availabe.
my friend has just recently had a baby and was waiting to park in a parent space, and while waiting for the other car to reverse out some woman on her own tried to get in the space before her, she actually got out of the car and had an argument with them, somethingi would love to do but never would

Totally back this campaign, have 3 kids aged 4, 2, and 6 months, and besides requiring more space to get in and out of car, it is the SAFETY element of P&C spaces which to me is most important. We can't be doing with having to cross over busy car parks with our kids, we need to be near pavements near shopfronts. Like others in this thread I don't mind a good walk, I just want a safe walk, so I too wouldn't mind it if the spaces weren't right at the front door. Just give us more spaces, and who on earth needs all those loads of disabled spaces that always lie empty?? I would never park in a disabled space as I am not disabled but I must say I was sorely tempted when preg with my third, having to cart two little people past loads of cars with no carseats in them and often men on their own reading newspapers all taking up P&C spaces. Also - last point! - I think it would be a gd idea to rename spaces PARENT AND PRAM spaces as this underlines that it is for parents of young kids, some people use the spaces for their 'children' of 14 / 15 etc! grrrrrr!!! gonna print off the Save our Spaces leaflet and start using it!


[Modified by: roryadamlucy on January 21, 2008 02:01 AM]

Sign me up!! I get SO infuriated by the ignorant, rude, lazy, disrespectful chumps who park in these spaces without any regard for those of us who actually need them.

I had a small victory last week at Sainsbury's when I reported a van driver who not only cut my up and 'stole' the space I was heading for by driving the wrong way up the lane and swerving in front of me but then sat there and got his packed lunch out!! He was laughing on the other side of his face when I reported him to Sainsbury's Customer Services. Two staff went over and asked him to move, which he did, saying he didn't realise it was a Parent and Child parking space....er hello...???...how can you miss the big purple signs stating the above, the hatched spaces either side of your vehicle AND the parent and pushcair painted on the space itself??? But of course he didn't know!!!!

As you can tell I am totally in support of this campaign, bring it on!!!!!

Aggggggrrrrhhhhh. If there is one thing which gets me going it's non-parents parking in parent and child spaces. In a shopping centre just before Christmas I was waiting patiently for another parent to put their baby and pram in to their car so that I could have the space. As they reversed out someone else pulled in....2 women out for a shopping trip. When I expained I'd been waiting AND I have a baby they just told me to f off. Nice.
Supermarkets are the worse. People abuse the spaces because they are larger and closer to the store. Fab to hear Asda are trying to combat the problem.
If anyone can tell me where to get the Prima poster that would be great. I'm happy to leave a few on chosen windscreens!

definately sign me up too
i quite often have a go at people who abuse these spaces, i especially remember when my son was 3weeks old, he was born with a hole in his heart plus a broken collar bone, there was somebody displaying a blue badge just sitting in their car reading a newspaper in a p/c space when i challenged him he replied my wife uses a motorized wheel chair, "MOTORIZED" i saw red, there were 10 spaces 10 feet behind him, it was pouring with rain, the baby carrier is too big for the trolley so i had to carry him, not that he was heavy just the fact of him being poorly, which i explained to this man he didn't even flinch, i went into customer services and they didn't do a thing, however the amount of people who must have overheard me, and then walked past this man shaking their heads hopefully had some effect. but i wonder what it will take to protect these spaces, after all its more about safety, does it take somebody's child to get injured to underline the importance of these spaces............ i truely hope not, all supermarkets should follow asda.

But to add praise where its due, there is a rather man at one of our carparks in town, who had 20 disabled spaces turned into p/c spaces, which he allocates, the odd person without children do slip the net, he said it was a waste having that many disabled spaces when they weren't being used... good on him i say :)

I am 35 weeks pregnant with my second and have a 14month old little girl as well. I get very irate at people pinching the car parking spaces as well. I tend to sit and glare at them but it doesn't work either. Most annoying is watching someone pinch the very last P&C parking space without a child just as you get there and then you have to drive around waiting for one to become clear. Unfortunately on this pregnancy I am suffering with really bad SPD so walking is harder!! One day I saw an eldery gentleman with a disabled badge take the last P&C space but luckily a disabled place became available so I thought well why not?
I have printed some of the leaflets so one day whilst driving around and around waiting for a space a couple in their sporty Clio pulled into a P&C space with no children. I did the usual glare and when they had gone into the Supermarket I put a leaflet on their car.
When I returned the leaflet was stuffed back under my windscreen with "Get a Life Snitch!" written on it. Charming!

Sign me up!

I've got a 3 door car so it is even more difficult to negotiate getting the seat out and I am so fed up of circling the car park only to selfish childless idiots walking away from a space ahead of me.

My local Sainsbury's have at least started adding extra wide bays away from the front door for anyone to use. It doesn't seem to stop the parent & child spaces being abused but at least I can get the baby out and set the buggy up safely.

count me in!
my car is 3 door so oh is usually in the back so he struggles to get out..,not that that matters but getting baby out in car seat then sorting out pram etc would be much easier if i could ever get a parent and child space..but no the oldies nab them dont they!

