Rose Inn, Great Wakering

I went to this pub with my wife and two year old son on 28/09/09 (Sunday) as the weather was lovely and i'd heard they had a very nice outdoor play area suitable for small children. Upon arrival I was pleased but after having been there for half an hour I had to close the gate, which leads out onto the car park which in turn leads to the road. Given the number of pre-school children, including mine, which were running around I kept an eye on the gate and was amazed to find it was the bar staff collecting glasses that were leaving it open. My wife politely asked her to shut it after her but wasn't greeted with much of a response so, the second time it happened, I went into the bar to have a 'quiet word' with one of the staff to see if they can let the member of staff concerned know that she is putting the safety of these children at risk. Just at that moment the girl in question walked by and having overheard what I was saying quipped 'it's not physically possible for me to shut it' (as he was holding a tray with glasses aswell). I asked her if this is justification for putting the children in the garden's safety at risk. I didn't add that she managed to balance the tray on a post when opening it but declined to do so after going through. At this point a man behind the bar, which I can only assume was the manager, shouted across to me not to talk to his staff in such a rude manner. He was joined by a woman. I tried to explain that I was there to make a polite point but suddenly found myself on the receiving end of a rant totally out of context of how i'd presented the facts. The staff in this establishment are ignorant and obnoxious and while that is bad, but not unexpected, I simply refuse to allow them to endanger the children in the play area by their cavalier approach to health and safety. I will be contacting the council to see if something can be done and would urge anyone having a similar experience to make your voice heard. Better this than us reading about a child's death due to the negligence of one of the pub's staff.

28 Sep 2009 09:47