Teens using baby change rooms at Westfield Fountain Gate to have sex, take drugs
Furious mothers are refusing to take their children into baby change rooms at a Narre Warren shopping centre, saying youths are using the designated sanctuary as a place to take drugs and have sex.
South East
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Teenagers are using baby change rooms at Westfield Fountain Gate to have sex and take drugs, furious mothers say.
Some mums say the problem is “out of control”, with one reporting hearing sex noises and crime-plotting behind closed cubicles.
The rooms, near Big W, are designed to be a sanctum for parents with young babies offer a private feeding cubicle, microwave and sink, as well as an adult and child-size toilet.
One mother, who asked not to be named, said she saw a group of teens on January 30 about 4pm, with one of them appearing to be “high as a kite”.
“I found two 16-year-old girls just hanging out in there. I thought that maybe they had a friend who had baby and didn’t think anything of it,” she said.
“I went into the spare nursing room only to hear four more girls and boys … talking about how they planned to steal a slab of alcohol because they were ‘so thirsty’ with future plans to hangout at the Cranbourne bus station,” the woman said.
“Who the hell just hangs out in a room that’s heated, playing horrible music and smells of poo – unless you have to?”
Another mother, Chrissie, last name withheld, said she was “disgusted” after continuing to see teens run amok in the change rooms.
“You can literally hear the sex noises – they also get high. I refuse to go in there with my children – it’s getting out of control,” she said.
“I’ve also seen them microwaving chicken noodle soup – honestly who does that? They need to get a life.”
A woman who has worked in the centre for two years, said she had also spotted teens running in and out of the change rooms.
“They’re really loud and cause a nuisance. I’m pretty sure security is aware of them,” she said.
Several mothers also took to Facebook’s Casey Crime Page, saying they were aware of the teens hanging out in the baby change rooms.
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“I’ve seen kids and adults using the baby rooms and disabled toilets to sell drugs. One walks in leaves the drugs walks out, signals and then another person will walk in and pick up the drugs,” one woman wrote.
Another mother wrote: “I won’t use the baby change rooms for this reason. I go to my car or use disabled toilets and leave her in the pram if I’m desperate to change a nappy. Daughter is 11 months old and I can’t say I’ve ever set foot in one”.
A Westfield Fountain Gate spokeswoman said the safety of customers, retail partners and people was the centre’s priority.
“Our centre management team have not received any complaints or reports of specific incidents from our customers,” she said.
“We would encourage our customers to speak to our centre team directly so we can better understand their concerns.”