Dion Skull (pictured with her sons) says she was 'humiliated' when she was 'shouted' for putting a new nappy on her one-year-old outside a restaurant. Photo / Facebook
Dion Skull (pictured with her sons) says she was 'humiliated' when she was 'shouted' for putting a new nappy on her one-year-old outside a restaurant. Photo / Facebook
A mother of twins who was shouted at by a restaurant manager when she changed her son's nappy in front of other diners has sparked a furious online debate.
Dion Skull, 31, says she was "humiliated" when she was told off for putting a new nappy on her 1-year-old on the grass outside the Farmhouse Cafe in Guildford, Surrey.
Skullwas reprimanded when a fellow diner complained.
She left a one-star review on the cafe's Facebook page, claiming she went to the posh family-owned restaurant "at least once a week" and its changing facilities were not big enough for both of her boys, Luca and Zack.
Her post sparked a fierce debate over who was in the right, and even the customer who originally complained waded into the argument.
Skull said: "I had changed [my sons] before I left home as I know my pushchair doesn't fit in the cafe's baby-changing facilities.
"However, when I got there, Zack had gone to the toilet. He has chickenpox, which was why we were sitting outside. I couldn't leave him in a soiled nappy.
"My other son, Luca, has separation anxiety and I only briefly knew the mums I was having lunch with, so I didn't want to leave him on his own.
"I quickly changed Zack's nappy on the grass but the manager said she had customers complain to her and say they were never going to come again because I had changed my boy's nappy outside."
Skull has vowed never to return to the Farmhouse Cafe, the MailOnline reported.
"It made me feel embarrassed and distressed," she said. "The manager started shouting at me in front of everybody, she said it was disgusting and unhygienic. I burst into tears when I left, I was publicly humiliated.
"Being a mother to twin boys is hard - the manager didn't have to tell me that other people had complained. It made me feel really vulnerable."
Farmhouse Cafe at Rokers, in Guildford. Photo / Trip Advisor
After sharing her story online Skull has described the support from other parents as "overwhelming".
One supporter wrote: "This is disgraceful being a mum of twins myself, it's very difficult and stressful. If the changing facilities aren't adequate you do what you have to do!"
Another added: "To shame this lady for changing her baby's nappy in public shows a terrible lack of compassion".
"I am honestly raging about this, the venue should have supported you," said another commenter.
However, a person claiming to be the customer who complained fired back stating that several diners were "disgusted" by Skull's actions.
She said: "I don't want to see your children's s****y nappies when eating my lunch, the table next to me were also disgusted so you obviously weren't hiding what you were doing very well."
So sometimes dilemmas present themselves: - Leave Twin 1 unattended while I change Twin 2? - Leave the cafe completely half way through lunch? - Leave Twin 2 sat in his own **** ?
Or... knowing that there is no ideal situation, and given I'm sat outside, shall I change the baby on the grass?
That way I can keep an eye on his brother while he eats the salad that makes them 90% profit? I'm here at least once a week.
I've recommended this place to over 20 friends, you know me... I think I'll go for it! To the anonymous person who complained - you're a dick.
I made it almost impossible for you to see anything. If you saw something that offended you, you were looking too closely.
Worse though, to the waitress who complained to me, shame on you! I didn't need to know that someone had complained.
