I hate our school mum WhatsApps – there’s 3 women who rule the groups and that’s the start of their Mean Girl energy
MANY mums may know all too well about the different WhatsApp groups they are part of due to their kids being at school or attending after-school clubs.
But one parent has expressed why she is not a fan of them.
The 40-year-old, who is known as @paleandinteresting on TikTok, shared a video of herself talking about her dislike for WhatsApp groups.
She revealed that there is a WhatsApp group at her kids’ school called ‘Mums Day/Night Out,’ which she is not part of.
The mum felt that it was “really giving the same energy as when you’re at secondary school” when there is a night out going on but you’re not invited.
She explained that there are about 60 parents across the two groups, but these plans aren’t kept a secret.
She often hears parents shouting “are you guys coming to that on Saturday” across the playground.
The TikToker also explained that only the mums who have set up the group chat decide who goes into the group.
And although she is “not bothered,” what “really upsets” her is that there are other women on the playground who will feel hurt by the fact that they’re not in this group.
The TikToker explained that the group talks about days and nights out, whether they are taking their kids somewhere, if any of the mums want company for nights in, bingo nights, wine nights, and how some of them even went on a ski trip together.
She revealed that she is a mum who keeps herself to herself, but five years ago when she had her first son, she “would’ve loved to be invited to coffee or group chats.”
She described these groups as “giving mean girl energy” and said they’re just full of “cliquey mums.”
Within 24 hours of sharing her video on TikTok, @paleandinteresting received 171.5K views and 957 comments.
One person commented: “Why are you so triggered? You stink of jealousy. It isn’t good luck tbh.”
Another added: “You’re adults. Some people will be better friends than others; we shouldn’t, as adults, feel obliged to spend time with people we don’t get on with.”
To which the mum replied: “It’s not possible for 30-40 people to be close friends from a pool of about 60.”
However, others supported her, with one explaining that she had “dodged a bullet there.”
They added: “These groups are toxic and to be avoided like the plague.”
Another said: “I was invited into a mum group for a night out. Why is it an issue?
“I don’t think it’s done maliciously; some mums do just get on really well with each other and become genuine friends.”
Why designer school uniform is a total waste of money
Fabulous’ Digital Editor and mum-of-two Lydia Major has spent three years trialling different school uniforms and there’s ‘no way’ she’d spend £4K on her kids uniform. Here’s why:
‘When my son joined reception in 2021 I wanted the best of the best for him,’ Lydia says. ‘I forked out £80 on logoed polo shirts alone and what a waste of money it was. They went grey after about three washes and worst of all, the poor boy had a terrible case of nipple chafing from the stupid, embroidered miniature picture of his school. So, when he slipped on a M&S pure cotton one – which cost £2.56 (£12.80 for a 5 pack) it was a game changer. And shock horror, they’ve actually stayed white!
‘The truth of it is, no matter what you spend or what your kid wants to ‘look cool’, all uniforms are ultimately going to get trashed. If it’s not gravy stains from the soggy school dinners, it’ll be totally torn shoes from footie or gymnastics at break time. I’ve forked out £50 for Sketchers ‘all his mates had’ and they’ve lasted as long as the random sale trainers I found in Mountain Warehouse for £15. And did my son give a hoot about them as long as he could run around? Nope.
‘Also, more importantly, school regulations on uniforms are there for good reason. It puts all the kids on a level playing field no matter whether they live in the local manor house or the nearest council estate. There’s no pressure for them to conform to the latest fashion fad and studies even show a uniform can be a great source of pride for children and help with confidence issues too. If all kids (and parents) just stuck to guidelines on uniforms during this era where children’s anxiety and self-doubt is at its highest, maybe it could give them all the smallest boost in feeling like they belong.’