Witherspoon’s 2 drink limit for parents

[Leaannb]

I just saw an article about Witherspoons deciding to impose a 2 drink limit with parents who have their children with them. How do you feel about this? Is this being unreasonable?

Not unreasonable. Actually really sensible.

It's fair enough really. Being drunk and allowing your kids to run around doing whatever is pretty bad and ruins the pub for everyone else.

I worked for spoons for years trust me this rule is needed. I once had to stop a toddler from running off our beer garden and into a train tracks whilst his parents were getting pissed up and not paying attention. The amount of parents who would bring their kids and get pissed up all afternoon is unbelievable and whenever you confronted them they would be horrible. Glad this rule is widespread though I am very glad I don't have to police it no more. I have to admit my experience with this has meant that I have no desire to drink when I have my kids and tbh I judge those who do.

I see no issue with this, it’s common sense really. I enjoy a drink but when I am with DS I will have one maybe two drinks with a meal and that’s fine. I wouldn’t dream of getting drunk - I can save that for when he isn’t with me!

The sad thing is that parents drinking doesn't just affect their kids, it causes problems for generations. My grandparents were the type who went into the pub at 3 and left my dad outside til 11 or whenever they got chucked out. Every weekend this went on while he was growing up.

Then, guess what, my dad becomes a raging alcoholic, so then I have a shitty, messed up childhood with a pissed dad and a stressed mum.

Then, I end up with bad mental health and a shitty relationship with alcohol where I can't just have one drink, I have to have ten drinks and black out.

So before I had kids, I stopped drinking. My husband might drink a few if he goes out with friends but he'd rather just have a meal or play football and he might drink once a month if that and he never comes home drunk. So we have broken the cycle but a lot of parents don't. It's so normal in the UK to get totally hammered and I don't think it's ok.

It's sad that they even have this rule. To me it's obvious you shouldn't have more than one or two tops when looking after children.

Stopping under 18s in pubs after 7pm would be a start.

I think it’s a good start, two would put a lot of people over the drink drive limit so I’d expect it to be even less if responsible for children.

I don’t like seeing children in pubs and normalising alcohol drinking though so would prefer a ban but it’s a start.

But pubs are not like they were 20 years ago, they are now more like restaurants that happen to serve alcohol, people don’t smoke in them, most cater for children by having kids menus and discounts, most are chain owned and they are cheap places to eat as a family. I don’t think you could stop kids from being in pubs, pubs would just disappear altogether. I do think the 2 drink rule should apply in all pubs though. I take my teens to pubs to eat, I never have more than one alcoholic drink with my meal and we go to family friendly pubs such as Harvester, a Hungry horse and only go during the day. Wetherspoons is always rough, it tends to attract all day drinkers especially at the weekend so we don’t go in there.

I disagree that pubs would disappear if they imposed some rules as to when it is and isn't appropriate to bring children in. I know lots of people (childfree by choice and with adult kids) who actively avoid a few pubs in our area in the summer months because, even at 8 - 9pm, there are kids in there.

I don't understand why kids need to be in pubs in the first place, but I wouldn't think twice about having a beer in front of DS if we were out for a family meal at a restaurant. I would always restrict it to one beer, but I think it's a good thing to demonstrate responsible drinking and remove the mystery around alcohol.

I found it pretty shocking that a pub needs to enforce such rules, to be honest. As a p.p said - take your kids to the park!

This has been policy in our local Spoons for around 10(?) years if not more. It's needed.

The rule about having to order a meal if you're drinking with children wasn't enough, one bowl of chips between four and the parents then sat getting lathered.

I agree it's not Spoon's place to police parents, but their premises their rules and hopefully it'll make things easier for the staff.

There is an old MN thread on here from a woman who is complaining that her weatherspoons would not let her order a meal for her children and just alcohol for her and her DP.
I know some weatherspoons are nice. But because the alcohol is cheap, some do attract pretty heavy all day drinkers. They are not simply restaurants with alcohol. The one that has enacted this rule has reviews on trip advisor saying there are group of heavy drinking regulars who are loud, sweary and make personal comments about others coming into the pub. It sounds a rough place.

Having a glass of wine or a beer with a meal with your kids is not an issue. Sinking pint after pint while your kids are left to their own devices is an issue.

Thank goodness in Scotland children are not allowed in pubs ever

Another one who worked at a Wetherspoons here and unfortunately the stereotypes are true. The alcohol is cheap, we had regulars coming in as soon as we started serving alcohol at 10am and they would stay and drink all day. People would ask for alcohol even earlier when we trialled a 7am opening for breakfast, but we weren't allowed to serve it before 10.

A lot of people forget pubs are adult spaces that kids are allowed, I do think we need a few adult spaces.

Probably because that's wrong.

They're not adult spaces, they're spaces for whoever those running the space want to pitch it at. That might be kid friendly, it might be a childfree space entirely, or something in the middle. It's perfectly reasonable to feel you need an adult space but not reasonable to expect private businesses to provide it.

By the same token, if Wetherspoons want to impose this limit that's up to them. Nobody is entitled to bring their children to a venue and have a certain number of drinks there.

Not that I every go in Spoons but it’s a great idea...but an even better idea would be for pubs to be for adults only and for children to be left at home with a babysitter, so that adults don’t have their Friday and Saturday nights ruined by badly parented brats running around screaming and jumping and making nuisances of themselves while I’m trying to relax with a glass of wine after a hard week

I do think pubs being seen as family places is an issue.

I doubt the rule would have been brought in if people hadn't abused previous levels of tolerance.

I don't think it's fair on children to be stuck in a pub, an adult environment, for long periods of time while their parents have endless drinks. Not to mention what they might be exposed to - plenty of conversations and behaviours go on in pubs that aren't appropriate for children, and if the parents become intoxicated their ability to keep their children safe will be impaired.

I dare say it's rough on the parent who might want three glasses of wine rather than two, knowing they will be none the worse for it, but as with everything, a line has to be drawn somewhere if people won't self-regulate, which clearly, in the main, they didn't.

It would be unreasonable for me because DP doesn't drink so he's the designated driver and the sober one watching the kids (not that I would ever get drunk in front of my kids). It would be better for them to say that one person, designated to watch the kids can only have two drinks rather than both parents.

It's a good idea that all licenced premises could look at.
I say this having been given charge of a very upset,hungry little girl whose dad had been nicked for being drunk in charge of her.poor girl was devastated and so scared.

I only went to the local Wacky Warehouse once, it was full of parents getting pissed while their kids went crazy in the soft play.

Stopping under 18s in pubs after 7pm would be a start

A bit harsh. Under 5s after 8pm would be fair enough.

I dare say it's rough on the parent who might want three glasses of wine rather than two

I think they are going to struggle to keep tabs anyway. Are they going to say they won't sell a bottle of wine to a couple with kids with them? How big is a glass of wine? A bottle of wine is 4 big glasses, we get through a bottle in two nights between two of us. Make it a smaller glass and we'd get through more glasses, but the same amount of wine.

And beer is a lot less alcoholic than wine.

To be honest I think it's all a bit silly. Just refuse to sell alcohol to people who are obviously drunk, tell them to look after their own kids, and have a time after which you have to leave if you have small kids with you.

I think it’s fair. Seen way to many people getting pissed whilst having kids in their care. Just no need!

Excellent idea and wish more places did this, having sat in a pub last weekend eating lunch and entertaining my toddler so he didn’t impact other people, whilst another family, parents guzzling wine, ignored their brats and let them run around SSSCCCRRRREAAAAMMMIINNNNG.