A DAD who runs a soft play centre reckons he’s got the best job in the world – despite all the pee and sick he has to clean up.
Matthew Jones, 29, spends his days making sure kids are happy and living their best lives.
A lot of his time is dedicated to clearing up unmentionable stuff, and gently ticking youngsters off for breaking rules.
But he told how he loves nothing better than diving into the ball pit or down a slide when he finishes up for the day.
Matthew, who owns Dizzy Rascals Play and Sensory Centre in Laurencekirk, Aberdeenshire, said: “I’m living the dream really.
“There is absolutely no way I’d want to be commuting to an office every day, or flying around the world for business.
“With this job I get to have a go on the slides when I close up. I can’t think of anything else I would rather do.”
Matthew’s parents Lynn and Huw opened the business when he was about 11 so he got to play there as a kid.
As he grew up they encouraged him to look at another career but he eventually began working in the kitchen washing dishes.
He worked his way up and took over when they retired about five years ago and manages the centre himself.
Matthew said: “I’m hands on and do a bit of everything. I help out in the kitchen and I wash tables. You get to know all the customers and the kids.”
Scrubbing the floors after accidents is such a key part of the job that it’s even mentioned on application forms.
Matthew said: “We ask new staff how they feel about having to deal with pee. There can be quite a lot of it.
“They look a bit alarmed but they always say they have no problem with it.”
Matthew is always on red alert for wet footprints because that is a sign that something is seriously wrong. And it can lead to a huge operation that can last hours.
He said: “That usually means someone has done a wee in the ball pit.
“That is a game changer because it means every single ball has to be taken out and washed by hand.
“We can’t leave one in there just in case it’s been covered in something and another kid trails through it.”
Matthew loves his job although he admits that he never really gets to truly switch off.
He works seven days a week and the business is constantly on his mind.
The cost of living crisis is a brand new challenge and he’s been forced to slap an increase on prices to stay afloat.
But he confessed that there is one thing that he encounters multiple times a day that drives him up the wall.
He said: “Kids walking up the slide. There is a sign warning them not to do it but they just ignore that.
“I’ll have to go over and say something. Parents will say that’s good because their kids don’t listen to them.
“It doesn’t matter how busy or quiet we are, it happens several times a day.”
Matthew loves giving his daughter Penny, three, the run of the place after closing time.
And one day he hopes she might be the third generation of the family to take over Dizzy Rascals.
He added: “I’ll probably be here until the end of my days. I really can’t see myself doing anything else.
“I’d love to eventually hand the reins over to her if that’s what she wanted to do.”
