Am I anti children please help!

[S-MaxJon]

I was knocked over on a site when I was 5 causing my right leg to fracture and be in plaster for 9 weeks.

This was due to a speeding motorist on the site.As I was 5 as someone said you have no conception of speed.

We have just comeback from Broadway CC and they have installed speed bumps around the gyratory of the site- certainly slows car's down.

 

[joeby]

I have been to sites with speed bumps , but all the cars do is go onto the grass and drive around them , i cant understand why they are in so much of a rush

 

[Alex_374312290]

Same here Joby.

I do reckon that there are more speeders on sites with statics. The larger the park and larger proportion of statics = more speeders.

Not sure if it's the fact that they are much more familiar with the park, being sited there all the time. Or maybe it's because they've never really had to tow a van around a park at slow speeds and just not used to slowing down.

I know it's not just statics owners who speed, just my observations that they seem to do it more than tourers, as they pass through the touring area to get to their vans.

 

[nora_5061854]

good for you mandy

we have just returned from a week away and i felt the same are we becoming old and grumpy. but children were playing football next to our caravan and my husband just couldnt relax.

they were all riding bikes some very fast yes but i think, this is because they feel safe on the camp site.

we always take care when driving around the site and i agree some people still drive too fast. however this does not alter the fact that somne children are left to do what they want with out being corrected. this was a cc site,

we were in france a few years ago and were so embarrassed by the english youngsters that we were going to remove our GB from the car. we kept asking where were their parents .

 

[gypsy]

Hi nora, did you express your concerns to the warden? if you did and nothing was done, I would advise you to contact the club, as they once told me that if they don't know what is happening on their sites, and how the Wardens are reacting there is nothing they can do, so please let the club know, and we may get this selfish behaviour stopped.

 

[gypsy]

Hi Nora, did you complain to the warden? if so and nothing was done I would contact the club as they once told me that if they don't know what is happening on their sites, and the actions of the warden, there is nothing they can do, so if you let them know perhaps we can stop this selfish stupid behaviour.

 

[colin-yorkshire]

hi all

are you anti children for not wanting screeming ball kicking kids around you on site.

YES seems to be the answer well so am I, I absolutly hate it,and if that makes me an old grumpy inconsidret complaining fart, so be it, bring it on.

we go away for peace and quiet and to enjoy the countryside in all it's tranquility and beauty, not to be corralled in the middle of a zoo.

we never go away in school or bank hols and go to adult only sites or very quiet out of the way private sites that are unlikley to be used by week/enders but still manage to occasionally find this not enough to avoid them.

on a private site in devon in early may this year we had 10 days of glorious peace with good weather when on wednesday afternoon a van turned up with 4 kids in it and set up on the next pitch, why when the site was empty god knows, (there was only 3 vans on a site of 6 acres) they pitched right in front of the water tap and connected the mains water supply direct to the van stopping us from getting water and piping the waste straight to the drain.

so using the supply like a service pitch.

then out came 2 awnings, one for each side (one for a lounge and the other for the kids to sleep in) stopping us from parking the car near our awning and only leaving a 2mtr gap between us, out came the bikes and all the toys and footballs, after setting up this guy sat down to enjoy a well earned couple of cans watching cricket on the telly while the kids used the whole field as a play ground.

next morning after spending a very noisy night without much sleep we decided to complain to the site owner especially after the mother came round and asked us to keep the dog inside the van as her daughter was frightened of dogs,(what a cheek??).

his reply was astounding, "if you dont like it move on" WHAT??

well it's like this he said "they come here several times a year and allways stay for a month or so" I have to earn the most out of a pitch that I can thats all there is to it. so why put them next to us I said "well thats where they always pitch up and you are going on friday" no I said we are going today f*** you and your site.and we left fuming.

ok so this may not be a typical family or site but still it is what happens from time to time and it does spoil our precious time away in the van.

colin

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

Eh 'eck ya ol' yorkshur tike, I be' ya go' indijeschun afta typin all that there diatribe .... heh! heh!

C'mon, where wer site then?

 

[Angus1]

I think to be grammatically correct you should have a "t`" before the word "site" Lord T.

How you can expect a reply to such a lax posting is really beyond me........

 

[ChattyCathie]

We always find it hard work on a site with a 4 year old enrgetic son, who is excited about being on holiday. We teach our children to respect other peoples property and they do not touch other peoples vans. We take them to the play parks 2 or 3 times a day, or if near a beach tire them out before we get back to the van. We have thought about taking his bike next time but we have seen drivers well exceeding the speed limit and children don't stand achance! I think the problem is car engines are much more quiter, therefore you have to be far more observant. Children are inexperienced (not adults)and not aware of the dangers. We always book on family sites. I would also like to thank the dog owners who do not clean up after their dogs and we have to clean shoes and the carpet in our caravan!

