Parents furious as kids banned from playing hopscotch outside their homes

21 May 2019, 11:58

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

A building firm have ordered families in Bishopbriggs to stop using chalk on the pavement.

Children living in an estate have been told they’re not allowed to play hopscotch outside their own houses by a building firm in Scotland.

After chalk was used to draw the game on the pavement, families in Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire were sent a letter by Speirs Gumley, saying the kids are ‘damaging the appearance’ of the area.

The company also asked families to stop leaving bicycles and toys on the green areas as it was preventing their employees from doing their work.

In a letter to residents, an inspector said: "I notice that children are being allowed to chalk all over the monoblock areas at the front of the development.

"This detracts from the overall appearance of the development; therefore I would ask if these children belong to your family they refrain from this practice immediately."

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Following the message, furious mums and dads from the area have branded the company a ‘disgrace’, urging bosses to ‘try to remember’ when they were young themselves.

According to metro.co.uk, angry mum-of-one Suzanne Mitchell, 33, even called Speirs Gumley ‘embarrassing’.

“I just think it’s embarrassing that they would even put that out there and ask kids not to do that because it literally doesn’t do any harm,” she slammed.

“Parking is an issue, people are parking on the grass and it ends up ruined. There’s a school nearby so people park here.

“We wanted to get a fence or barrier put up so the cars wouldn’t come in but they didn’t even want to do that. I just think it’s a disgrace.”

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Following the outcry, the company's director, Tom McKie, has since apologised, saying he is ‘disappointed’ by the decision to send out a letter.

He said: "I have to say I am disappointed that such a letter was issued by Speirs Gumley, and it was a poor judgment call on our part to do so.”

"Admittedly, we do get these type of complaints from time to time in housing developments that we manage and, of course, we recognise that clients in the same development can hold differing views on how to resolve things.

"My view is that common sense should have prevailed, and it should have been dealt with more sensitively by us.

"We will of course be apologising to our clients for the handling of this."

Heart.co.uk has reached out to Speirs Gumley for comment.