narnia Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 (edited) Here's the scenario: we are in a building that is on the edge of local playing field. Groundsman has been instructed not to cut the grass within 10 feet of the footpath that runs alongside our building, as it flicks up sharp stones that are like flints ( razor sharp!), we actually keep the children indoors while he cuts the grass, as he chooses to ignore the instructions, I think because he enjoys upsetting us..................he is aware that when he first started doing it, one of the stones actually cut the face of a member of staff when it flew up and hit her. We went to see the parish council last week, as the groundsman has now taken to mowing within inches of our wall, PLUS bringing the blades of the cutter inside our stairwell, so quite close to our doors. Again, the children are indoors, but this is very intimidating, as you can imagine, and he usually does it at 12, which is pick up time for some parents, so they have to avoid him, I am also concerned that some parents,,,,,,,,,not ours, but the general public, let their children run ahead, onto the park because obvuiously, they think it is safe, and don't realsie what is going on. It's an accident waiting to happen! We also told the council that we have seen the groundsman driving along with a child in the tractor ( illegal as the child is under 13 and dangerous, as he sits in the back, by the open window), and he has taken the child on the big grass mower too ( also illegal), we also saw him standing on top of the tractor, whilst it was parked on a slope, engine running, while he repaired some play equipment ( Health and safety infringement). he almost always leaves the tractor and mower running on the park while he goes off to do other jobs. Anyway, council promised to look into it all urgently, so we left it at that. On Tuesday, I was inside sorting out lunches and one of my staff was outside, trying to photograph a mad group of magpies that live in a tree close to our building. I suddenly heard someone shout 'You F'ing B**ch'.... so went out to see what was going on. I was quite shocked to find the groundsman on his mower, shouting at my girl. I asked what the problem was, and he told me to go away, he was 'talking' to my mmber of staff. I told him I was responsible for the setting and staff, so asked again what the prolem was? So, of course he was angry that we had reported him and I explained that I had spoken to him about it in the first place and told him I would report it if it cvontinued, which it had. He called me the C word, then came right up to me and hissed at me that I was going to make myself very ill again if i didn't stop interfering in his business! Lovely man. Anyway, he also told me he'd cut the grass where he liked and I should basically F off and mind my own.He is aware that my member of staff was filming all of this on her camera, and yet carried on with his rant........ So, I duly phoned the clerk to the council and told her what had happened. Today, I received a letter form the council telling me that they have now given the groundsman permission to cut the grass right up to our wall , they had only stopped him doing so previously because the sharp stones might have damaged the mower and now they think the stones have bedded in it's ok to cut again and I have to keep the children in while he cuts, which he tells them is a few minutes at most ( in fact, it's often three hours!) and that he's promised not to have children in the tractor again. I despair, the lunatics have truly taken over the asylum and I fear this man is now going to make our lives very difficult. I just don't know where it leaves us and I am thinking of simply giving up and shutting the group, because I think ( honestly) that he will thoroughly enjoy stopping us using the outside. Any ideas? Edited October 21, 2011 by narnia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narnia Posted October 21, 2011 Author Share Posted October 21, 2011 sorry for the rant ladies xxxxxxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panders Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Awful experiences for you all Narnia. Confrontations of this type are not good for us. Where we rent they are always possible because some of the people that visit the site have many issues, not least homelessness and drink problems, so we are always on our guard when the children are outside. The council have not seen the footage taken by your member of staff I take it? He should at the very least have a verbal warning from them about this on his record. All you can do is document all that goes on and keep on complaining, you can't really be put out of business by this person. The council may be acting badly at the moment but maybe your local councillor could become involved and help put forward your side of the problems. HOpe you get something sorted soon, at least he won't be about to cut the grass for too much longer, it stops growing soon, hopefully, at worst how big a plot are you talking about, could it be possible to keep the grass down yourselves so that he has no need to come anywhere near the building? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inge Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 sorry no ideas.. but feel free to rant away... it often helps to put things down and relieve the pressure.. if he was filmed abusing and ranting at you have they seen this... perhaps they need to... her obviously has the gift of the gab when defending himself.. would also perhaps make a log of the cutting times and the amount you need to keep the children in.. maybe others will have more ideas... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narnia Posted October 21, 2011 Author Share Posted October 21, 2011 (edited) no, Panders,big field! But he does it in two sections..the bit outside our building, which takes him two, three or four hours, then he goes to do the bit at the bottom...............then he comes back to do the top, usually the bit right outside our gate, then off again, then back again............you get the picture??? and now, I suspect things will just get worse....... Edited October 21, 2011 by narnia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suebear Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 I'd be tempted if you feel threatened by him to contact your local PCSO as he is using abusive behaviour and making you and the children feel intimidated. Good luck with the council x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stargrower Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Never apologise for a rant...we all need to do it and with what has happened to you, you deserve to rant! I don't have anything very constructive to say about your situation or this horrible, abusive man. I would have thought intimidation and abuse like that could be a matter for