A mum has explained the reason she refused to scold her son after he pushed another child at a soft play centre in Wales
Soft play centres are widely regarded as one of the best places to take young children to let off steam. Purpose-built for toddlers and youngsters, these indoor venues give children the freedom to climb, run and tumble to their heart’s content in a safe and fun environment.
For parents, they offer a rare and welcome chance to sit back with a hot drink while keeping an eye on the fun — a winning combination whatever the weather. It is little wonder they remain such a popular choice for families across the country.
However, with so many excitable children in close quarters, mishaps are inevitable and youngsters can occasionally get hurt. When Tyla Atwood brought her son, Luca, to a local soft play in Wales, she noticed something wasn’t quite right when he was interacting with the other children.
The woman said: “So this kid had refused to let Kyrie, which is my friend’s little boy, onto the soft play, said ‘no you can’t come on here, you’re not allowed to play’.
“He had repeatedly snatched and been horrible to the baby, who’s two, like repeatedly taking things out of his hands that he was playing with. And I would just say like, because the mum was like this [attached to help phone], as these parents are when their kids are being little s***bags, he wasn’t being watched.”
Tyla stepped in and asked the child to return a toy to the two-year-old, before ensuring the two groups of children were playing at opposite ends of the soft play area.
Tyla said: “We were having a really nice time, we’ve been there an hour, no issues. Anyway, this group of kids started jumping on Kyrie, we had to sort that out. And then in the ball pit, Kyrie got shoved to the floor. And Luca turned around and shoved this kid back on the floor.
“And he was like, no, I’m sorry, but it was necessary. He wasn’t listening, there was no parent around. And quite frankly, hopefully they’ll leave us.
“He said, they’ll leave us alone now anyway, wouldn’t they? And it’s so funny, because Luca’s like tiny. And this kid was like much taller than him. And I didn’t tell him off.”
Tyla revealed that the reason she didn’t reprimand her son was because she had taught him to always inform a parent the first time something occurs, but if it happens again he should “do whatever he needs to do”.
She went on to say: “As someone who used to be bullied in school, I won’t put up with that. Luca saw him bullying his mate and he wasn’t having it and he pushed him back. So I don’t care if you think I’m wrong, sometimes these kids need to be sorted out.”
Fellow parents sided with Tyla over her approach to parenting, with many confessing that they no longer felt visiting soft play was worthwhile. One person commented: “I have stopped going to soft plays now because it’s literally is just a breeding ground for lazy parents. As a mum to an 18-month-old and a near on 7-year-old, I can see both sides of the soft play and the way both of my children get treated just isn’t worth the hassle.
“Some parents have 0 control of their children. I don’t think you’ve done anything wrong at all.”
A second person said: “I have to much anxiety to just let my kids off and go play and not watch them I don’t get how parents aren’t worried about where their kids are or what they are doing.”
A third said: “Only time you’ll see me on my phone when out with the kids is to take photos…soft play isn’t a nursery! They don’t mind your kids do it yourself. Hopefully the kiddos are ok that’s just wrong.”
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