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Original poster

Alcohol at the school Christmas Fair

31 replies

MaggieW · 03/12/2005 17:30

Not sure which forum to put this in but...Call me an old humbug, but I was very shocked to see the amount of alcohol being consumed and sold at our my son's school Christmas fair, held last night. As soon I walked in it was like going into a pub with men grouped around the entrance drinking cans of lager. Then I bumped into the nursery assistant in my son's class who had obviously had more than a few. I wouldn't have minded so much if the children hadn't been there - but I feel it's such an awful example for them on what's supposed to be a family occasion. I know schools have to raise money but surely there are more imaginative ways to do so. What do other parents think?

OP posts:
hercules · 03/12/2005 17:32

As long as parents are rolling around drunk I see no problem with it. My son's school has bring a bottle for their mufti day and have a bottle tombola stall for their fayres.

Twiglett · 03/12/2005 17:32

we don't allow it at all

spruceylucy5 · 03/12/2005 17:33

This is commonplace here in Spain, i've never seen anyone legless though because there is always huge amounts of food too.

hercules · 03/12/2005 17:33

Dont you have alcohol on family occasions?

Original poster
MaggieW · 03/12/2005 17:43

Yes we do have it at home - but I don't get rolling drunk in less than hour in front of the kids! I just felt it really detracted from the fact that this was a school fair (which, after all, is on for only two hours once a year) and it seemed so many of the parents were grouped around the areas serving alcohol than taking part in the fair or the various activities that the kids were doing. It was as if the kids had to compete with the bottle. They'd all gone to a huge effort to do art displays etc but it all just seemed to be ignored.

OP posts:
DoesntChristmasDragOn · 03/12/2005 17:45

"As long as parents are rolling around drunk I see no problem with it" Um, Hercules, is that what you meant to say or have you missed a "not" out

hercules · 03/12/2005 17:47
Grin
DinosaurInAManger · 03/12/2005 17:48

Not allowed at all at DSs' school, partly I think because there are lots and lots of Muslim families.

StarofBethleCam · 03/12/2005 17:51

I'm surprised there was lager on sale, as you have to have a licence to sell alcohol.

What we do at our school is to offer (not sell, note!) mulled wine for a "donation" (of at least a £1 a pop!)

CliffRichardSucksEggsinHell · 03/12/2005 17:53

You HAVE to have alcohol at school fairs, how else are we supposed to cope with them?

DoesntChristmasDragOn · 03/12/2005 17:55

StarofBethleCam, someone on the PTA applies for a license.

hercules · 03/12/2005 17:55

The problem you are describing isnt the alcohol just parents uninterested.

Skribble · 03/12/2005 22:30

I am at a lot of school fairs and I have never seen anything more than mulled wine which cunningly is free when you buy a mince pie.

I went to one toddler group fair which was more of a night out held in a pub function suite and was definatly just for grown ups. I thought it was great idea combining a night out and a fundraiser.

Not sure how a school can get a licence for this if held in the school and the kids will be there. Most of the fairs I have been to are carefull about things like not letting kids sell raffle tickets etc. Don't think alcohol is a necesary part of a fair.

polly28 · 03/12/2005 22:53

sounds a fab idea to me

spidermama · 03/12/2005 22:56

There's always wine at our school dos. I'm really glad. I also think it's good for the kids to see the grown ups in party mood, socialising.
I've never noticed anyone get so drunk as to be a liability to the kids.

Gawd knows it's about the only social life I get.

katymac · 03/12/2005 23:38

My friends dd won a can of lager on the tombola

She was in tears

My friend will be asking her DH (a govenor) to bring it up with the head/PTA

Skribble · 03/12/2005 23:40

Most tombolas will quickly swap tickets with a more child friendly item. Bit stupid hadning a kid a can of lager surely.

katymac · 04/12/2005 00:08

Everything was gift wrapped

swedishmum · 04/12/2005 00:31

Lottery / gaming laws have now changed - not even allowed bottles of alcohol in the raffle.

StarofBethleCam · 04/12/2005 11:27

At all the bottle tombolas I have run on the school Friends Committee I always had lots of soft drinks included for children or just booby prizes. Having said that, every child who won a bottle of booze never turned it down because "Mummy told me to make sure I won a bottle of wine"

That's private schools for you

DoesntChristmasDragOn · 04/12/2005 11:35

IMO, the parents shouldn't let their children have an unsupervised go at a bottle tombola when around 90% of the prizes are alcohol.

DoesntChristmasDragOn · 04/12/2005 11:36

And apparently I've won "a bottle of something unpronouncable" in the school raffle. Heaven knows what it might be but I'm hoping it's not Badedas bath foam.

NotQuiteCockney · 04/12/2005 11:39

I'm constantly startled by the amount of alcohol at our school events, although to be fair, I've never seen anyone drunk at them.

We had our nativity play on Friday morning, and there was mulled wine for that.

(But then, I'm foreign, and not really used to the booze-at-all-occasions English thing.)

WickedWinterWitch · 04/12/2005 11:39

ha ha at CRSEIH, quite, how else are we supposed to cope with them?! And lol too at Cam! Our school applies for a licence up to the maximum number of times they're allowed to per year. I don't see a problem with it either.

bossykate · 04/12/2005 11:40

ds's school christmas fair was yesterday. there was gluhwein and irish coffee on sale. the bottles on the bottle stall were almost exclusively alcoholic. no-one was drunk or even tipsy as far as i could see. not sure what i think about this really.