Mum praised after sharing 'brilliant' fine text message she sends her children

One of the biggest battles parents face is trying to keep their house neat and tidy.

And it's even harder when kids don't pitch in to help.

Some parents try various rewards and punishments to encourage their offspring to keep on top of the cleaning.

But one mum has shared a particularly ingenious method she uses to ensure her children clean up after themselves.

Facebook/Lauren Henderson

In the Family Lockdown Tips & Ideas Facebook group, Lauren Henderson revealed the clever method she uses to get her kids to tidy up.

Lauren revealed that she imposes a fine on her children if they don't meet her cleaning standards.

She wrote: "So someone on here said that they ‘fine’ their children for not tidying up or other common offences.

"I thought it was brilliant.

"I have a 9 year old girl and a 13 year old boy.

"They both have different things that really grind my gears such as leaving clothes on the floor in random places, leaving rubbish out, eating in their rooms when they’re not supposed to, bathroom mess etc.. so when I see an ‘offence’, I send them this message and verbally go and tell them (my daughter doesn’t really use her phone).

"If they do not action the mistake, they get a fine.

"The fine is not monetary but it will be time paid back to me in other chores such as 5 minutes polishing or mopping the bathroom floor etc."

Facebook/Family Lowdown Tips and Ideas

The mum added: "I’m proud of my mom skills here and wanted to share.

"Also to say, since implementing this new system, neither of them has had a fine.

"They receive the verbal warning or text warning and sort it literally straight away."

And it's clear that the idea has gone down well with her fellow parents.

One commenter wrote: "Yep I’m all for this.

"Give them a fair warning on a level they understand ( text msg !)

"The fine is perfect too.

"I do a reward system, but thats easy to get shrugged off, a fine though, that's different!"

Another pointed out: "Mine get fined £1 for each infraction however they can earn it back by doing something or being overly helpful in another area.

"Like helping each other tidying their rooms."

While a third recalled: "My mum used to go in our room with and black bin bag and confiscate everything that wasn't in the right place we then had to do chores to earn money to buy them back."

And a final user penned: "Love this idea!"

What do you think of the idea?

Topics: Parenting, Cleaning

Annie Walton Doyle