UPDATE
I may have missed a few details in the original post (in the interests of trying to keep it from essay length) such as;
- I raised the option of having a shared milk fund about 3 weeks ago (when this had first started) and was pooh poohed by both the other teams manager and it's members on the grounds that they had 'only used a little bit of the milk' and it wouldn't happen again.
- There is no confusion whatsoever over who has bought the milk, I made it clear at the same time I discussed a shared fund that this was milk I bought out of my own pocket for my team. We literally have to beg for things like stationary due to the reduction in public spending over here so there can be no doubt that anyone is under the impression this is being paid for out a budget funded by the tax-payer.
- Moving the fridge is impossible, whilst it's small it is about waist height and we've no spare plugs for it to be plugged into regardless.
- We don't really have the option of buying a mini-fridge due to the lack of plugs already mentioned and due to the fact that it's a hospital building everything has to be PAC tested by an external company for health & safety and insurance purposes (public sector bureaucracy).
I'm going to plump for keeping the milk out of the fridge for the next week and in our (entirely separate) office. Unless they actually walk in and try to take it, in the extremely unlikely possibility of this happening they'd be turned away politely but firmly, this will prevent them from using it. I appreciate it's not going to resolve the simmering hostility between the teams but honestly don't see why I should be further out of pocket as a result of petty thievery and the poor management of them by my counterpart. I don't resent for one minute shelling out for my team, it's a small thing on my part that keeps morale up in an incredibly stressful environment but at £10.00 a week (about $16 I think) I'm not doubling it in the interests of appeasing another team with no real belief that this would change their behavior.