Add me too, a woman in a 2 seater sports car sat & watched me struggle to get lo out of car whilst she st in a parent & child space waiting for someone, just to make it worse tesco only have 1 of those trolleys designed to take seats so had to use a normal trolley which car seat fills, where am i supposed to put my shopping??

That reminds me of when I was in a factory outlet centre car park and a middle aged man in a sports car parked it in a parent and child space. Seeing the car I loudly said to my hubby that I bet the driver of that car doesn't have children not realising he was walking behind us. I should have challenged him but thought its probably not worth getting into an argument although I did get cross when an elderly gentlemen stopped his car opposite the only available parent and child space blocking it. I waited patiently thinking he might move. However whilst waiting I was asked to move by someone wanting to get out of her space. At this point I saw red and on when the horn. Eventually he moved. If he was disable than why didn't he use one of the free disabled spaces?


[Modified by: deidre on January 24, 2008 10:41 PM]

[Modified by: deidre on January 24, 2008 10:42 PM]

I was pleased to hear about Asda but went to the Earley (Reading) store after it was introduced and can tell you that they weren't operating it and even worse I had a "discussion" with a woman who thought it was OK to park there so she could leave her dog in the car with the window open!!!!!! I reported her to the security guy who said they weren't doing anything until the following Monday, it was Saturday and 1 week after the so called rollout - wow that feels better!

After loads of issues at my local Sainsbury's (Bracknell) I flipped this week and spoke to the Deputy Manager. He assures me they are bringing in a fining system (similar to Asda, I wonder why!!!!) and that it will mean both parent/child and disabled bays are policed. Fingers crossed........ oh and one man wound me up so much I opened my smooth peanut butter, grabbed a handful and smeared it over his door handle!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know I shouldn't but he told me I shouldn't have had a baby if it meant I couldn't get her in and out of the car:evil:!!!!!!!!!!!!!:x:x:x

Finally, I have posted a poll on Toluna to gauge people's opinions - take a look: http://www.toluna.com/polls/51191/Do_you_use_disabled/parent_spaces_but_neither_apply?

I will post the outcome once it is finished! Watch this space.:D

It 'drives' me crazy too, together with the people who block the pavements with their cars so you can't get a pushchair (or wheel chair) past. We need more parent and toddler spaces in all car parks and fines for the selfish people. Patrols of the car parks would be good, we can dream!

i think moms and dads should be able to use disabeled parkin like they r aloud to park in our spaces to make it easier for all us users!
as it goes for people without children or without a disability should be fined!

I never park in the P&C spaces if I don't have my daughter with me and never did before she came along. After complaining in my local Tesco I was told that if all the P&C spaces were taken I SHOULD park in the disabled spaces. I haven't thought of a decent P&C put down yet, but to those who use the disabled spaces just to get closer to the store, I usually ask them if it's a brain disability since they obviously can't read the signs!

i agree faithsmum my local asda r brill they are strict wiv people who take the parkin spaces for granted but people who use the disable and p & c places just because there lazy are out ov order my cousin is disabled and is in a wheel chair and when we all went out on a girly day this couple drove straight in2 a disabled place and there was nothing wrong wiv them and when we said we needed the place more then them they said we havent got a say and its not there problem!

sum people are so pig arrogent!

sam x x

Please include me in the parking petition.

All the best with the campaign, Denise

Like many a mom who has already signed this petition i have experienced abuse from people when i challenged them on using p+t spaces when its clear they have no child with them. The stores are not interested in monitoring who uses the spaces they just want to be seen as ticking the right boxes - yes we provide spaces for p+t. Why dont they have spaces for the over 60s, lazy good for nothings, we have a nice new car, and the other catoegories of people who think the world owes them a space nearer the door. Its time people old and young stopped thinking about themselves and realise exercise is good for them. Support the petition and hopefully society might only might be more understanding on what these spaces are there for - THE SAFETY OF OUR BABIES. Babies have to be in car seats and you need room to get one in and out!

I have emailed my local Sainsbury this week to complain as they have reduced the amount of p & c parking spaces. I also questioned them about how they manage them as so often people without children or with teenagers are parking in them. This is the reply I got

"Thank you for taking the time to email us. I am sorry that you are unhappy that the amount of parent and child parking spaces at our Holywood Exchange store. I can certainly understand how disappointing it must be that they have reduced since the refurbishment.

I have spoken with Gavin Plant, Duty Manager at the store. He has informed me that the perent and child spaces were reviewed before the development. They planning department decided to move them closer to the store to make them more convenient. However, this did mean that the amount would slightly reduce. I am therefore sorry you are unhappy with this decision.

I would also like to say how sorry I am that you have witnessed them being misused by other customers. We aim to make shopping at our stores as convenient and easy as possible for all of our customers. To an extent, we do rely on our customers understanding the problems faced by those customers with special needs. Some of our car parks are owned and managed by other organisations and so we do not have direct control over them. However, wherever possible we are putting further measures in place to reduce the unauthorised use of both parent and child parking bays and disabled parking bays.

