To tell off kids in the pub

[ReallyFkReally]

Out for drinks in our local, lots of kids around due to fireworks which didn’t make it especially chilled but one particular group sitting there playing on iPads which was quite annoying so I asked them to turn it down/use headphones. Cue massive over reaction from parents saying they’re quite within their rights, we upset the kids etc etc.

AIBU to think that after 8pm on a Friday night in a pub is adult time and if you’ve got kids there you look out for them not leave an iPad as a babysitter

YANBU!

Not unreasonable - in fact I think it should be illegal for anyone under 18 to be in a pub beyond 7pm.

If they need an iPad to keep them happy in the pub, they probably aren’t enjoying the pub.

YANBU at all, but I'd guess the kind of parents that take their dc to a pub on a Friday night , ignore them, and allow them to annoy other customers with noise from the iPad, are also going to be the kind of parents that would have a go at anyone pointing that out.

Why talk to the kids? Why not start with the parents?

@ReallyFkReally Yanbu by a country mile.

Exac. Why on earth are they there in the first place?

No one should be immune from headphones why on earth does everyone else have to listen

This

Parents were in another room so it wasn’t obvious who the kids belonged to.

Licensing authorities can impose specific restrictions on children's presence in certain pubs. Many have a no kids after 9pm rule.

When I was a child my parents had to ask if we were allowed in the pub (usually on hols). It was mostly a no, go in the games room (building on the side or wood hit outside the pub with arcade games and ping pong in. Usually freezing cold). Or sit AWAY from the bar, quietly otherwise everyone, including parents, would be out.

I'd ask them to show me where it's written they have the 'right' to blast sound from devices in a public place & leave their kids unsupervised. If it bothers them so little , take the kids with them & actually, you know, supervise them and listen to the noise themselves. I'd also say I'm within my rights to tell them to turn it down or off.

But, I'm old & cranky and get ragey now that people think it's ok to blast their music at the park, or kids on devices plonked beside me at kids swimming lessons at top volume while parents chat or ignore their DC while siblings swim.

YANBU. Parents nowadays can be very selfish.

I do agree with what you are saying, but ultimately it's the decision of the pub not you. Certainly wasn't your place to go telling them off. I would have just gone to another part of the pub or to another pub personally.

It might be the decision of the pub to allow kids in but the expectation is that they’ll be supervised by their parents not a bloody iPad.

I’m old and grouchy but not completely lacking understanding - we used to go to the pub sometimes when DD was younger but usually one with a garden so she could play on the swings etc. I’d never have allowed her to annoy other people and if she did they’d have been within their rights to say so.

The kids were allowed in the pub. If their behaviour was bothering you I'd have spoken to staff.

This would be terrible for business in terms of food service - I don't think it's unreasonable at all for a 16 year old (who can drink with their meal) to be having a meal with their parents between 7 and 9. Not to mention loads of the staff serving food in pubs are local teenagers under 18 themselves. There's a big difference between a 6 year old in a pub and a 16 year old.

YANBU. Don’t mind kids in a pub at all but they need to be taught how to behave. Join in conversation or bring quiet activities . If they can’t then the pub is not for them Take them home and parent.

This makes it even worse!

How old were they, the parents are lucky nothing bad happened if they were alone in a different room, I'd have asked the staff to get the parents, are there signs up in the pub about supervised/accompanied children,

I have absolutely no issue with children being in pubs (assuming it’s not a rowdy place) as long as they’re not disturbing the enjoyment of others. I would 100% have done the same.

Brilliant idea. Then the struggling industry of pubs could struggle even more as family evening dining would be illegal. Fantastic thinking!

It's against the licensing law to allow children in pubs unless they are supervised at all times, I doubt that means they can sit in a different room from their parents, the landlord can be fined.

You don’t think kids should be directly supervised by their parents in a pub?