to be a bit shocked/surprised

[Fiendishlie]

I just put DS (aged 14) on to the bus to summer camp (yay). The bus pulled up to pick up and two teenage girl campers got off it to smoke. Summer camp is for kids from 7-17 and I just checked their website and it says no smoking by under 16s and not in designated areas- presumably they think it's fine then for 16 & 17 year olds to smoke at camp?? WTF? I know it is illegal to purchase cigarettes if you are under 18, is it therefore illegal to smoke if you're under 18? Anyone know, I can't find an answer through googling.

Is it just something that hasn't been updated since the age for buying cigarettes changed from 16 to 18 and therefore a mistake/oversight?

its summer camp, welcome to adults world)

18 to buy them, 16 or over to smoke them.

Just googled the smoking law

www.simplystopsmoking.co.uk/uk-law-age-change.html

"It is not illegal for anyone under 18 to be in possession of cigarettes and tobacco products. It is illegal to sell cigarettes and tobacco products to anyone under 18."

Thanks TanteRose. Last years summer camp was a different company and they weren't even allowed to take spray deodorant in case it got sniffed, let alone cigarettes.

At youth club, there's not a lot we can do to stop them therefore we have to choose - do we force them away into the dark night, or do we tolerate the smoking and keep them safe?

I would also question if there was a camp worker on the bus - I very much doubt that the bus driver was also in charge of the passengers' behaviour...

There were 2 camp workers on the bus, plus the driver

Ermm, shouldn't you have looked into this sort of thing before you got as far as the bus?

I guess I'm enough of a middle class snob to be shocked to see teenaged girls smoking and really judgey about the parents that let/tolerate their teenage DCs smoke

Let teenage DCs smoke, how the fuck are you supposed to stop them? Don't make me laugh.

What michglas said.

Would you like the staff to stand at the door and physically stop them from leaving for a fag? Oh no, that's assault.

Possibly,they i could rummage through their bags and coats, remove the ciggies and destroy them? That'll be theft...

Ok, now I'm out of options.

Oh, and no one said the parents let them smoke, maybe they bought them and hid them and are relishing the fact they don't have to do something as healthy as go for a walk in order to smoke?

well i would be shocked and i would judge

ds goes on summer campy things

we have to sign something to say that he will not smoke, drink or take drugs and if he does he will be chucked out and we will need to collect him immediately

yes judge the camp for having lapse rules, but don't judge the parents - you cannot control your child (especially a teenager) 24/7.

Sorry, should have added that it's not U to judge, just a bit U to expect there to be anything the staff can actually do about it!

I stand corrected about the 'letting' your teen smoke, sorry. If mine feels the need to in the next few years he won't be getting any allowance from me to spend on it though. I'm surprised that it's obviously still acceptable (cool, even?) to want to smoke if you're a teen.

My teen sadly smokes (I suspected but it was denied until very recently) and I would still be shocked in the situation you describe. I would have checked her bags for cigarettes (had I known) and confiscated them for the week :o

middleclass enough to be shocked? The middleclass kids are the worst! Well, not the worst but you know what I mean