 

[frances_374347013]

Hi Mandy

Sadly, it seems the norm that some parents (not all) spoil the peace and tranquility of the holidays of others by letting their kids do what they like! As usual the minority of ignorant people spoil it for the rest of us who expect their children to behave in an acceptable manner.

We too experienced appalling behaviour by 'wild kids' during our trip last bank holiday who completetely wrecked the toilet and shower block by emptying the liquid soap dispensers and smearing the contents all over the mirrors and toilet seats, and unravelling the toilet rolls - little b.....s!!!

We have two girls who have been brought up to respect the property of others, of course we allow them to play - it is their holiday too after all, but ensure they are not causing havoc and excess noise around other caravanners! Ball games and frisbees are only allowed in the designated areas.

I'm afraid my tolerance would not have been over until i said something - trouble is, it is likely that parents of such kids would respond with the same attitude as they accept from such kids!

What a sad world we live in.....

 

[BeemerMal]

I have watched this thread unravel over the last few weeks and it seems that it is a case of "preaching to the converted". All the parents of young children, who post on this site, appear to be responsible adults who's children are well behaved. Our children are now grown but we did the same with them in trying to impress on trhem how important it was to be thoughtful towards others.

However, those that think they have the perfect little darling are never really sure what they are doing when "out of sight"

We found this out when our two were young. On one a site they were part of a larger group of children who had got together to play and one evening problems arose with this group with other caravanners.

Once aware I dealt with my two by grounding them for the remainder of the holiday. They only went out when we went out as a family

Unfortunately, many parents these days pay more attention to their own "me time" and they do not take the appropriate action to chastise their children. Therfore, although most are not bad children they do know they are likely to get away with most things and consequently they don't learn from their mistakes.

 

[Rowan]

Hi, as the father or a little girl who does spend a lot of time with a childminder and a nursery, I would like to state that there is absolutely no way I would accept anything but the best behaviour around other people - especially those trying to enjoy a bit of peace and quiet on holiday. My wife and I have made that very clear from the start and we've had very good support from our childminder and nursery. If my little girl has misbehaved, she knows she will be in trouble.

In the end it's up to the parents to set the boundaries and stick to them.

Having worked with children I am happy to take on situations like this and explain to misbehaving children why they shouldn't be doing things like that - but I understand some people don't feel able to do this - that poor woman in her caravan was probably worried out of her mind.

I can only hope that the site takes this incident on board and makes an effort to explain to people that there is a time and place to let children run loose - especially as a playing field is set aside for this!

From experience, many parents just don't realise what their kids are doing and are ashamed when it is pointed out to them. That's no escuse, of course, they should strive to always know what their kids are doing, but sometimes things can slip through. Making a complaint or pointing out the issue is often the only way forward.

 

[nelmo]

I read this thread with mounting concern...I am in the process of getting my first caravan and one of the many attractions was the thought of setting up and then letting my 2 young kids run and play just outside. In this day and age, letting them get out of sight is not a comfortable option...

Although I consider my kids to be well behaved (age 5 and 2, they haven't had enough time to get too bad!), they are very loud and with the best will in the world, I would not be able to guarantee that they wouldn't run across some else's pitch or accidentally kick a football against another van.

...and, to be honest, I wouldn't want them to be quiet or to not play ball games. They are kids with lots of energy and spend most of their young lives at school and home being told to be quiet and 'behave' - they need holidays as well.

Surely an advantage of a caravan is its mobility? So if you find yourself stuck next to a family from Hell, you can move to another pitch or even to another site, assuming something is available? (Sorry, I don't know - do you have to pay for the pitch for the length of your stay, with no refund if you leave early?).

 

[Auvergne]

Hello Neil,

You have the perfect opportunity to start how you mean to go on and put ground rules in place to take other people's feelings into consideration when on site. Your children are young and you are just starting your caravanning hobby, they will be bought up to respect the rights and views of others because they know no different. You can explain about boundaries with regard to pitches and expected behaviour around pitches. You can guarantee 100% that your children will not kick a ball against another van by ensuring their football playing is kept to the play area and not around the vans. If this means you going to the play area to keep them in sight whilst playing with the ball, so be it - If they are at school and you are at work all week you can call it quality time with the children. If I have pitched up, settled and put up my awning, why should I be the one that needs to move if a family from hell comes and pitches next door?