It is not always easy to tell if our customers are wrongly parked in our parent and child bays, unless we see them leaving or arriving at their car without small children. However, if we believe that customers are misusing these bays our policy is to ask them to move their vehicle. If they refuse to do so, and the car park is managed or owned by us, we will issue the driver with a fine. Indeed, in 2007 we issued more than 5,500 penalty charge notices to customers misusing parent and child bays and disabled parking bays.

Following customer feedback we have started a 12 week trial to provide roaming car parking attendants on motorcycles. This trial will cover 22 stores within the M25 area. The attendants will issue £50 fines to drivers who misuse parent and child bays, or who park in disabled bays without showing a blue badge. If at the end of the 12 week period we see a reduction in the misuse of the bays we will consider rolling the scheme out to all our car parks that are in our control. "

All seems like a lot of waffle to me really, and the new parking spaces are NOT closer to the store. :roll:

fine ppl who use it who aint got kids

I think that when you have a baby you should get a permit for these spaces. Then if you don't show you parent child permit you should get clamped, that would soon put people off!

Supermarkets could easily do some sort of permit scheme along with there loyalty cards.

why is it always boy racers or big shot company cars who park in parent spaces. it always annoys me when i go out with my friend and her baby. i bet they'd moan like hell if their car wasw bashed in a normal space becaussse you've go the door wide open to get the baby out of the car seat. then of course you have to have the buggy somewhere near so that's a scratch in the paintwork. i'm all in favour of fining them and using the money for plush parent and child facilties in store.

im pregnant with my first baby but for years have been looking at cars who park in the mother & baby spaces and clearly have no children. like the two seater sport cars! who are you kidding? i know there is no legal protection over these spaces like disabled but its common curtiosy! the shops do not have to put mother and baby spaces but they do, especially in supermarkets, but they know that mothers who shop do tend to have children with car seats and prams! but its ignorant drivers who feel they have as much right to take these spaces. what more can we do to prevent this? we need to make these spaces like the disabled ones.

Perhaps a good idea would be that all new parents b provided with some sort of badge or sticker when they leave hospital (or from their midwife if having a home birth) and then would have 2 display it in the windscreen when using a parent and child space. This could then b enforced in the same way as disabled badge holders only are allowed 2 park in disabled bays,and anyone parked in a p&c space with no badge on display should be automatically fined. Any thoughts? xxx

Really annoys me too, so much so i've set up a site to name and shame these idiots!

Take a photo of the offending vehicle with your phone and upload it on this site : http://www.parking-idiots.com/

http://www.parking-idiots.com/

Time to take at least some sort of action till the offenders/supermarkets take note.

I just checked your site out - good idea & maybe there should be a notice saying something like 'you've been snapped by parking-idiots.com!' that we could put on after taking the photo.

Re permits - Tesco gives these but I don't know why as they aren't monitored, I've displayed mine - fat lot of good it does though. At Sainsburys I gave some woman the evils for parking in the space when she had no kids - she had car seats but I made a point of looking for the kids...she looked a little scared but I am yet to ever vocalise to any of these offenders which is shocking as I have a right gob on me!
I'll be carrying my camera from now on!
x

This is not before time! it is so frustrating when all spaces are taken and you are parked between two cars trying to squash your baby and toddler out without scratching the other cars doors then see perfectly abled bodied adults in flashy cars getting out of a child and parent space! they have no guilt either!

hope this petition does some good!

Yep, please add me to the petition, I get seriously wound up by lazy drivers who use "our" spaces.

My local Morrissons is where I see the most offenders, closely followed by Tesco and at both places there are security/trolley attendant types who don't say or do anything

It's about time supermarkets put a stop to this we have a disabled badge for our son but we often can get no disabled bay because it is full of cars with no badges where you get a bunch of youngsters coming out with their beer.
Often we cannot get a parent and child space either as these are taken up by people with no children with them.
My father in law spoke to an asda car parking attendant who said he knew of people who had bought or borrowed car seats just so they can use parent and child spaces.

We get fined if we park where we shouldn't by traffic wardens so surely it's makes sense for supermarket car parks too.

About time! I'm sick and tired of not being able to get in a mother and bay space at my local Tesco cos people can't be arsed to walk a bit further. I wouldn't care if the mother and baby spaces were the furthest away. What people don't seem to realise is that these parking spaces give extra room on each side of your vehicle to be able to get your child in and out of their car seat, it has nothing to do with being nearer the store!
I took a trip to Tesco's a couple of days ago and couldn't get a M&B space (Again) so parked at the far end where there were free spaces on either side of me. When I came out, some prat had parked so near to me I could'n get Lo in, (despite the fact I have baby on board stickers and sun shades all over the car and car seat base on the back seat) and had to decide whether to leave her outside the car while I moved it or force the car door open to get her in. I wasn't prepared to leave her outside so I'm afraid the car next door might have a bit of a new dint in it!

we are eally lucky that our local tesco has around 30 p & c spaces and we can pretty much always find a space but it does pee me off when people park in then especially when the obviously dont have a child. my lo is in a pavlic harness so if we dont get a p&c space we cant get him in and out of the car. when i was (very heavily) preganant i was tryiong to get in the car some idiot parked so close i couldnt even vaguely get in. i turned round and just gave em an 'are you kidding me look' and they reversed out of the space for me

its a great idea to fine drivers who park in the kiddie spaces to try and stop them but most take no notice of the signs and park in them anyway unless the supermarkets reinforce the signs people with small children and babys will still have to find other spaces futher away.

