When/if you give children or teens alcohol - BBC wants to know your views, please

DD1 has had one glass of wine diluted with lemonade (same amount of wine as you'd use squash) on each Christmas day since she was about 12. She is now 15. She very, very occasionally has a half inch glass of Baileys or a v weak Pimms (again, like squash). DD2 is 13 and doesn't like alcohol at all.

As far as I am aware, dd1 doesn't drink at all outside of the occasional sips she's allowed here, though I expect that will change once she starts to go out in the evenings (at the moment she only goes out in the evenings to ice-skating, cinema, restaurant with us or another parent).

I hardly ever drink and dp drinks a few pints a couple of times a month. We were both brought up in homes which allowed us a tiny bit of alcohol as children (didn't stop us both drinking horribly in our youth though!) and think this is a responsible way of introducing alcohol.

Hard and fast guidelines a bad idea imho.

I wouldn't encourage alcopops at all.

my dc are 5 and 3 so quite far in the future but think since me and dh enjoy a few drinks from time to time would probably allow teenage children to try some but also give education on addiction too

In the culture of my original homeland, wine is on the table for every meal, and children can have a watered glass (strength dependign on age). Then it's not a big deal, it's social (rather than solitary/a teenage taboo). DD just laughs at her friends who gather round a can of Strongbow and pretend they are 'so out of it'.

I allow ds (aged 11) to have a very small sip of wine with a meal. We (sadly) live in a society where alcohol is used to excess, I'd rather educate my child and teach him that a glass of wine with a meal once a week or once a fortnight is OK, a whole bottle isn't. I certainly wouldn't buy him alcohol to consume with his friends. Alcohol shouldn't be seen as a 'banned' thing, it should be seen as something to be consumed in moderation.

Agree with Mumblechum, there is a local off licence that we know serves under age children, have told police but stil it goes on.

We gave our then 14 yr dd alcopop at new year, she is currently in garden having a sleep over in tents with 4 friends and they all have one regular sized bottle each, She is 15 now (have all parents permission, they all 15/16)

Prefer we know where they are and how they are than wandering round some park getting wrecked anyway as they invariably will.

My 14 yr old d has had a taste of my organic pear cider (!) and liked it so I have allowed her a small glass on RARE occasions. She is an absolute chicken and scaredy cat however, and I know she wouldn't DREAM of buying any and lying on a playing field in the evening (like I used to...)

I'm not allowing her to taste it as a precursor to her drinking alcohol later on..just couldn't really see any reason to say no indoors, with us, with a meal.

Rule here with almost 16 yr old is either two beers or two alcopops.

Luckily he's not that interested and only goes to maybe one party per month so not enough to do him lasting damage imo.

I think guidelines are helpful. I know that ds shouldn't be drinking at 16 but I'd rather control what he gets than have him sneaking behind my back and getting someone else to buy him a bottle of vodka or something.