to raise my eyebrows because there were children in the Ann Summers shop

[soultaken]

Was in the Ann Summers shop on Wednesday and there were two women in there with small children in pushchairs. OK fair enough, they won't understand coz they're too young

but

there were also sixth formers from the local school (it was lunch time) in there!!!!! In their school uniform !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Am I old-fashioned or not. I thought you had to be 18 to go in there. Even the girl on the till didn't look 18!!!!!!

It's not about being over the age of consent, it's about the fact there is a sex shop element to Ann Summers, it's the law. They segregate their stores so that anyone can go into the main shop, but over 18s only into the sex shop part.

Under 18s aren't allowed at parties either.

No Red, the law is that you can't go into a sex shop under 18.

I think they are not leagaly a sex shop, I seem to remember a thing about them not be able to advertise for staff in the job centre they fought this as they decided they were not a sex shop.

Any way if I am in ann summers buying a toy or whatever the last thing I need is a couple of giggling school girls putting me off .

Skramble you've said one a very good reason why it's there.

I was once asked to allow a 16 year old to stay at a party, it was her mum and friends of various ages. I said OK but explained it was against the law so I could be in trouble and I wanted to know everyone was happy with it so that no one was going to report me. Turns out this poor girl was a virgin and was so embarrassed by everything and ended up with some of the games backfiring on her, felt terrible for some of the things I mus have put her through. I was so with her mother for putting her in that situation.

ok, well like i said previously, maybe the girls were over 18. Over 18's in sixth form too aren't they? It's for the shop assistant to judge, which I'm sure she did. Maybe she knew the girls and knew they were over 18.

Yeah, you can never judge the ages of kids. If they were underage, one day it will be a trading standards worker that they don't bother asking and they'll be in trouble

Sixformer can be legaly married with legal babies but not allowed to go into AS, there babies in prams are ok to be in their though

Bit tits about backwards.....

yep - i used to work in an off licence (bad time in my life) abd the bloke i worked with one night sold alcopops to a 14yo - with a trading standards woman with her - all on camera too! I got called to his solicitors to see if i remembered the incident (I didn't) but they showed me a picture of her and she was CLEARLY very underage - silly man - he got a hefty fine and we were lucky the shop didn't lose the licence!

Who said they can't go in Ann Summers? It's perfectly legal because they're a lingerie shop. It's only the sex shop that's 18+ that under 18s can't go in.

It is a bit of a counfusing area of law: there are some shops (which AFAIK includes some but not all Ann SUmmers shops) which are 'sex' shops in that they sell lingerie, condoms, lube and a small number of sex toys, and then there are licensed sex shops which sell R18 DVDs along with the rest of their stock. A licensed sex shop is the only place you can legally buy/sell R18 DVDs - WRT vibrators and porn mags it's a matter of what percentage of the shop's stock is made up of other things. I'm a bit surprised at the shop assistants allowing infants in push chairs as most places would be just too paranoid about possible press coverage, never mind what the law says. Years ago I remember a minor on-the-scene scandal over one of the fetish markets: a couple of regulars turned up with their month-old baby and were refused admittance. They had wanted to show off their newborn to their mates and obviously a newborn would not have been harmed in any way by walking through a room full of people selling rubberwear, but the organisers reckoned that it was just too risky to let them in (Baby Exposed to Vile Smut FIlth Scandal etc).

i've walked through anne summers with dd in her buggy ha ha never thought anything of it.

she was about a year at the time i think, i would NOT take her now (3) as she would be more aware and ask questions which I would rather not answer quite yet.

but, small babies in buggies, cant really see the problem to be honest

and FWIW sixth formers could be 18 if they are in upper sixth

I walked past an AS shop yesterday. Not only was there a baby in a pram there, there was a boy who looked to be about 5/6 and a girl age 3ish, helping a man and a woman choose from the sexy uniform things. Urgh.

thats exactly what I mean nineyears. One minute there's 16 year olds and babies in the shop, the next minute there's 6 year olds in there.

What next, someone taking their 10 year old daughter in there to help pick out a rabbit?

Oh calm down Soultaken

AS is hardly a hardcore sex shop-it's basically a lingere shop with a limited amount of sex aids (and mainly joke crap) at the rear of their stores,I've never seen any children at the rear of our local store when I've been in for a browse.

Babies are hardly taking notice of whether you are buying a peep hole bra or a m&s one and most teenagers see privvy to more filthy stuff on 'tinternet than in their local AS shop.

After all, seaside novelty shops often sell cock-shaped sweets and expletive-decorated mugs and stuff, so the average AS shop isn't going to have anything much livelier in it. And I don't think it does DC any harm at all anyway.
When DS was about 15 months I remember being a bit irritated that I wasn't allowed to have him with me at Erotica during set-up: he wasn't quite walking at that point and would have just slept in his buggy, but the organisers said, no way.

My friend wasn't allowed in one sex shop because she had her 2yr old child with her.

sory, but does not matter what age, and whether they realise or not - it is fucking wrong - they sell dildos and porn, all those that agree with OP would you let them watch raunchy film????? NO, so why even bother exposing them to this, it is wrong on every level, they are INNOCENT children, and the post about HELPING parents pick out PVC dress up outfits - no wonder this world is so messed up.

I happen to agree with you, mama.

Why any woman would dream of taking her child(ren) in to a sex shop is beyond me - regardless of childs age or sex!

Let children be children, fgs.

Yes I'm usually told off for being a prude, but I'd prefer my teenage dd studying for important exams had a rabbit... A rabbit does't get you pregnant or upset you or sleep with your friend. I know girls have to grow up and learn a few lessons the hard way, but preferably not doing state exams...

mama, it's not against the law and the PVC outfits AS do aren't in the shops. The dress up outfits they do have look no different to the ones next door in ELC.

My DH worked in Ann Summers stockroom and I took DS1 in one day at about 2.5 yrs old to say hello to day...

they gave him a willy biscuit to eat,

I am not trying to flame the fire but our AS DOES have explicit stuff a metre from the door, then far more raunchy stuff a few feet further back.. All those that think this is OK, "they don't know" "as long as they are 1 year old and in a buggy" are fucking deluded - so you would let your 11 moth old watch an X-rated porn film at home would you????????? and think they would not be affected. But you think looking at 12" dildos will not affet them? You are seriously deluded if you think this. I have never seen my mum or dad naked and DH refuses to even pee infront of DD.

AS is hardly X-rated porn.