Oh I agree, I agree! In fact, I was so cross the other week that I left 2 notes on people's windscreens telling them in no uncertain terms what I thought of their parking antics! I was penned in to a parent and child space by one idiot without a child and the regular space on the other side where someone had parked so close and so badly I couldn't get in (being 8 months pregnant) or get my toddler in. In the end I had to climb in the front with him across my bump and 'post' him backwards into his seat. This made him upset, which in turn made me absolutely furious! It's probably better that I did leave notes instead of bumping into the drivers at this stage.... I think that pregnant women should be able to have a pass to park in mother/child/disabled spaces from a certain amount of weeks too, as it's nigh-on impossible to do your shopping sometimes. I know how old people feel now when they have to go shopping for a little bit each day! Grr!:x:x

I think that badges should be issued to people with young children, and that if a badge is not displayed when someone parks in a parent and child space then they should be treated exactly the same as if they had parked in a disabled space without a badge. I also think that more parent and child spaces should be required to be provided- obviously disabled people need and are entitled to enough spaces, but often all the parent and child spaces are full (I've seen this happen when each care parked has actually had a child seat in) and very few of the disabled ones are. Such a large percentage of the population has young children that it is ridiculous there isn't more provision for them.

this makes me so angry!...so many times have i been driving around waiting for a space only to watch the car in front park in the parent spots! And there are never enough! i think the supermarkets that claim to be parent and child friendly should reinforce their parking rules, perhaps allow spaces for badge holders or something...people park in the spaces as really what is there to stop them!? at my local supermarkets there is nothing and it really winds me up!

I to have had many a stressfull time at supermarket car parks thanks to inconsiderate people! And the shops seem to shrug off any responsibility for it! I'm in the final weeks of my second pregnancy and I'm suffering from very bad SPD,so now I do all of my shopping online! Prior to doing so I experienced the same as everyone else,but mainly it was elderly people who used the p&c spaces.Little old ladies who obviously thought they had more right to park there than people with young children! When I approached one of these "old dears" about the subject she smiled,turned and walked away much to my annoyance! I'm sure if we were to park in a disabled space we would be hung, drawn and quartered,so why shouldn't the same rules apply to p&c parking??

It is a nightmare trying to park with small babies, car seats are big and heavy, when you have just given birth, walking like john wayne and trying to carry a car seat across a car park because some idiot has parking in the parent space is not easy! my husband has watched single and childless people park in the spaces and parks behind them blocking them in and argues with them later! there should be definitly be parent badges and the spaces should be monitored and fined if people park in there with no children. When i'm on my own i never ever park in the spaces, and now i never bother trying with my baby son as i know there is no chance of a space been there.

I received a £60 parking ticket last week for deliberately parking over boundary in a carpark in order to gain access to the rear doors and my 8 month old's carseat. This particular carpark provides plenty of disabled spaces which obviously, I am not entitled to use but no parent spaces at all.

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/parent-and-child-parking.html

i think its terrible people think its ok to park in mother and toddler spaces!!!! Some people just dont care.

I find it annoying that you can not get a parent & baby space as lazy people just take the first space they see and they don't have any children with them. Or they park in the space and the passenger goes into the shop and the driver stays in the car. I found people looking at me with a look like I did not have any special needs to park in these spaces but I had a new born baby and a partner who was in a wheelchair we did not have a blue badge so was not allowed to park in diabled parking. There seems to be alot of disabled but not alot of parent and baby. I have just got a parking permit from Tesco's parent and baby club when I signed up to them. Bet that does not allow me to get a space easier than before.:\?

I've ranted about this so many times. I've even confronted a few people when they've caught me on a bad day. Lets all hope that all other places follow Asdas lead and do something about it.

The same people who are fighting over the parent and child spaces also fight over the disabled spaces. The only card I have access to is my mums, who has a blue badge. The number of times we have had to park in a normal space and try and get Tarran's car seat out of the car, aswell as her struggling to get out of the car. Not to mention the fact that I struggle if I can't open the door wide because I also have a disability. I was in Sainbury the other day, feeding Tarran in the car and we were in a disabled space. The number of people who parked in the parent and child spaces opposite without having children was an absolute joke. And would you believe that the majority of them were actually of the older generations? One old couple actually did have a car seat in the back of their car, but if they had a child with them, they left it behind while they did their shopping because they didn't take their child out. And yet, when we parked the car, the 4x4 parked next to us, in a disabled space, without displaying a blue badge was a couple with 3 kids. I asked them why they were parked there and the response I got was 'there was no parent and child spaces'. I tried to politely tell them that those parent and child spaces are there for parents with YOUNG children, ie babies and toddlers, not those in senior school. I called them lazy so-and-so's and returned to feeding Tarran.

The sheer inconsideration of people in this country really does never cease to amaze me.

