To ask if the police would do anything about

[YellowOrangePink]

The shops that keep selling my 16 year old child alcohol? Is it worth reporting?

Balancing Nat5s with a full time job would be a challenge yes. I'm not cool about it which is why I'm posting on Mumsnet because I'm annoyed other adults are giving these kids access. I wouldn't consider their activities to be boozing, it's much lighter, social drinking than that, as I've described. Friends and wider circles are another matter, but I'm not too concerned because other than this my child is actually quite sensible and we've discussed many times occasions where he's been offered drugs and was able to decline while saving face. I'm just somewhat amused by your responses here, if you think my child is dire straits - I'd love to see your reaction to other things youths get up to!

Well, they’re breaking the law by buying alcohol under age

I have been in the same situation. I told police and child's school. School actually were really proactive in contacting the shop and police about it too.

I also went into the shops with my son (under the guise of buying milk) and told the person serving, with my son beside me that he was 14. They looked horrified and son was mortified. I told son I would do that in every single shop I found he was trying to buy alcohol in if he ever behaved like that again. So far, it has worked.

You’re welcome. Also I never post on a Friday night. Mumsnet becomes a very strange place - teenagers have been trying to buy booze, share with friends, get one over on their parents since nearly the beginning of time - almost all of them turn out just fine. But you can’t tell Mumsnet that on a Friday night.

I have a theory that a lot of women who have had very hard weeks lifing start drinking early, hit the forums and bang YOU ARE VERY UNREASONABLE and probably raising the devil’s spawn!

@Intheshower The op's child is going to the shop for their own alcohol. Their friends are then giving them money and asking them to get theirs while they're in. It's like you going to the shop for crisps and your friend giving you the money to get them some.
I'm not sure why you think think that's selling

That didn't even occur to me!

Yes exactly this, it sounds far more sinister than it is - and I know it's not ideal, which is why I'm trying to think of the best way to deal with it. He sees it as repaying favours when older brothers have done (some of whom did profit I believe!)

Shops have often got several staff on various rotas... I might try this but I don't think my son would respond well and I also don't want to compromise an otherwise quite open trusting relationship, when he tells me things I do pretty much believe it is true

This is a bit over the top.

When I was that age, one of our friends looked the oldest by far so she used to go to the shop and purchase alcohol for all of us on a Friday night.

She wasn't in dire straits. We all turned out OK, she's a doctor now.

I'm not condoning it and hope my child doesn't start drinking that young, but you're being a bit dramatic in your response.

They're surprisingly civilised young lads.

I had the same issue some years ago now. An off licence selling alcohol to underage kids, one of them being my son.
The first thing I did was to to into the shop and make them aware that I was aware.
I then spoke to the Police who by this time had received lots of complaints by concerned residents. It ended up with a licencing hearing and the shop being closed. It was a scurge on the neighbourhood and resulted in me being assaulted by my son due to intoxication. I would do the same thing again if I had to.

So your working full time teenager... so not a school child.
Is proudly and illegally buying alcohol for children, using fake identification.
But.... poor lamb.... ITS SOMEONE.ELSES FAULT!! Get them! But not my poor innocent baby?....🤨

Was your son also using fake ID? So of course 'not his fault' 😪....

@YellowOrangePink hopefully you will contact police and your teenager will be arrested and charged for their fraudulent actions and for giving alcohol to children!

No fake ID, he's not being asked for any ID, he doesn't need one. If he was using fake ID why would I go to the police?

So the child giving other children alcohol is a bigger problem than adults giving it to children. OK dokes 😉

Where on earth did you get the bit about the fake ID? He's not using any ID. I don't see how he's any different to kids that are still in education, I would be keen to hear that - is this a legal distinction? Girls who have left school can consent to sex sooner than those who do their GCSEs?

Gosh I'm so sorry that happened to you. And I'm glad to hear the shop was closed down

OP, I’m not sure what you want to achieve. You seem to be OK with your underage son buying alcohol, including selling (yes, it is selling even if he isn’t making a profit and they provide the money) to others but you want to dob the retailers in to the authorities for their part in the transactions.

Both your son and the retailers are in the wrong. Both should be reprimanded.

I'm not sure how to take your response, he wasn't using any ID, the kids were simply being served. I didn't say it wasn't his fault, it absolutely was.

Are you saying they are equally responsible or more weight for accountability should sit with the teenager (that’s how I read the “dob them in comment”).

Licensing law is very specific. Adults operating licensed premises and obtaining a licence are made very, very aware of this. This is because should they choose to act outside of the law they may have it within their gift to serve many teenagers and create a localised teenage drinking problem.

Demanding that individual daft teenagers be reprimanded (prosecuted as some posters have said) is unrealistic, and a waste of time and resource.

Not only that, it discourages concerned parents from reporting the license holding adults who also have it within their gift to stick to their legally binding license and refuse to serve in line with their local Challenge protocols.

So according to the posters on here who have teens buying alcohol and passing it on....
It's absolutely not their fault...the shops are of course dragging them in and forcing it on them?!
The poor teens would never, ever want to drink or share alcohol if they weren't being FORCED to by these evil mean shops!!