Parents urged not to purchase Schoolies Week alcohol for their kids

As thousands of Year 12 students look forward to annual Schoolies Week festivities across the country, DrinkWise Australia reminds parents that they should not purchase alcohol on behalf of their children.

DrinkWise Chair, Hon. Trish Worth, said parents whose children are attending Schoolies Week events should be mindful of their responsibilities.

“Parents need to be aware of the different laws in place across Australia and the penalties involved in supplying alcohol to minors,” Ms Worth said.

“We urge parents to think about the dangerous consequences they could face by supplying alcohol to their children. This is especially true in unsupervised environments such as Schoolies Week where tragic alcohol-fuelled incidents have become all too frequent.

“Not only are there immediate risks of excessive drinking to consider such as fights, injuries, drink driving and unwanted sexual encounters, but there are also longer term risks given that adolescents’ brains are still developing and continue to develop into their early to mid-20s.

“These longer term risks associated with excessive drinking at a young age include learning difficulties, memory problems, poor decision making, depression and anxiety.

“Further information and expert advice about these risks is available on the DrinkWise website at drinkwise.org.au where parents can also find some useful tips to help them manage this challenging issue with their kids.”

The Schoolies Week warning from DrinkWise supports the organisation’s Kids Absorb Your Drinking message, which continues to raise awareness about underage drinking and how parents – through their own attitudes and behaviour – have the power to positively influence their children’s attitude towards drinking from an early age.

Ms Worth said DrinkWise also endorses the industry-driven “Don’t buy it for them” campaign aimed at making adults aware of their responsibilities regarding the secondary supply of alcohol.

Significantly, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s National Drug Strategy Household Survey for 2010 showed a major reduction in the proportion of parents that regularly buy alcohol for minors. For parents of 12-15-year-olds the figure decreased from 43.1% in 2007 to 30.4% in 2010, while for parents of 16-17-year-olds the figure dropped from 34.3% to 23.3% in the corresponding period¹.

“It is important for parents to feel empowered to refuse their children if they ask them to buy them alcohol,” Ms Worth said.

“These statistics are encouraging and we’d like to see further reductions in the next report. Our own campaigns and others that draw attention to these issues are certainly helping achieve the shift to a safer and healthier drinking culture in Australia.”

DrinkWise Australia is a not-for-profit social change organisation dedicated to promoting a healthier and safer drinking culture in Australia. It does this through national information and education campaigns, partnerships with community leaders and organisations, and the development of practical strategies and resources that better support the community in relation to alcohol use and misuse.

For more information visit www.drinkwise.org.au

Media contact: Kieran Hall on (08) 8412 4107.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

1.    Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2011, p.83. 2010 National Drug Strategy Household Survey report. Drug statistics series no. 25. Cat. no. PHE 145. Canberra: AIHW.