Quote:

I feel that shopping areas do need to become more child friendly, the places that do provide mother and baby spaces you often find that they are misused!!
Its against the law to park in a disabled space more action needs to be taken against people parking in mother and baby spaces!

i totally agree, the ammount of people that park in parent & child spaces that dont actuly need them!!!!! could you imagine if mums& dads used disabled spaces??? (obiously that is no attack on peopl that need them)
my local asda now has signs that says the spaces are for parents with children 12 & under only with fines for missuse. which is a good step but the signs are small & i have seen people wrongly park read the sign & carry on!

Sign me up!

I think that we should have badges to display just like disbled people do and there should definately be more of them!

sign me up too, i think its ridiculous that they're supposedly intelligent adults out there who still can't seem to grasp the fact that a parent1child parkling space is for a parent with a child, its not a difficult concept quite simple really. GRRR

modyfied to add that the local asda has some p&c spaces right by the entrance unforunately this is also where the cash points are so u very often get ppl pull up into the spaces (some times btween all of them so no one can move anywhere and blocking all spaces) whilst they jump out to use the ATMs. the ignorance of some ppl is astounding!

xx

[Modified by: siany on October 14, 2008 01:53 PM]

i'm a disabled driver with a blue parking badge and a mum to be and i hardly ever get to park in a disabled bay because there are people using thoses bays who ARNT disabled but have babies with them because there is no mother and baby bays. and then they dont even have a mother and baby parking permit anyway (tescos). it works both ways.

but i will sign the petition because it anoys me when normal abled bodied without children park in mother and baby bays too. but dont forget the disabled are entitled to park in thoses bays if all the disabled bays are taken!

im in x

I would happily sign up! In morrisons today, remember it is a monday plenty of parking spaces so i though yipee i can get a half decent space. drove round to parent and baby parking and what do i see? no parking spaces for me. My daughter is 7 months old. finally i found somebody reversing out so i pulled in. as i got out i had an old biddy pull up behind me and said "this is parking for parent and baby not modified cars" shocked her when i pulled samantha out the back and took my coat off so she could see my bump.

I found the best way to tackle this issue is to park in a normal space, and as u get ur child/children out of the car u batter car doors with some force. if police ask u was getting ur child safely out of cars.

i think that when u have a baby u shuld be given something like the blue badges that disabled have. they should be valid until the child is of a decent age to walk to the distance from car to upermarket. if anybody is parked in a designated space then they should be ticketed or even better clamped!

and sorry to anybody who has there car doors damaged by a modified silver ford mondeo in peterborough morrrisons. i am having to prove huge point!

omg, this annoys me so much!! i have had so many run ins wiv ppl over this.
Last week a man was jus sat waitin in his car doin nothing in the last space available, we parked opposite in a normal tight squeezed space n he watched us struggling 2 get pushchair n baby out(all the times me givin him filthfiest looks n mouthing off 2 him!) n then once we got her ready he jus pulled out of the space n drove off! aarrgghh!! i was so angry! i hope this does some good, hate selfish ppl that park in them wiv out thinking x

Until you have a baby I don't think you realise how much a parent needs that space! I must admit I did use these spaces when I was heavily pregnant as I needed the space to get out, and as you know, the less you have to walk the better.

I hate nothing more than people in tiny sports cars with NO kids, parking in the last available space in P&B parking in any carpark.....Why do they do it? because they are lazy, inconsierate and wouldn't want to scratch their paint work. GGGRRRRRR!!!
I have three kids and parking in a regular space and trying to get all kids in/out is really impossible without opening the doors wide enough.
Something needs to be done
Thanks

add me to the list nothing annoys me more than idiots without children taking up the spaces grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Too Right!
Getting his car seat in and out of our 3 door Fiesta is virtually impossible if we can't get an end space or a parent and child space! they are always full of big 4x4s or little sports cars.

I'd like to sign as well. I went into Tesco today and there once we found a space about a mile away we walked throught the parent and baby parking space area to see no less than twenty three of twenty five spaces taken up with cars with no car seats... they could not have all seriously taken their children in in their car seats??? It's so frustrating... trying to get shopping done is tough enough with three under four never mind when it's pouring with rain and the parking is all taken up by others who should be parked else where. When I was pregnant last year I had to wait nearly an hour for the people in the next car to come back just so I could get in they had parked so close... really embarrassing.

It really annoys me when these spaces are taken, often by ppl who should know better! If you say something then you risk abuse from the culprits yet that is the advice you are given!. Surely it would be easy enough for councils to issue parent parking permits, like the blue badge for disabled drivers. It could be issued when you get your pregnancy confirmed by scan & renewed at birth to last for a suitable period of time eg til the child's 10th birthday. Anyone not displaying the badge or mis-using it can then be fined or have the pivallege removed.
I too had spd as a previous poster and found that I had to park near the back of the car park at bluewater whilst a woman without kids got the last available parent space. It's important that these issues are dealt with.

