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DD had to pay for food at friend’s birthday party

206 replies

WalkAway7 · 21/02/2026 20:21

Just look for advice from mums of teenagers. My DD (15) was invited to a birthday day out by a friend of hers. The plan was a day out in the city. We were asked to drop and collect our own children. When my DC have parties we always collect (using two vehicles) the kids from a central point and drop back to the same point. Anyway, another friend’s parents agreed to drop our girls and we agreed to pick them up (40 mins drive each way). My daughter came home and said they went to KFC and had to buy their own food (the parents had gone off for a few hours and they weren’t being collected until much later).
So I sent my daughter, with a card and gift voucher (same child gave sweets to our DD on her 15th birthday) and we were expected to drop, collect and feed on our children. How is this a “party”?
The parents are not poor as all our DDs all attend private school but perhaps cultural differences influence their decisions…
My question - the parents of the birthday girl should pay for the food?

OP posts:
BatshitIsTheOnlyExplanation · 21/02/2026 20:25

I think that at 15, unless the invite specifically mentions food, I'd assume everyone would pay for their own.

FrodoBiggins · 21/02/2026 20:24

I would have expected it's everyone pays their own way. It's a group of teenagers hanging out not a town hall with 7 year olds and fairy cakes

Tontostitis · 21/02/2026 20:24

It wasn't a party it was a birthday day out and yes I'd expect all the girls to pay their way

Littletreefrog · 21/02/2026 20:23

Standard for a 15 year old I would have thought. It wasn't a birthday party in the kids birthday party sense it was a day out with the birthday girl. If your friend invited you to the pub for a birthday drink and food would you not pay for it? They are not little anymore.

FuzzyWolf · 21/02/2026 20:23

It’s really hard to know. What was the invite for and who did it come from? If it was arranged by a teenager, then I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect them to have set accurate expectations about what is provided and who pays for it.

gototogo · 21/02/2026 20:23

By the teenage years it’s not a party, it’s hanging out with friends. Sometimes the birthday child had money to buy food but it wasn’t often the case by 15

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