A 35-year-old mother was left gobsmacked after she was denied entry into a store as it broke their social distancing rules.
Kat Bailey from Nottinghamshire said she couldn’t believe her 3-month-old baby could break such a rule as she was ‘literally attached to me.’
In an interview with Nottinghamshire Live, the fitness instructor said: “My fitness centres have been shut since March and we were trying to get our studio Covid-secure by going to Makro.
“They refused me entry in March when I was with my three-year-old son. It was due to social distancing and they said, at the time, “’t would be different if you had a baby strapped to you’.
“So, I just brushed it off and there was nothing else I could so. We bought our cleaning products from a more expensive dealer and took it on the chin.
“But when we came out of lockdown again, and we could partially open as a gym, we thought let’s do another deep clean so went to Makro again.”
She continued: “But they stopped me at the door again and said ‘you can’t come in with a baby’. I was gobsmacked. She is literally attached to me.
“I asked to speak to the manager and I was just fobbed off and they repeated the same line again ‘that it was company policy.’”
Ms. Bailey said the rule discriminates single mothers and people who cannot afford or find childcare.
“I felt it was discrimination against single parents, parents without childcare or who can’t afford it. Lots of people have lost jobs,” she expressed.
“We have not made a profit this year and I can’t afford to put her in childcare. I was just trying to run my business and feed my family and they were heartless.
“These are uncertain times, but just use some common sense. Babies are dependent and need someone to look after them at all times. I can’t leave her in the car or go out without her.”
A spokesperson for Makro said to Nottinghamshire Live: “We are sorry to hear about these concerns; we are simply trying to keep everyone safe and well, while supporting the hundreds of thousands independent businesses we are serving every week, who are serving their local communities.”
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