Please sign me up.
I would never dream of using the P&C or Disabled spaces without Children. I am TTC but I can honestly say I would only use the P&C spaces if I had my child with me. Just because you have a child seat doesn't mean you can use them. There is a reason why they are closer to the store and have more room. I don't suppose people would be particularly happy if we scratched their cars whilst trying to maneovre a car seat out in a normal bay.
Good luck with the petition.xx

Hear Hear

x

Sign me up too please

i support this campaign - especially when its raining cats and dogs and i have all three kids with me and cant find a family parking space!!

oh im in it drives me mad xx i have also found of people with disabled badges parking at my local morrisons eventhough theres plenty of disabled parking bays but if i were to park in 1 id get a ticket xxxx

Can we have another petition - to try and ban hospital maternity car parking meters ??

sign me up!
the asda i use has no baby toddler spaces or not that i've seen there definately not near the front entrance so i think if they do have some they are really far out of the way which i think is rubbish.
i think it very important as well that those that have children, babies or toddlers not to use them when they dont have them in the car i also think you should be able to use them when your like 7-9 months (depending on when your bump get big anyways could be sooner than 7 month) pregnant as it can be hard to get out the car with a big tummy and not bash the car next to you

i totally agree wit everyone, sign me on pls its a nightmare

its annoying but i think ther shud be inspectors around more cos nothing happens to the ppl tht use the spaces

What a good cause but I see this forum dates back to 2007, is the campaign still going?

What gets me is the drivers that park, in these spaces, always have an excuse but today I experienced my first victory!!! The driver (who said his 4x4 wouldn't fit in a normal space) said that if it bothered me that much he would move. I told him that it did & gladly took the space with my 4x4 (sorry) complete with baby in the back.

If the campaign is still running; keep it up, inappropriate use of parent & child spaces drives me mad!

One other complaint if your child can walk & doesn't need a car seat you don't need to park in these spaces!

Im in too, I could go on all day about the amount of times Ive seen people parking in them without kids, argh drives me MAD! X

I came across these on ebay - seems like a novel way of dealing with this problem....:lol:

Vigilante Parent & Child Parking Bay tickets

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110402168573

[Modified by: mel888 on June 14, 2009 03:26 AM]

[Modified by: mel888 on June 14, 2009 03:30 AM]

My little girl's only 10 weeks old and already I'm getting annoyed with people that don't need to use the P+C spaces use them.
My partner approached a woman in my local Morrisons car park who cut infront of us and parked in the last P+C space, (she didn't have any children with her or any sign of having children in her car). When he asked her why she'd gone for that space she snapped and said that it was closest to the door and she didn't want to get wet in the rain. Then when he asked her to move, she wasn't too polite with her response. So we had to park pretty much the far end of the car park and carry our daughter in her car seat all the way to the store in the pouring rain.
Plus, I've seen plenty of parents with teenagers parking in the spaces and it does my head in, because everyone knows that the spaces are definitely not for them.

This drives me and my husband up the wall! Only about 2% of spaces seem to be taken up by people who have the right to park there. The rest are filled with lazy people.

They also take up the disabled spaces too which is very wrong and leads to the disabled people parking in the Parent and Toddler spaces which is just causes a knock on effect. So there misuse of the disabled spaces needs to be tackled too!

I've signed loads of these petitions before and nothing seems to improve... these big companies that thrive on our need for baby goods and the desire to please our children with rewards/bribes for behaving in their shops should be ashamed of themselves!
I don't mind having to walk further so much but I do need the extra room to get my toddler out of her seat & into the buggy (if using it). These ignorant, lazy, unintelligent sods that take our spaces and then even threaten you when you confront them (even in the politest way possible) should be brought to some kind of justice! I think it's great that Sainsbury started fining people. If this happened more often then maybe people would get the message and stop inconveniencing us parents with little ones!
Why can't we have a system like the disabled badge scheme... it wouldn't be too difficult to do and then anyone caught using the spaces without a badge can be fined through the courts. That would make em think twice!
grrrrr....!!!!

Our local tesco have put up new signs saying the spaces are for people with kids under 5 but still people park in them with their teenage kids - and I have to struggle with my 5 month old. I have to say that I have started online grocery shopping as its much easier!

Going shopping is hard work especially with 10 month old twins but finding spaces with enough room to open bith doors is even harder work, which is why the baby and toddler spaces are a great help like previous poster said i would never use a disabled space so why use the baby space??

Sign me up

It is difficult enough as a mum without struggling to get in and out with your baby in a car park in order to get groceries. Countless times I witness people using the bays when they don't have children, especially those in pretentious cars they don't want scratched! If they're that worried about their duco, why buy the car...
I really appreciate those supermarkets who make these spaces available to us and would be prepared to shop exclusively at one who was going to provide me with a guaranteed space so that I can easily get in and out with my little one. Good on Sainsbury's for taking action to keep these bays for their intended customers; I can't wait for it to be at all stores!

Yes it really winds me up but I have to say the one that really infuriates me is parents who park in these spaces when they don't have their kids with them! They know better!

I would also highlight in this campaign part of it should be educating drivers, I had no idea how valuable these spaces were until I was a mum! Now i defend them furiously, especially having a two door car which means it is physically impossible to get my son out in a normal space between other cars!

