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Alcohol in schools

47 replies

Cismyfatarse · 04/07/2023 15:59

I am a teacher (but no power so not my decision). What do people think about alcohol at school events?

I have been in the job 30+ years and have seen it all. Parents' dinners, staff nights out, leavers' dances. All with alcohol as usually off school premises.

I worked in 2 different private schools where boarders could have a beer in the school bar when they were 17. Both had a staff bar and plenty of boozy dinners.

My school has just gone 100% no alcohol. That includes off site events such as the school leavers' do. Leavers' barbecue. Staff were not allowed to drink at either, even though we had paid for tickets and are over 18. We were not "on duty" as there were staff with free tickets who were supervising.

I can see both sides and can't decide. Most pupils are 18 by the time they leave, but not all.

Dry means far fewer problems (pupils still drink but have to hide it and can get chucked out of the party if caught).

Drinking though is part of most adults' social experience.

Some cite safeguarding.

What do others think?

I want to get off the fence and have a clear opinion.

NB not suggesting for 16/17 year olds. Just those who are 18.

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LadyTemperance · 04/07/2023 16:03

I think it’s sensible for events put on for pupils. If they made the staff do alcohol free you would have a point. I think staff should alway model good behaviour and the fact is lots of adults make bad decisions after a few drinks.

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cocksstrideintheevening · 04/07/2023 16:07

Most school event have a bar ime, its how they make any money. Summer fair Pimms, winter fair mulled wine, we had a y7 induction last night, can buy wine on the way in.

It should be no kids or all kids that can drink though, some will be 18 for a whole year, some won't hit 18 until they've left school

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Cellotapedispenser · 04/07/2023 16:12

Interesting question. My dc primary has a summer fete annually with a bar tent and a separate pimms tent. It doesn't go on late (8pm)and I've never seen any bad behaviour. Those two stalls take a lot of money though and I suspect a lot of people stay that bit later because they're gassing over a beer. It's a lovely event, does it need alcohol...no, but it does make it more of a bbq party atmosphere so whilst many would still go without it, they probably wouldn't stay as long or spend as much.

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x2boys · 04/07/2023 16:14

Most schools near me year seven to eleven so this wouldn't app!y
And I think one they get to college they tend to.treat them a bit more like adults .

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chosenone · 04/07/2023 16:17

I always have one glass of wine, maybe two in a school trip (residential) I could still make sensible decisions and feel that models sensible drinking. At our leaders prom I have more but less than a few staff who do go a bit OTT, but it's out own free time and I'm not sure they could actually stop us tbh 🤔

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Cismyfatarse · 04/07/2023 16:25

I agree about modelling good behaviour. Does that include good behaviour while drinking?

Was recently on a school trip overseas and we had a glass of wine (supplied by the hotel) with dinner. Not sure if we would be allowed now. Another school in the same hotel had been instructed that all school trips were dry. I had a glass of wine in days 1 and 2 but ended up in charge of 2 very tricky pupils so didn't after that.

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savoycabbage · 04/07/2023 16:33

My dd went to school in Australia. I dropped her off in her classroom at 8:45 and then the parents went to the school library for champagne! Tears and cheers it was called.

There was alcohol at every event, not for the children obviously. But at the school fair there were about three bars and at the endless barbecues for raising money for various things.

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DustyLee123 · 04/07/2023 16:35

I don’t think alcohol should be on school property, either as a prize at a fete, or as thank you gifts for teachers.

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0021andabit · 04/07/2023 16:36

Oh interesting. One my happiest memories from sixth form is our French teacher taking us to a restaurant & us all getting quite hammered. It felt like she was treating us like grown ups but in hindsight it might not actually have been that okay…

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PuttingDownRoots · 04/07/2023 16:41

We were taught wine tasting and matching wine to your meal when I was in Sixth Form...

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ZillionDayStreak · 04/07/2023 16:53

I think that modeling moderation - so a glass of wine or a beer - is actually helpful. As is modelling entire social acceptability of not drinking because you don’t feel like it.

As a parent, I don’t want the students to see the teachers treated liked students. The rules are different, and that’s as it should be. And I don’t want to be treated like a child either!

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bellsbuss · 04/07/2023 16:59

Most of our funds for the PTA come from the sale of alcohol through various events, summer and winter fayres, bbqs, quiz nights etc. without booze they would not be as successful

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Loverofoxbowlakes · 04/07/2023 16:59

In your op you said that boarders aged 18 were allowed to drink. NOT OK.

Not only breaking the law but MASSIVE safeguarding problem.

My last school was zero alcohol on site, if we were gifted a bottle at the end of the year it had to be taken immediately to the school office to be locked away until the end of the day.

