Thoughts on 16yo teens going to Reading Festival

[AthenaEatsApples]

My current 15yo daughter will have just turned 16 the day before Reading Festival which is the minimum age required to attend the festival without an adult. She is the youngest in her year and most of her friends will be turning 17. Her and two of her girlfriends want to attend Reading Festival as an end of GCSE celebration. I've never been to the festival and wonder if anyone has thoughts on allowing three teen girls to attend the three day festival.

The vast majority of people there will be 16/17 ... my DD went a couple of times. I was very concerned and didn't sleep much that weekend but she loved it and came back relatively unscathed. Drugs everywhere, you just have to hope they don't get too involved.

It is mainly 16/17 year olds now. have a search for hte reading support threads from this summer.

I used to go many years ago but the vibe has changed. It is very druggy and I would be collecting them on the Sunday night as that is mostly when the trouble starts.

It's a long standing tradition at DCs old school to go to Reading post GCSE. Terrifying, but they seem to enjoy it. Come home stinking but happy.

You just need to have some serious conversations about about drugs, alcohol and consent. Not in a "you cannot do it" but in a"if you do it and it goes wrong..." sense. There's welfare there and a Samaritans tent which will can be a safe place if she needs it. How does she say no and enforce it. What does she do if she needs to leave.

Have they been to a festival before? Reading is quite full on for a first foray into festival camping.

My 16yo did a day at Reading this year. Some of her friends did camp and actually quit on the Sunday night and headed to the station.

I haven’t been personally but believe there is some truth in the rumours of antisocial behaviour in the campsite. I’d be talking to her about having a radar out for trouble and camping away from the big rowdy groups. But if she’s otherwise savvy and trustworthy I wouldn’t be overly worried about that. She’ll probably have an (exhausting, dirty) blast!

Pretty much all 16 year olds. It's a definite right of passage thing. Indeed it started on results day for my youngest. Had results at 8am and was on the bus down with all his mates by 9.30.

There are bus tickets that take them right to the festival site from all over the country.

Please school her on the importance of packing up all her stuff and bringing home her tent etc

Got to experiment with drugs and lose virginity sometime

What @SleepingStandingUp said.

My now 22 yr old went at 16, it was only last year that he told me how much drugs he had taken at the festival at 16! (LSD and ecstasy)! I was shocked! In hindsight I wouldn’t have let him go if I had been more aware.

However, some kids may be more sensible than mine was!

I said no to my 16 year old last year because of the reputation the festival now has. Some of her friends went for the day and didn’t stay overnight

Sorry to burst your bubble, but drugs are available outside of Reading Festival - and you wouldn't have achieved much by not letting him go (other than him being resentful).

Agree with others that there are loads of 16/17 year olds there. DS at 18 considered himself too old.

Ha thanks for your sarcastic words of wisdom! Very helpful

doesn’t change the fact I wouldn’t have let him go if I had been wiser about it.

I took my DD to Leeds festival last year and although there was absolutely loads of teens there were also older people and families. She has asked to go again this year without me and it was a straight no. Instead the whole family are going and her BF. They will get plenty of freedom but I know I'll be there if something were to happen. I'm very laid back as a parent but at 16 a festival is still a no from me

I went when I was 17… albeit a long time ago. Make sure she knows how to pitch a tent, roll mat, sleeping bag, bring wet wipes and a tooth brush. I had an awesome time

I live 20 mins from Reading and everyone around me started going at 16/17. Think that’s the prime age. Loads of drugs though. I must say it’s never been my thing and I’ve never gone

My son went at 16 and 17, he’s an august born too.

By 18 last year he’d outgrown it!

my soon to be 17 year old daughter and I are gonna go for the day to see Lana ❤️

some of her friends are camping for the weekend but she doesn’t fancy it, and she’s used to festivals as I’ve taken them to various ones since they were little. She thinks it looks particularly manky which it kind of does, probably because of the age of the clientele!

I went at that age, it was fine. I mean everyone was drunk obviously and I didn't sleep for 5 days but I was 16 so it was fine. Just make sure she's street smart/drug smart and fairly responsible. And got some good friends to go with.

It’s almost all 16yos.

Some key things-
— make sure she is going with a good group of friends and that they all understand about sticking together and looking out for each other. They should all be camping together.
-a festival isn’t a great place to experiment with drugs for the first time for all sorts of reasons. Have a proper conversation with her about safety (not just “don’t do drugs”)
-ditto getting very drunk
-have a back up plan in case she wants to leave early
-don’t stay Sunday night.

For the day I'd say yes, anything else I'd be apprehensive....

My daughter went to Leeds at 16, DH and I stayed in Harrogate for the weekend just to be close by in the event of an emergency. I was a bag of nerves the whole time. She’s been every year since, but I’m much more relaxed about it now.

I went to reading at 16. My friends and I got the train from Glasgow and sorted it all out ourselves, including buying the tickets with the wages from our PT jobs.

I went for the first time age 16 on the bus. Went every year for about the next 10 years and last went while pregnant with my Dd.
It’s fine. Yes there’s drugs but you just have to hope you’ve educated them enough to stay away. I’ve always had a great time. If she’s sensible with a good group of friends I’d let her go.
I now go to creamfields every year which is minimum age 18 and there’s even more drugs. Which I don’t take and still have a brilliant time

Some professional involvement with festivals...drugs use is very significant. Data tells us thar kids are more likely than not to take drugs at festivals like this. Use goes up significantly at festivals than in other social contexts for this group. And it can be more risky at reading/Leeds as they don't have front of house drugs checking available. Kids generally use heavily before going in due to drugs dogs etc on entry point, or buying from unknown dealers inside, so risk is increased. I still don't think all this is a reason not to let them go though, as we can't eliminate risk in kids lives. More about having a very frank and educated conversation before they go and satisfying yourself that they know how to keep themselves safe and feel able to ask for help if something goes wrong. I'd want to know who they were going with and that they all had consistent ideas about how to look out for each other and not being afraid to ask for help if needed.

The local Street Pastors have a couple of tents on site (they are manned by volunteers from various local churches, open 24 hours a day and have a cafe set up in them and sofas/games etc). They get the nickname of the "God Tent" but are there to look out for the festival goers welfare and aren't there to preach to anyone. Are happy to just be a safe place and will have a chat to anyone who needs it and offer help/support. If your daughter does go, signpost them to her and her friends if they need anything.

My DD went this year, end of Year 12. She went as a big group of boys and girls, which was great because there was always someone who wanted to do the same thing/see a band/chill in the tent etc. She did Boardmasters the year before, which was entirely 16-18 year olds, lots of drinking/going home early.

if you feel confident that they will stick together, and won’t fall out after a few vodkas, then they should be okay. Just be on high alert for a call to pick up early.

DD and her gang went from the Weds, which they wouldn’t do again. Nothing at all going on until Fri, and unlike Boardmasters where they could go to the beach/into Newquay, Reading town centre doesn’t hold the same appeal.

I would definitely insist they come home on the Sunday. DH picked up a gang of them, which they we initially v grumpy about, but were very pleased to see him with a cool bag of drinks and sandwiches and a collection of pillows and blankets.