Am very happy to support this. x

It's really difficult to find enough empty parent & baby spaces anyway, without people misusing them. They're necessary especially when baby is small when the car seats come out of the car with them - on more than one occasion I have struggled to get the seat in or out of the car because I had to use a standard size space.:\(

I think that the people who park in these mother and toddler spaces should be ashamed of themselfs.
I have a 2 year old and every time I go shopping, nine times out of ten I have to park in an normal space.
Where we live haven't got many child spaces. In one of the cark parks it has only got 2 child spaces, and yet places like Bristol or devon and Cornwall seem to have more.
I hope people learn from this.

even though asda have signs up for fines if you park in childrens bays or disabled bays they dont enforce it as people still park in them anyway they need someone to do checks in some way

I am so glad that this subject is finally being taken seriously now by supermarkets. A couple of months ago myself, partner and baby (then about 10 months could not get a baby spaces as it was throwing it down with rain and low and behold all the spaces were full of 2 seater sports cars and huge trucks (id love to know where the kids are going to sit in those). By the time we had actually got into the supermarket we were all soaked through, we asked one of the staff members about asking people to move and he agreed as he had a similar aged child but said that the amount of threats the staff receive on asking lazy people to move their cars is not worth the risk to staff and so i think this problem should go further than that. Perfectly able people are issued fines for parking in disabled spots (of which i always see far too many empty and so think that ratios should be reassesed for these and parent spaces) and so i think the same should apply to the parent ones. When we left the supermarket it was still throwing it down with rain and i purposely made a big deal out of the situation that my daughter was getting soaked as a woman in a sports car who was parked in one of these spaces was complaining about the weather as she was dressed in a posh little dress, well i suppose thats what you get for being so ignorant to others. I bet she wouldn't be happy if i bumped her door trying to get baby out of normal space as idiots like her take up the allocated ones.
Sorry for going on so long but it really infuriates me how selfish some people can be.:x

At last something is being done to stop arrigant idiots using the parent and child spaces when they dont have children, and although the sceme sounds a good idea I think that another issue needs to be addressed, we do our food shop online now as it is is alot easier but on the occations when we do go shopping there are very rarely any parent and child spaces avaliable but there are always a huge amount of disabled spaces left, its about time these supermarkets realised there are alot more parents with young children and babies than disabled people so why is there usually only a few spaces allocated to P & C while there is about 3 times more disabled spaces (at our local tescos and sainsburys anyway). I wrote to sainsburys about this but never recieved a reply.

I have complained so so many times in Asda about this, old people seem to be the worst offenders! I really really hope that when I am old I have more manners that the current batch lol! I have had run ins with a few people about it most of them are just so rude and dont seem to care. I can completly understand why you would park in one if you are heavily pregnant and have no objection to it, but to just park in it because you are lazy is a discrace. Also there is nowhere near enough mother and baby parking, they have so so many disabled bays which are never full up and not even half that amount are for parents. When my son was a few weeks old I could not get a mother baby space so had to park in a normal one. When I got back I couldnt get my son back in the car cause someone had parked so so close to me. I had to ask the trolly boy to watch my son whilst I reversed out I was so unhappy about doing this.

Please,please, please leave the Parent and Toddler parking spaces for parents and todddlers. They are put there for a reason and it makes me really sad that they are often abused

it annoys me when you can't get a parent and child space , when you have a look in some of the cars , there's no seats , baby on board signs etc . I've even seen fancy sports cars in them !!! oh and when you do park in a normal space , you get some idiot parked next to you who can't park and they're too close . If you ask me they should be treated the same as disabled spaces .

At times, I do see disabled people parked at parent parking! they have their own space and yet they park on us!! and we cant park on their parking lot!
also sometime, people with teenage also parked on parent parking!

what's wrong with this people!!! Spare a thought! Give it to people who need it!

I'd like to add my support, I too have had difficulties trying to find or use spaces due to inappropriate use. There are never enough spaces!

i am signing up to the parking petition, i'm so sick of people parking in p&c spaces when they clearly have no children with them, its just plain lazy! glad to see that sainsburys have finally joined with asda in issuing fines to those parked there 'illegally'.

mmm...quite a mediocre response from Morrison's here to my complaint: http://tinyurl.com/m5mwsx

Nobody could accuse them of sitting on the fence eh?

Also, interestingly enough, I've just seen that Sainsburys have started giving out flyers with the strap line
"Fine if you do have children, Fine if you don't" - getit?

£60 fine for anyone parking in the reserved spots without a child under 12 in tow.

I have witnessed a parking monitor telling off a business woman who parked in a parent/baby spot and he made her move but she wasn't going without an argument!

It is so infuriating, especially when ppl have older children and think its acceptable but more so with people who blatently don't have children full stop!!! You need to open your doors further when getting a baby out of the car and therefore need more room so as not to knock the doors of the car next to you - surely people don't want unnecessary but sometimes unavoidable damage to their cars??!