I've worked in schools where booze has been sold at PTA events but the paperwork for doing that properly is bonkers and not worth the effort, and gradually faded out. No need for booze at a year 11 prom, and you can't vouch for every y13 student so do see the reasoning for that (and they mostly pre-load or leave early anyway). Teachers are required to follow the teaching standards even out of school so I 100% support no drinking at off-site functions too if students are present to maintain that professional boundary. If you don't like it, don't go. It's not necessary to have a drink (even though the buggers drive you to it sometimes)

There's no need for booze on school premises.

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Alighttouchonthetiller · 04/07/2023 16:59

It used to be ok when I started teaching, many years ago. I never witnessed anyone getting pissed or being inappropriate. Now my school has a total ban at all events, on and off site, and all trips. This is largely, I imagine, to pre-empt complaints from parents about teaching staff actually enjoying themselves instead of being laser-focused on their children at all times.

I'm OK with it. It's just another example of the joylessness of the education system.

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Cismyfatarse · 04/07/2023 17:12

I last taught in a school with drinking boarders in 1998. No idea if that still happens. They were allowed up to 2 half pints twice a week and could only buy for themselves. No spirits just beer, lager and cider. Not even wine.

Not sure about teachers not being allowed to drink at all. Surely a glass of wine at an off site dinner in a licensed premises when attending, but not on duty, should be acceptable.

Not sure what the law is. I am now in an independent school but was state for a long time and the rule there (Scotland) was no drinking on school premises at school events but fine in a local hotel. Staff would occasionally have a leaving do with wine but it was always in the staff room after all the pupils were off the premises.

Also, it is legal to drink wine with a meal at 16. (Or it was).

I do worry about safeguarding being thrown around as a term all the time. Not saying anyone here does that but our DHT kept muttering it whenever a member of staff asked why we were no longer allowed wine. There were 2 groups of staff - non paying and on duty and ticket paid for and off duty.

My feeling is, after this year, that events will be very poorly attended by teachers if we are treated like children. I don't want to get pissed but if I have paid for a meal out I don't want to drink Diet Coke.

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VeryQuaintIrene · 04/07/2023 17:23

So interesting - when I got into Oxford many moons ago, a bunch of us brought wine to our school's Christmas lunch. My teacher saw and just laughed and told us please not to get too legless. Most of us were 17 so actually underage as well. Things really do change.

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BCCoach · 04/07/2023 17:25

@Loverofoxbowlakes of course it’s not illegal! It’s completely standard for boarding school sixth form common rooms to serve beer and cider to 17-18 year olds. Here’s a typical policy: https://www.felsted.org/uploaded/POLICY_FILES/SENIOR/Alcohol_Policy_Senior.pdf

Regarding The OP, yes completely normal to have a bar at school events put on by the PTA in both primary and secondary school.

https://www.felsted.org/uploaded/POLICY_FILES/SENIOR/Alcohol_Policy_Senior.pdf

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caringcarer · 04/07/2023 17:27

So can kids still take in a bottle of wine for their teacher if they take it home to drink? Or is that included in the blanket ban?

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Cismyfatarse · 04/07/2023 17:27

I wonder if there is a difference that has come about recently.

Pre Covid leaving do. Mulled wine and mince pies (December). Post Covid was tea and cakes.

All the Covid stuff around alcohol might have ushered in the new Puritanism.

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LadyTemperance · 04/07/2023 17:27

chosenone · 04/07/2023 16:17

I always have one glass of wine, maybe two in a school trip (residential) I could still make sensible decisions and feel that models sensible drinking. At our leaders prom I have more but less than a few staff who do go a bit OTT, but it's out own free time and I'm not sure they could actually stop us tbh 🤔

If you are supervising a school trip I’m not sure that is strictly speaking your own free time.
I witnessed an incident at a work do once where someone got hideously drunk and punched a coworker. I would argue a work do is “free time” but they still got the sack.

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Cismyfatarse · 04/07/2023 17:28

caringcarer · 04/07/2023 17:27

So can kids still take in a bottle of wine for their teacher if they take it home to drink? Or is that included in the blanket ban?

We have not been told not to accept them and I got 3 at the end of term. Maybe that's next!

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LadyTemperance · 04/07/2023 17:30

I actually don’t think alcohol is an appropriate teacher gift. You could be unwittingly putting a bottle of wine into an alcoholics hands.

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LittleBearPad · 04/07/2023 17:32

If you ban alcohol at summer and winter fairs then school funding will be even more on the bones of its arse!

It’s selling a glass of dodgy cheap wine or a Peroni to raise money for school funds, it’s not shots of flaming sambuca.

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LittleBearPad · 04/07/2023 17:33

LadyTemperance · 04/07/2023 17:30

I actually don’t think alcohol is an appropriate teacher gift. You could be unwittingly putting a bottle of wine into an alcoholics hands.

Then it’s up to the recipient whether to drink it or not.

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LittleBearPad · 04/07/2023 17:34

Cismyfatarse · 04/07/2023 17:28

We have not been told not to accept them and I got 3 at the end of term. Maybe that's next!

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Who by? And has this policy been communicated to the parents?

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