TODDLER'S TEARS
Girl, 2, begs to use the toilet after ‘FIVE shops and cafes refused to let her in bathroom because of Covid’
A GIRL begged her mum to use the toilet after five shops and cafes reportedly refused to let her use the bathroom due to Covid fears.
Lucinda Taylor-Milne, 33, had been travelling through Sheffield city centre on Tuesday morning last week when Lola became desperate to use the toilet.
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The mum rushed to Starbucks and asked to use their facilities, but claims she was told the toilet was closed and staff didn't have a key.
She then dashed between Caffe Nero, Boots and Marks & Spencer, but again, claims she was told the toilets were not open in all three of the venues.
Lucinda claims staff at the last two stores could see her daughter was visibly upset and panicked, as she was begging "please, I need a wee wee" - but they still stood firm due to Covid rules.
The mum and daughter were finally allowed to use a McDonald's toilet - despite having reportedly rejected them earlier.
After being criticised for videoing her daughter in distress, Lucina hit back and said if she had not filmed the incident then people "would [not] have taken it seriously or seen how distressing it was".
The mum is now calling on staff working at similar outlets to use their discretion and make an exception when needed.
Lucinda said: "She was crying and saying 'please, I need a wee wee' when we went to Marks & Spencer and Boots.
"[Those two] stores could clearly see my daughter was upset, yet they still said no.
"I started to panic, then I got upset because I could see my daughter. She went 'I don't want to wet my knickers. I don't want to wee wee my pants'."
FOUR BUSES TO HOSPITAL
Lucinda said her and her daughter were heading to a hospital appointment, and had taken four buses on their trip.
She said she was told the she wasn't able to use the toilet at Starbucks as it was closed "due to Covid".
She said: "Then I went to Caffe Nero and they had a big sign saying their toilets were closed.
"I said 'excuse me, can I use your toilet please?' And they said 'no, sorry it's closed'.
"I went back over to Greggs to see if my order was ready, but they said it'd be three more minutes, so, I rushed over to Boots and I was sure they had a toilet.
"I spoke to security on the door and basically he said 'sorry, they're blocked off and no one's allowed to use them'.
"I said 'it's for my daughter. She needs the toilet'.
"I went over to M&S and they said 'sorry, but the toilets are closed'. I said again it was my daughter who needed it.
"They could all see it was my daughter who needed the toilet because she was shouting it."
After being contacted for comment, Boots and Marks & Spencer apologised for the upset caused to Lucinda and Lola, vowing to speak to their staff.
A spokesperson for Boots said: “We are sorry for the inconvenience caused to Lucinda and her daughter. We recognise that there are occasions when it is appropriate to allow customers to use the colleague toilet facilities in our stores and we will remind the team in Sheffield of this policy.”
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A spokesperson for Marks & Spencer said: “We are sorry for the upset this cased Lucinda and her daughter.
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"We have had to temporarily close the toilets at our Fargate store due to the current lockdown restrictions, but we have made sure that all colleagues are aware that they can open the toilets for a customer in situations like this.”
Starbucks, McDonald's and Caffe Nero were also contacted for comment but are yet to respond.
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