|
|
 |
| |
In a gym fix: (from left) Andrew Tedford, Gabi Hall, Roberta Palli, Sarah Sikpa with their children |
Hundreds of parents in bid for limited places
Ten-hour queue to join a kids’ gym
HUNDREDS of parents queued outside a Kentish Town sports centre for up to 10 hours on Tuesday in freezing temperatures to bag a coveted place in a gymnastics class for their children.
Management of Talacre Sports Centre, Dalby Street, had written to parents whose children were on a waiting list informing them spaces would be filled on a first-come-first-served basis because the list system had become “unmanageable”.
Parents were told to arrive by 7pm on Tuesday to book gymnastics classes for three-to-five-year-olds and on Wednesday for older children.
Barriers were put up with police-style cordons to ensure an orderly queue and to staff’s astonishment the first mother arrived at 9am.
Parents arrived armed with children, deck chairs, blankets and flasks of tea and by 6pm – an hour before signing up began – more than 150 were in line and a blitz spirit had taken grip.
Parents united in their shock at the situation sang songs and shared jokes all the while guarding their positions jealously.
Roberta Palli from Kentish Town, who arrived with her son at 1pm, said: “None of us can believe that we’ve had our kids’ names on a list for two years pointlessly. No one from the centre will tell us anything so we don’t know how many free places there are.”
By 7pm the queue was snaking up to Prince of Wales Road and fury erupted amongst parents at the back whose children had been on waiting list for more than three years but were now certain to have missed out.
More than half were turned away after waiting for hours because staff had refused to reveal how many spaces were up for grabs. Instead, parents were let in two-by-two to fill in forms with two receptionists while other staff informed parents as classes became full by pacing up the queue with cardboard signs and selling cups of tea.
Exhausted parents who had been told their place in the queue guaranteed a place for their child were still left with the anxiety of not knowing what day of the week the slot would be on – and so whether it was suitable.
On Tuesday parents were queuing for 58 empty spaces for preschool children and 60 for four -and five-year-olds.
Parents on Wednesday who faced a similar farce were queuing for 97 places for six-12 year olds.
Mother-of-two Annis Harrison of Mornington Terrace, Camden Town, said: “The whole situation is ridiculous, we have a government telling us our children should be getting fit, but I haven’t managed to get my kids into swimming classes and now this.”
Talacre service manager Liz West said: “Since we opened we’ve had a waiting list and a demand that has exceeded the places.
“We’re a victim of our own success and once people have a place they tend to keep it.
“The problem was that we were wasting a lot of time and staff resources sending out letters to parents.
“If people didn’t reply then the classes were going ahead half-full. I know people are grieved if they were the near the top of the waiting list but in the long run I think it will make things better.”
According to a council spokesman, almost 2,000 children were waiting for places on the gymnastics course.
He said parents would have another chance to re-apply in March and that Swiss Cottage sports centre would expand its courses in January.
He added: “Unfortunately, we simply do not have any more room to run more courses at the centre and this has led to a huge waiting list for places.
“It will be very difficult to get a system that works and everyone thinks is fair, but we will of course review procedures for booking courses.”
Incredulous Talacre staff said the system would have to be changed before next term’s round of bookings in March. |
 |
|
|
|
