Major report into risks at underage discos to be launched in Letterkenny

by Louise Doyle

A MAJOR report into safety risks faced by young people at underage events locally and around the country will be launched in Letterkenny today.

‘Dancing at the Disco’ examines the dangers to children attending large scale discos on licensed premises.

It looks at the management of large crowds of children in what are environments designed for adults, risky sexual activity, intoxication from alcohol and other drugs consumed before and after these events, and lack of adequate adult supervision.

Today’s launch event in Donegal Youth Service will hear from young adults on their own experiences.

The Alcohol Forum Ireland report has been compiled by Paula Leonard and Dr Grainne Ketelaar.

The national charity, which has a base in Letterkenny, is calling on the Minister for Justice Helen McEntee to take immediate steps to amend the provisions of Intoxicating Liquor Bill (2024), to provide for better regulation of large scale teenage discos in Ireland.

Speaking to the Donegal News, Paula Leonard CEO Alcohol Forum Ireland, said over the past 20 years teenage disco events have grown in both numbers and scale.

They have become a key income generation stream for a dwindling nightclub scene, she believes.

“While parents and front line services are very concerned about how these events are managed, Government policy has completely ignored the need to regulate these events and ensure that child protection standards are adhered to.

“The reason we did this report was because parents, youth workers, teachers and gardaí were expressing concerns.

“The main findings of concern were the distances young people travelled on buses, on occasion for more than one hour, the behaviour on those buses and if intoxicated when they arrived in Letterkenny or at another destination and refused entry, where did they go?

“We’re looking for regulations and guidelines regarding capacity at venues, on buses, age restrictions, and adult to child ratios at these events. These venues should have regulations in place. If we were talking about a childcare facility, guidelines and regulations would not be wanting.”

‘Dancing at the Disco’ makes a small number of recommendations on what provisions should be considered in the proposed Intoxicating Liquor Bill (2024) to mitigate these risks.

It is the third in a series of reports from Alcohol Forum Ireland and the Irish Community Action on Alcohol Network in regard to changes needed to the reform of alcohol licensing.

“The Intoxicating Liquor Bill in 2004, created the conditions for teenagers to be permitted on licensed premises without a parent or guardian being present so long as alcohol was not being sold at the time. Twenty years later, the Department of Justice has an opportunity to prioritise the rights and well being of children through providing for effective regulation of and fit for purpose child safeguarding measures at these events,” said Ms Leonard.

One debate which often re-emerges is the breathalysing of teenagers before being allowed admission to underage discos. Ms Leonard said she is not in favour of this approach, describing it as “ethically wrong”.

“If someone were to breathalyse my child without me being there I would have an issue with that. I think an adult can make a reasonable judgment about whether the young person is intoxicated without the use of breathalysers.”

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