Yesterday I was happily swimming lengths of the pool in the health club that I have recently joined. A young woman in a glamorous cosi and her 2 children – girls, aged about 5 and 7 – arrived. The children could both swim and were happily playing in the water while mum sat on a chair texting. (They were in the pool area for at least an hour.) She looked up every now and again and occasionally told the children not to jump splashily into the water where other people were swimming. On three separate occasions, she left the pool with one or both children still in it (there is no lifeguard) for 5–10 minutes. The children were something of a nuisance to those of us trying to swim lengths and the smaller one decided to climb over my shoulders to reach the steps on one occasion. They also ran in and out of the steam room umpteen times. Apart from the fact that constantly opening the door lowers the temperature, it is not safe for children under 8 and older children should be supervised.
I was shocked that the mother left such young children on their own in the pool, even though they were both quite good swimmers and clearly confident in the water. I was also shocked that she let the girls' high spirits cause something of a nuisance to other swimmers. The girls themselves were charming and not at all rude, just extra lively and not properly under control.
