Kids left alone in shops

Botany store staff say they are not babysitters for absent parents, writes Andrea Jutson.
A mother left three children in a store at Botany Town Centre for almost four hours while she went to work. She told the eldest, an 11-year-old boy, to babysit the other two.
Whitcoulls staff at Botany say the incident, which happened two weeks ago, is not unusual, especially during school holidays. They say another Whitcoulls customer regularly leaves her children in the store for several hours while she shops and browses in the nearby library, despite being requested to stop. ``As soon as we see her, our staff are on to it,'' says store manager Rachel Haywood.
``It can be frustrating, because there are signs everywhere. I suppose it's seen as a children's play area, not a store.''
Colleague Carly Brajnik says she has dealt with children left alone for long periods at least 10 times in four years.
The store started displaying signs in response to a series of incidents more than two years ago.
At home, a child-minder must be at least 14 years old. In a public area the legal definition is not as clear-cut, but Sergeant Michael Crabtree, of the Howick police, says parents shouldn't be leaving children on their own. ``We should be getting called.''
When parents deliberately leave their children for hours in a space such as Whitcoulls, where they can easily run off, he says security officers or store staff should notify police. They would then call Child, Youth and Family, who might look at the children's homes and school attendance, to make sure parents are providing proper care.
Rachel says Whitcoulls is a family friendly store, but she wants parents to be aware of their children's safety. She praises the actions of parents who attended a pyjama party at the store and stayed for the the festivities.
Whitcoulls promotions manager Dorothy Vinicombe says children have been left on their own in other stores as well, especially those with storytime sessions. Parents sometimes drop their children off without checking how long the sessions run.
Dorothy also knows of several libraries where children are left for the day during school holidays, as they are free to visit and are seen to be safe places. However, they are also public places where ``undesirable people'' can sometimes be found. ``Libraries aren't necessarily the safe places they may seem to be,'' she says.
Botany Town Centre manager Robyn Burns says staff have acted to discourage parents from leaving children on their own by providing free family entertainment during holidays and weekends, as childcare is expensive and stressful during these times.
Debra McGhie of Westfield says the retail giant is not aware of problems experienced by individual retailers. Whitcoulls staff urge parents or caregivers to heed the signs and to collect their children within a reasonable time. ``It does break your heart to see these kids left behind,'' says Rachel.