A mum blogger has unleashed her frustration on drivers who use parent and child car park spaces unnecessarily.
The pregnant mum-of-two, who runs the Honest Parent blog, shared a post on her Facebook page criticising those who park in the spaces when they don't have a child with them, or their child is old enough not to need it.
And message has struck a chord with families.
It's been shared 1.9 thousand times in less than 24 hours and have received hundreds of comments, the MEN reports.
In the, the mum wrote: "A teenager is not a child. A 15-year-old that can just jump out of the car does not need to be parked here, protected from traffic. Maybe if they lifted their face from their phones for 5 minutes, they’d learn how to cross the road. God forbid your precious child has to walk more than 30ft."
She criticises those who use the spaces simply to protect their own cars, saying: "Just because you’ve decided to spend a large amount on a new car or you cannot park a car that you think is a bus - you are not entitled to park here! Children’s lives are more important funnily enough."
Describing getting a reluctant three-year-old into a car seat as 'like trying to fold an ironing board into a suitcase', she also defends parents against claims they are lazy for wanting the spaces, adding: "It’s closer to the entrance so it’s less roads, moving vehicles to come across when you have young, unpredictable children who don’t fully understand the road yet. It’s unreasonable to expect a three year old to understand the inner workings of a car park.
Hundreds of people commented with messages of supprt.
One mum said: "The amount of arguments I’ve had with people in car parks is unreal!
"We had someone say to us ‘children should walk more they are lazy these days’ W*F."
While another added: "This is one of my pet hates. There aren't enough parent and child spaces as it is. I've told people to move when they've parked in them without a child."
Not everyone was in agreement, though.
Some Facebook users hit back saying that 15-year-olds are still children and might need extra support with disabilities or other special needs.
Others said nobody is entitled to a parent and child space, while others said all spaces should be made wider and that would solve the problem.
Speaking to the M.E.N's Manchester Family, The Honest Parent says she understands it's not always cut and dried.
She said: "Just because I haven’t written about it, doesn’t mean I’m not aware it’s a one size fits all, I’m aware there are reasons why people may park there re disabilities, especially having worked with children and adults with disabilities before."
Here's The Honest Parent's post in full:
PARENT & CHILD SPACES
1) A teenager is not a child. A 15 year old that can just jump out of the car does not need to be parked here, protected from traffic. Maybe if they lifted their face from their phones for 5 minutes, they’d learn how to cross the road. God forbid your precious child has to walk more than 30ft.
2) Having empty car seats in your car does not mean you are entitled to park here! What’s worse is you should surely understand why those spaces are needed for people with young children and therefore it makes you an ignorant knob head too.
3) If you have children in your car, there are two adults, or maybe more and only one adult needs to get out of the car...you can park in a normal space! If the children aren’t getting out of the car- you don’t need to take up a space for a struggling parent who has to get children in and out of car seats!
4) Just because you’ve decided to spend a large amount on a new car or you cannot park a car that you think is a bus- you are not entitled to park here! Children’s lives are more important funnily enough.
Parents aren’t lazy! So please note:
1) is it’s closer to the entrance so it’s less roads, moving vehicles to come across when you have young, unpredictable children who don’t fully understand the road yet. It’s unreasonable to expect a three year old to understand the inner workings of a car park.
2) If you try to get a child into a car seat without the additional space. You just end up hitting the car next to you. It’s near on impossible to get your child in the car and buckle them in, whilst holding the car door to ensure it doesn’t slam into the car next to you.
3) Trying to get a reluctant 3 year old into a car seat is like trying to fold an ironing board into a suitcase! It’s not going to happen. A physical struggle is endured and constitutes as a weeks with of exercise whilst passers by assume you haven’t got your s**t together.
So don’t be a d***head, don’t park here unless you need to.
Sincerely,
All Parents!"