the police, but I would understand if you didn't want to go down that route. Please, please don't let a bully close your setting. Be strong and keep fighting. Thinking of you and your children and staff Beehive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melba Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 From our (not great) experience of our Parish Council in the past, we found that there were factions within it and you have to try to find out if some of them would be more sympathetic. We were constantly being got at by the footballers who shared the building with us and they were always going to Council meetings to have a go. So maybe you could go to meetings and ask for help and then you would, at least find out who is making the decisions. I think the film you have would shock a few people and they are very lucky that you are not being more threatening. But then it always seems to be the bullies who get listened to more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rea Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 How absolutely horrible, you rant away. Can you get your parents on side? Ask them to complain on behalf of the playgroup and maybe themselves and their children. I'd also write to the council telling them how unhappy you are with their response with a transcript of the 'conversation' your staff member filmed. Tell them it'll go on youtube. Tell your local paper too, 'Children prevented from playing while mad man mows grass'. I'd be hopping mad in your position and have a desire to bring this man down, along with the caring councillors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyMaz Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 I would be very inclined to log this with the Police. He has been verbally abusive to you, intimidated you and has made threats against your person. If you fear that he will start a campaign against you, you need to log all the incidents and keep meticulous records. You may not want to press charges against this man because of your fear of a worsening situation but it is a serious matter, I think and you can never be too careful in situations like these. Personally I think it is appalling that he should bring up your illness as a part of his tirade. Rather than stopping to think how his behaviour might affect your health he used it as a weapon to batter you with, metaphorically. No-one should have to put up with being treated this way, so do feel free to rant away. If you can't rant here then where can you? Don't let him intimidate you into closing down though. Why should he deprive your lovely children of the magical power of narnia in their lives? Sending you a huge virtual hug. xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klc106 Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 I echo what the others have said and just want to say I am thinking of you all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
louby loo Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Nothing consrtutive to add....other than 'rant away' Makes me realise how luck we are with our men 'nextdoor'. We moan about them sometimes- but at the end of the day they do take care of us...even if it is in a roundabout way. xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 (edited) Great advice already....nothing constructive to add.......what a truly horrible person.......I hope you can get something sorted, I can't for the life of me understand why the council would be 'backing' him........big hug coming your way x Edited October 21, 2011 by sunnyday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Agree with the advice already given also. Why don't you tell the council that you are considering alerting the local press - that tends to put a rocket up their backsides! Hope the situation improves soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 firstly ....horrible and as others have said no one should have to put up with this. My own feeling is that i would go and see the town clerk personally and express your concerns (much more difficult to ignore a person!!) try and build a relationship with them so that they understand your concerns fully and feel they know you are being sensible and not just a moaner!! if needed and they do not take your concerns seriously i would suggest that you say you have no choice now but to contact your solicitor to take things further. You have identified a danger (flying stones) and someone has already been hurt (has this been recorded on an accident form??) if they ignore this then they are laible and could be sued if any further accidents occur...they will be much more worried about this than a threat of the press. Litigation costs them a fortune. If they continue to ignore you get a solicitor to send them a letter (should only cost you £5-£20 ) stating all that has happened previously. I am concerned also that this man Knows so much about you, remember to protect yourself and do not put yourself in any further danger. I would suggest that the staff do not engage with this gentleman but you contact the council immediately every time you have an isssue and tell them that you are contacting the police ...they should then sit up and take notice. Also please be clear about what you want to happen...list your demands and i would suggest that one of these should be that this man is removed from this job and reassigned somewhere less child friendly...and replaced with someone polite!!. I often find that when people complain they are sometimes unable to say what they want and that can be difficult to sort out. can you tell i used to work in customer service Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 What a horrible man! Have you considered approaching your local councillors and/or M.P. and showing them the footage? We had fabulous support from ours when we had issues about the state of the footpath we walked to school.... our M.P. came on the school run with us one morning and by lunchtime the local council were cleaning it up. Good Luck in getting some support with your situation. Big hugs, Nona Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deb Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Rant away! Dispicable little man - to say such a thing about your illness, let alone anything else . Unbelieveable that his employers can let him get away with his actions towards you let alone his blatant disregard for the law or health and safety. Who signed the letter, can you take the problem to somebody more senior? He is a bully. I think you will need to log everything down as others have suggested, exactly how long it takes to mow the area etc. Good idea to contact your local MP to ask him/her what you should do, and hopefully they would suggest taking it to the local community police. Is it possible to hire some CCTV equipment from somewhere local, like your neighbourhood watch? Life is hard enough without this kind of unecessary stress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narnia Posted October 23, 2011 Author Share Posted October 23, 2011 The parish clerk signed the letter, and she is his line manager too. One of the parish councillors came to see us 'off record please', to tell us that whilst he agrees with all that we said, at least half of the councillors are afraid of this man and will not do anything to upset him!! We had a problem several years ago that we asked our MP to help with and he said , quote, ' I don't get involved with petty village squabbles'! he is still our MP........ ( that was when we asked if he could help to intervene because the parish council demanded we pay to play on the park, when no other child care group was being asked to) I am going to look into cctv cameras, and will put up a copy of the councils letter to us for parents to see, hopefully it will explain to them why we can't play out on some days of the week ( if he's not mowing, he is strimming or hover mowing the area too, but we are not given free access to the whole park; oddly enough 'our' play area is the area he is homing in on) Yes, he's a weasel for mentioning my illness, and I guess this just shows the measure of the man, I suppose that he thought it would upset me, but honestly, now I have danced with the cancer genie, mere human beings don't scare me at all! NOT going to let this man drive us out, too much of me invested in it to let go ( thank you Maz xxxx) and to let him win??? No way. if it continues, I think the Press is the way to go..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rea Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Good for you Narnia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hello Kitty Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 on your behalf. What a thoroughly nasty man. We are on a school site and the council are responsible for cutting our grass. Like you we bring the children in (which tbh I don't like to do) and the other week he did hit a stone and it shattered the glass in one of our doors! So it does happen. Are you in a position to offer that somebody else cuts the grass nearest the building? A staff member or parent perhaps? Often parents will come up trumps when asked for help like this - especially if you carefully state the impact on the children of this twit's actions... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narnia Posted October 23, 2011 Author Share Posted October 23, 2011 well, it's a thought....................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 have you tried talking to your mayor!sometimes they are very helpful and can influence the decision of others in the council. If your mp is no good then what about your local councillor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panders Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 on your behalf. What a thoroughly nasty man.We are on a school site and the council are responsible for cutting our grass. Like you we bring the children in (which tbh I don't like to do) and the other week he did hit a stone and it shattered the glass in one of our doors! So it does happen. Are you in a position to offer that somebody else cuts the grass nearest the building? A staff member or parent perhaps? Often parents will come up trumps when asked for help like this - especially if you carefully state the impact on the children of this twit's actions... I had already wondered this, but it is a big area Narnia needs to be cut and would probably require a large mower. As ever, I also suspect the council would have a health and safety issue with this action on their land. If as you suggest Narnia other members of the council are "afraid" of this man I assume he has an unpredictable nature due to some form of mental illness, having him sacked is not really the answer, but having him moved onto a different council property may well be, he can't be the only person covering this type of job in your council's area, for everyone's sanity the council should be made to see that this would be a good option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narnia Posted October 25, 2011 Author Share Posted October 25, 2011 well, fun and games today! Half way through the morning, there's a knock on the door.............and Mrs O is standing there, with a 'complaint to investigate', so I invited her in, telling her I wasn't surprised and in fact had almost been expecting her......................went through it all and she agreed there was no case to answer, but i feel totally wrung out today and I have an EYPS meeting to go to tomorrow...................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Panders Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 Cheeky beggar, I am staggered at the audacity of the man. I'm glad Mrs. O saw sense, don't suppose she offered any good suggestions, she must have come across someone like this before Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rea Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) Oh good lord Narnia. I'd write to the council asking them to thank him on your behalf. Dear Council, Could you please pass on to Mr Nasty the thanks of the parents and staff of our nursery, after he went above and beyond, to ensure the care and education of the children attending is of the highest standards, by asking an Ofsted inspector to give us an unannounced visit. You might also like to pass on her comments that we are working well beyond Ofsteds requirements and have no case to answer. Kind Regards Narnia Nasty vindictive little man Edited October 25, 2011 by Rea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 what a toad!!!!!!!! PLEASE tell us you're taking this to the local papers, MP etc?! Now that he's crossed the line even further have you thought of asking your Legal Advice helpline for advice?..mine (part of my Public Liability) were great and sent a strongly worded letter to an ex-client who maligned me and my service. Nona Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
narnia Posted October 25, 2011 Author Share Posted October 25, 2011 Mrs O suggested we phone the police on the grounds of harassment.............and to then phone the council to tell them we have done so. I did it, police are coming to see us and council flipped and sent their chairperson to come round to see us.............we shall see how it goes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Upsy Daisy Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 I should think they did flip! I hope whoever decided to let this bully carry on with what he was doing gets hauled over the coals for it. Hope this is over with soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rea Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 He he Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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