Is this mum right to be offended by this popular nursery rhyme?

A mum has kickstarted a parenting debate online about whether a popular nursery rhyme is offensive.

Taking to parenting site Mumsnet, the user asked other parents whether she was unreasonable to believe that ‘Wind the Bobbin Up’ was inappropriate and if they thought she could ask her child’s nursery not to sing it.

Any parent will likely testify that the song is a fave with little ones thanks to it’s simple actions and catchy tune, but the anonymous user explained that the song is actually offensive to the memory of workers in the cotton mill towns in the North of England.

“Wind the bobbin up originated in the cotton mill towns of the north of England in Victorian times,” she wrote.

“As anyone who knows a bit about a bit history can tell you, the cotton mills were horrendous places which horrifically exploited women and children, forcing them to do dangerous work in appalling conditions for little pay.”

“How can it be right to trivialise these horrors by getting children to sing a light-hearted ditty about it… It’s offensive to the memory of all those who suffered these horrendous conditions and experienced serious injury or even death as a result of hideously exploitative working practices,” she finished her post.

And other parents were quick to offer their opinions on the tune, with most being of the opinion that the parent was being overly sensitive.

“I always thought it was good for hand eye coordination. Luckily nobody in my play groups have suffered flashbacks from cotton mills,” one parent wrote.

“I think you might be over thinking it!” added another

Some pointed out that many nursery rhymes were actually pretty dark.

“Isn’t ring a roses about disease? I can’t get upset about it personally,” one user said.

“All nursery rhymes are dark and usually much darker than that – Jack and Jill is about 2 children being killed after all,” another parent added.

Others wondered if the poster was actually just having a laugh or trying to provoke a reaction from other parents in response to overzealous political correctness.

Whether or not nursery rhymes are offensive isn’t the only topic that has got parents riled of late.

Last week a mum sparked a debate about whether she was right to charge her 5 year-old-daughter rent to teach her the value of money.

And towards the end of last year Victoria Beckham unwittingly ignited a ‘gender stereotyping’ debate on Instagram after sharing a passage from an old nursery rhyme.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for non-stop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. For Twitter updates, follow @YahooStyleUK.

Read more from Yahoo Style UK:

Dad claims women don’t need epidurals when giving birth, the Internet responds accordingly

Danielle Lloyd to choose sex of next baby, but what is gender selection?

More than 10,000 women will find out if they are pregnant today