Should kids be allowed in pubs?

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

Currently having a heated debate with husband. Pub near us has just imposed a 'no kids' rule, which I'm happy about. We have teen kids but have never felt the need to take them into pubs unless going for a meal. Lots of the regulars in our local take their younger kids in while they have a sesh and leave them to run riot. The landlord won't stand up to them as they bring too much money in.

My view is that pubs are not a place for kids - they never were when I was younger. It's a place I go to escape from my own kids, so why do I have to put up with other people's? He thinks that kids won't learn how to behave in public unless they are allowed into places like pubs.

Opinions?

The hospitality industry has been struggling for a long time now, we lose hundreds of pubs every year. Those running them take the commercial decisions they need to in order to survive, and they follow the money. In some cases that's family friendly, in others it's the opposite. Landlords can pitch to whatever clientele they like, and if that isn't you, tough.

Every so often there are threads on here complaining about children in pubs and the frequent reply is to go to somewhere which doesn’t allow children without ever acknowledging that these places are very rare.

Don’t know about pubs, but I think there should be more adult-only spaces more generally. It would be nice to have the choice to go somewhere quieter.

Depends on the pub. I wouldnt take my daughter with us if we were just drinking but we do go out for family meals and take her we try keep her occupied and away from other people as much as we can.

If it's a food pub then kids ok in my opinion. But if it's a proper drinking pub then I reserve the right to swear like a trooper after 8pm and if you are offended you can take the kiddy winks home to bed!

Have we had ‘in Europe, where they actually like children, they are welcome with open arms onto all drinking establishments’ yet?

I always want to know where this mystical Europe is. It’s one homogenous country where children don’t start school until they are 7 but go to pubs and everyone rents their houses.

Shootingstars - does your no drinking in charge of kids include holidays and family parties?

Don’t know about pubs, but I think there should be more adult-only spaces more generally. It would be nice to have the choice to go somewhere quieter.

I think you might be disappointed. Adults are pretty noisy.

The problem with allowing “ well behaved”;children is that everybody’s perception of well behaved differs. I just think it’s nice to have adult space and kids don’t need to be in pubs. I had a lovely quiet lunchtime drink spoilt recently by a group of several couples all with prams descending on the back room, moving tables to make room for the prams etc. It made it stressful for everyone else and I don’t understand why parents want to take their babies into pubs when there’s so many family friendly cafes etc these days.They spoilt it for everyone

There should at least be a child-free area of the pub, leave all the screaming kids in one place and they're only allowed there with their parent(s) or other responsible adult in attendance.

I certainly think there should be choice - some 'family friendly' that I can avoid and some that are for adults only.

I think you might be disappointed. Adults are pretty noisy.

Not so much in an alcohol-free space. And they’re normally not so high-pitched. And they generally stay in their seats

No. Pubs were one of the few places that we could get away from other people’s children. Now they’re like crèches half the time.

I once went into a pub that had discreet signs on the tables which said “Parents are really respectfully reminded that we are a pub which welcomes children, not a playground which serves beer”. Says it all really.

I quite like pubs with different sections such as family areas.
Everyone thinks their own children are fine but they really aren’t.
I don’t want to sit with children running around me screaming.

Love that @MrsExpo

Our local pub has 2 rooms on either side of the bar.

One is used as a family friendly dining area, the other is a kids free zone (you can still order food in this area though). Having said that they impose a no under 18 rule after 9 pm in both areas.

I think it's a great option. There is an adult only space (it's not at all rowdy but it's fair to say the language used can be less circumspect than in the other area on occasion) but equally people locally have the opportunity to take younger children out for food.

They do the same with the outside space. The front garden is adult only and smoking is allowed. The rear has a selection of children's play toys/entertainment and is no smoking.

@Oysterbabe It's not really acceptable to go to the pub and get hammered anymore

Really? It is round here. Lots of people get very very drunk in our local pubs. I don't mind children coming in for a meal early evening or during the day but I can't stand parents who bring them in, stick them in front of an ipad or let them run around and ignore them for hours whilst they drink. It's just selfish.

@Vulpine yes of course it does. Drinking is completely unnecessary when you've got children in your care.

No kids after 8, simple

Depends on the pub and area .. our local pubs would go out of business if they didn't let kids in.

This is it cosmo. Given that pubs presumably make commercial decisions based on what's most likely to do well (and won't last long if they don't) people are essentially saying they think they're entitled to have a private businesses prioritise their preferences over keeping afloat. If a pub wants to try and attract a family clientele, or indeed an adult only clientele, that's their choice.

I avoid pubs that allow a lot of kids running around. I also didn’t take my kids into pubs. I lived near one of these family pubs and it was like living next to an outdoor soft play centre 😂

Thankfully our society has moved on. Adult only pubs date from an era where it was ok for men to disappear down the pub after work to avoid family responsibilities. Now they can't generally do that either morally or practically as the whole family can now have a meal there!

I think this needs to be considered from the children's perspective more. They didn't ask to go to the pub. They didn't ask to be up past their bedtime with a packet of crisps for dinner. They then do what bored kids do and other customers (understandably) get annoyed and the kids are branded brats. Obviously taking kids to the pub can be done responsibly and most often is, but I hate seeing those situations where kids are clearly being neglected in pubs whilst their parents get drunk. I think pubs should do more to crack down on it. In our local there's two little girls who know all the old punters names and their parents think its funny. Those poor kids shouldn't be stuck in a pub every weekend being treated like regulars.