Thank you for tackling this task, lets hope Tesco and Asda come on board now too. I have 3 times complained at my local Tesco (after tackling people on 2 other occasions and being met by abuse and being threatened) only to be told they dont own the car park and therefore cannot really do anything about it. I think if these people were fined or clamped, they would soon stop doing it. They have cameras in our local tesco to record lazy, selfish people who park in the disabled bays but nothing for the Mother & Baby. I have a 4 year old and now 28 weeks pregnant and suffering with SPD and have to park way down the car park in tesco due to these selfish, ignorant people and I am sick of it. My local Asda have got rid of their Mother to be spaces so I cant park there when on my own and when with my Son the P&T's are usally full, so I now try to do Asda home delivery to avoid getting stressed or abused as my Husband was getting concerned as I got so worked about it after being threatened after asking one young man about 20 odd to move his car as he was eating his lunch in one of these spaces!!!!!! Unbelievable.

I see the BBC have picked up this now: http://digg.com/d3zNWC

I also had quite an er...interesting letter from my local MP - not excatly wanting those votes methinks...

I asked whether he would support making parking for non parents in these spots illegal, as per blue badge holders (ie via an act of parliment) - and quoted my confrontation with the women (see my post on the 25.07 on http://www.allaboutyou.com/toddlerandparentparking). He seems to have focussed on this...

See the slightly sarcastic response here: http://tinyurl.com/mkueng

I totally agree. It is so annoying when you see people abusing these spaces. At my local Morrisons you often see people park there with there teenage children. These people must have had young children once so must realise that it is difficult getting them in and out of the car, they are just being selfish!

Is there any way we can get local councils to come on board and issue Parent and Baby "permits" like local parking permits (ie. specific to registration numbers)?

We drive a 2-door sports car with a 5mth old and 25mth toddler and it is FAR easier to park in a parent & child space. But since it's not your usual "family" car people automatically assume we don't have kids and proceed to shout and abuse us - we've even had our car scratched because of it. Now I'm so worried about parking in them that I've resort to using the peripheral spaces. But it's a nightmare having to park so far away when I'm carrying a carseat with a heavy baby (and chronic back pains!) and trying to grab on to a wandering toddler.

(modified to say) So some form of badge will be a real saving grace, and PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE just because it's a poncy-looking sports car doesn't always mean they don't have kids - I can fit 2 babyseats in the back of my Porsche!

[Modified by: marissa_352 on August 24, 2009 03:37 PM]

I am 35 weeks pregnant and have SPD so I need to use crutches. My local ASDA do not have any Mother to be spaces, only Parent & Child spaces. I parked in one of those last time I went shopping as I need to be able to open my door full to get in and out of the car safely. This is not at all possible in a normal sized space. It's quite obvious that I'm pregnant and getting in out out of the car is difficult for me. If challenged, I would say that Asda have not thought it through properly and need to be a bit more considerate.

This is one thing that really annoys me, these spaces are for pregnant women and parents with babys and toddlers.
I have stopped using them now as my son is 3 and is able to get out of the car quite easily, but I see so many mums and dads who use them even though their child is about 7, I mean come on!!!

This is a subject that really grates on me & I am all for a badge system that allows you access these spaces (until maybe school age?)

my DS1 was nearly run over whilst stood at the car door waiting to get in(he was in the space lines between parking spaces right next to our car next to his daddy) by a fat lazy oaf with no children who pulled his jag into the P&C space next to us whilst talking on his mobile & nearly ran into our car & my son!!! needless to say the air was blue with what my husband had to say to him & if it wern't for DS being there he would've probably got a smack too!! But the blokes excuse for parking there was that he would only be there 2 mins whilst he used cash machine (infront of spaces)!!! He promptly moved & think he was bit shaken up & I've since seen him parked elsewhere in the carpark.
The Tesco store it was at has now got a warden partrolling 9am-7pm(mostly for overstays) & they will tell people to move or issue tickets!

I am so proud of myself! last week drove with my son to supermarket and a little car zipped into the last mother and baby space! OMG! well I wasn't having it when i saw a single lady get out, so i wound down my window and asked her if she had kids with her. no. well then would you kindly move because you have taken the last space and I have my son with me?...'um, can't you park over there? ' (indicating rest of car park)...'Can't you?!!' was my reply! and she got in her car and toddled off. Just as i was about to reverse into the space a little white van zipped in there! I tooted my horn and shouted i was waiting for that space, the couple (no kids!) got back in the car and went somewhere else. as i was walking into the shop, the guy came up and apologised, he thought it was a disabled space! rah! parent power!!

There is nothing that makes me more mad. Only yesterday I had to park at the back of the carpark and walk all the way to the store holding my baby because a man with just car seats parked in the bay think he forgot his kids. xxxx

That is something which really annoys me, do they not realise how hard work it is to park the car a long way away from the shop entrance carrying the baby with all the bags etc you need, which is heavy enough but not to mention that you actually NEED a wide spaced car park space because you have to open the doors to get the baby in and out.
I once saw a couple park in one of those spaces who clearly didnt have any children so i wrote a note and stuck it to their windscreen.
At my local supermarket, its the staff who park there taking up all our spaces - the swines!:evil::

Quote:

aswell as people selfishly and lazely parking in those spaces, i forget to add that its the extremly thick or just yet again selfish inconsiderate g*ts who park there with older children, like they count! Ridiculous.
They should start fining people £50 at least if they park in one without a baby, or another valid reason like being heavely pregnant and needing the space to get out the car!