Music festival - safety issue or not?

[Number42]

dd (14) is talking about wanting to go to a music festival this summer: to be clear, it's Wireless in Finsbury Park; there's no staying overnight there, and we live in London anyway so it would just be going for the day. There are issues about who she would go with as under 16s need to be accompanied by over-18s and I'm pretty sure she will not want to go with one of us but leaving that to one side, we're trying to work out how concerned we should be about safety issues when working out what we think. Is this basically a reasonably safe environment, or basically a not very safe one at all: what do MN'ers know about the "non-residential" festivals (they must surely be a bit different from the Glastonbury's of this world) from a safety point of view - drugs, alcohol, theft/mugging?

[Rivercam]

I don't know much about the festival, but if your teen is fairly sensible, and not into alcohol etc, then h should be fine.

[Number42]

She is not crazy, but I wouldn't use the word sensible either. So for example it's not that she would arrive there with the aim of trying to buy drugs or something like that; but if it were a very druggy atmosphere at which it seemed to be the norm to be on something then I would worry about her being tempted to do something silly because she felt it was part of the experience.

[momb]

It is unlikely to be a violent environment.
It is likely to be an environment where a proportion of the audience are taking or have taken drugs.
It would not therefore be a place where you could necessarily rely on other adults to look out for young teens. However at 14 if they stay together they can look out for themselves.
I would let her go as long as they stick together in a group/have phones/have contingency for getting separated. Which adult will accompany? It needs to be someone who will leave them to it once inside so preferably someone who would enjoy the line up in their won right...

[specialsubject]

she also needs to wear earplugs or ear defenders or she will end up as deaf as the band.

[VivaLeBeaver]

thecuriouslondoner.com/tag/wireless-festival/

I probably wouldn't let dd go in her own but she's quite a young 14yo and I don't think would want to.

I've been to plenty of festivals but never Wireless. Generally I think they're safe. Plenty of stewards looking out for people, first aid, etc. but there's also people smoking dope, being drunk, occassional punch ups. I'd worry that a 14yo might be more intimidated by it than they'd realise.

If she was going with a group of friends and was quite streetwise then I'd consider it.

[Trooperslane]

As a veteran festival goer I'd say no, not for the day.
The age limit is there for a reason.

[fattycow]

I've gone to festivals on my own since I was 14, never had a single issue.

[Claybury]

In an environment like that there is always an issue of drugs, drunk people, pick pockets etc.
My DS went to Lovebox day festival when he was 14-15 and I happen to know it one of his first times using mdma.
However living in London I can't stop him going to things and he can look after himself as he is streetwise and a large lad.
It depends greatly on how streetwise your dd is, does she go out a lot with mates anyway ?
I'd be uncomfortable if my DD went to something like this at 14, but I don't think she would have wanted to for the same reasons IYSWIM.
I don't think I'm being helpful, sorry - it's just that all 14 year olds are not the same ! Be wary I'd say, and in any case start the drug education and keep it going.
The best advice is always stick with a group of mates and don't take anything ( show her stories of ecstasy deaths in the press ) - it seems obvious to us, but it needs to be reiterated in no uncertain terms.