Half of parents with children under 14 allow them to drink alcohol at home, according to a new survey.

Suzie Hayman, Cumbrian trustee with Family Lives: We’ve changed our mind on this. We had the idea that if you gave children watered down wine it would teach them to drink sensibly within the family.

The advice now is that no-one under the age of 15 should have any alcohol at all, because their brains and livers are still growing.


Suzie Hayman Before 18 it should only be given sparingly, on very special occasions, and even after 18 still be careful. Bodies are still growing at that age.

Alcohol doesn’t always do you damage immediately, but it can be insidious. People often say that the French have wine with meals and don’t binge drink – but they do have a very high rate of cirrhosis of the liver.

They don’t have the binge drinking culture that we have, so the social effects around alcohol are not as severe. But the medical effects are just as bad.

If you tell children: “You shouldn’t have that, it’s for adults,” it gives them the idea that if they have it they become an adult.

We should be showing them you can socialise without booze. If you have to have booze to enjoy a night out with your friends, it doesn’t say much about your friendships or your nights out. That’s something parents need to be modelling.


Helen DaviesHelen Davies, north service manager, Cumbria Alcohol and Drugs Advisory Service: Even though the law says that a five-year-old can drink at home, that doesn’t mean that it’s safe.

Because alcohol is so accepted in our culture people forget how powerful it is. What’s important is that parents realise its power, and how their behaviour and use of alcohol is going to influence their children too.

If at every social or family occasion alcohol is used and is used over the top, then that’s what children learn.

Be aware what you are modelling to your children. Sometimes parents think: “If I let them drink at home it’s safer than having them drink in the park.”

It’s certainly true that you can keep an eye on them, you can monitor how much they drink and they are not at risk from other people.

Sometimes parents buy certain drinks for their children because they believe they are low in alcohol – but a bottle of an alcopop can have just as much alcohol as a bottle of beer.

If a 15-year-old drinks every weekend and drinks more than the recommended amount, then by the time they’re 25 they’ll have had 10 years of heavy drinking. That’s why the NHS is seeing young people in the 20s with liver problems.


Annette GibbonsAnnette Gibbons from Mawbray runs Cumbria On A Plate: I have two grown-up children. Even when they were under 10 if we were having Sunday lunch we would give them watered-down wine so they would be drinking at the table with us.

I think children need to see that alcohol is not the be-all and end-all. It’s part of life but it’s not the only thing. That’s what we were trying to make them realise.

But they were not encouraged to drink at home as teenagers. As soon as they were able to go out and drink with their friends, they did that.

I think if children see parents drinking heavily at home every day they’re going to see that as normal.

It has to be something in the middle, ideally something to be appreciated with food.

I know people who have died alcoholic so I know how important it is to strike the right balance.

When I was growing up alcohol was seen as something for a special occasion. Now it’s more freely available.

It’s a peer group thing for young people. It’s part of being social.

Then again, sport is important now and there’s more awareness of health. That might have an effect on how much young people drink.


Shaun HalfpennyShaun Halfpenny, retired headteacher of Cummersdale School, Carlisle: My own children didn’t drink at home. I knew parents who thought it was wonderful to allow their children to drink alcohol.

I think it was an ego thing, trying to impress others with what wonderful parents they were.

It’s far better to have a sneaky drink of cider behind a pavilion rather than being encouraged by your parents.

Children have to learn that alcohol is a dangerous drug. You only learn that through experience.

A 14-year-old doesn’t have that experience. I don’t think their parents should force it on them.

Some parents aren’t bothered what their children do. Alcohol isn’t the problem there. It’s lack of parenting skills.

It’s a society issue. Alcohol is more accessible and cheaper now. Young people see it as glamorous to go out and drink a lot.

When I was teaching I always taught that alcohol is a drug. It can make you feel good, but it can make you feel very bad.

When I was 15 I was in the house with a friend. I was trying to show off by drinking some of my dad’s whisky.

But I dropped the bottle on the floor. I got into real trouble, and it put me off whisky!