Caravanning is not a free for all its about freedom for all, respect for all and valuing each others feelings. As in any community we all have differences and with tolerance and compromise we can live together, albeit temporarily on site. Unfortunately there are also those who want it all their own way with a complete disregard for anyone else's wishes and feelings. I live next door to the family from hell and their noisy kids - thats why I bought the caravan in the first place for some weekend respite!

Val.

 

[gypsy]

What a great post and reply Val.

Shiba.

 

[Dustydog]

Very well said Val.

I have no wish to offend but it is very clear people with Neil's attitude are the root cause of the very raison d'etre of this post.

I have a good sugestion.

Neil ,

Please let us know when and where you are going and I for one will make sure I go somewhere else. Sorry to be harsh, but why should I put up with your rabble and more so , why should I be forced off my chosen pitch and /or lose money on site fees.

Most commercial sites and the CC do not refund fees for early departures.Why do you think your children, no matter how young , have a divine right to kick balls at my caravan????

Chers

Alan

 

[gypsy]

My sentiments exactly.

 

[KnL]

Val & Alan,

From one who tours with a 9 and 5 year old in tow....You took the words right out of my mouth, well said both of you,

Ken.

 

[Dustydog]

Thanks Ken

I should just add that my kids, long flown the home, were an integral part of our young caravanning holidays. They too had little jobs to do and for games we always went to play areas well away from other caravans. They were in no way inhibited but now have a sense of value both in regard to their and other peoples property.

Easy isn't it?????

Cheers

Alan

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

Surely the post by neil is a wind-up. How can anyone, who hasn't even started caravanning yet, expect to be accepted on sites. If he cannot control his kids, as he says, he would be better saving his money by not buying one. From that attitude I somehow don't think he'll spend long on each site before being thrown off.

I think neil is Bigmac, someone else who tried to stir things up before his post went in the Haymarket bin of deletions.

 

[Lara_374353049]

Your Lordship,

I formed exactly the same opinion as you, "neil" (if that's his real name) appears to have put that comment on purely to stir things up among other members.

I had the opportunity to read a thread a night or two ago, which was aimed at slating people who used Adult only sites. Fortunatley, no-one took the bait, and it was deleted a short time later.

What a sad and lonely life some people must lead...

 

[AnthonyCambs]

Hi all

As a total newbie to caravans, one trip under my belt, and a few trips in a tent i am inexperienced on sites. I am a father of three girls aged 11, 8 and 4.

We raise our children to be respectful to others, on the sites we have been to my girls have not offended or ruined anyone elses holiday (to the best of my knowledge). We purchased our carvavan so we could enjoy more holidays away, especially odd weekends.

I have read lots about comments on childrens bad behaviour, I am greatly interested if anyone has experienced good behaviour and if so what was it?

I think it comes down to mutual respect, if one of my children has done something that you find offensive I would appreciate a friendly chat on the subject which i would then deal with. However if someone started getting angry with me regarding the kids without giving me a chance to deal with it then im afraid i struggle to show any respect back. Caravaniing is a new to the kids as it is too me, and on my first trip i forgot to level the van properly, didn't put the wheel locks on and generally forgot everything i was supposed to do.

Please do not judge my children or my parenting skills until you have met us, I am very interested in what constitutes good behaviour on sites.

 

[davedee]

Just a thought.... howabout a new section on the forum where we can post details of these families from hell; caravan make,tow vehicle,registration number,etc.

Name and shame - but without the name,if you know what I mean.

Dave

 

[Auvergne]

Good thinking Dave, trouble is it wouldn't be seen as politically correct and its still open to abuse by nobs like "Neil Bigmac" who could cause trouble among dutiful caravanners.

I think everyone joining the CC and C&CC should be literally signing up to a code of conduct when applying for and renewing memberships, rather than joining and getting a wish list of expected behaviour through the post. This would empower the wardens to clamp down on the nuisance members when on site as they would not be able to pretend they are not aware of club expectations - For example, ball games will only be permitted in a play area etc. All reported incidents should be written up and properly investigated by wardens and emailed to a central computer along with the offending members membership number which will have been given on booking. A three strikes and you're out rule should apply. Seems harsh but it would be much fairer in the long run, after all there are other sites available to accommodate people who want to have a far more "anything goes" approach. More often than not these anti social people are the ones who disrespect the sites anyway so it would free up the wardens from clearing up after them.

Whatever the solution something needs to be done to halt the decline.