Two London pubs have taken a stance against disruptive behaviour from children following complaints from customers that the venues had begun to “resemble a creche.”
The William the Fourth in Leyton has banned children after 7pm in a bid to curb unruly behaviour, with staff also cracking down on disruptions during the daytime.
Some Google reviews mention “badly behaved kids” who “bounce off the walls,” “babies crying constantly,” and “buggies blocking walkways.”
Meanwhile, The Kenton in Hackney is reviewing its policy on children following a number of incidents involving “repeat offenders.”
The pub said there had been accidents involving children, with some parents blaming the venue rather than supervising their little ones.
The William the Fourth in Leyton announced the policy change on social media, saying the move was necessary to maintain a “comfortable and enjoyable environment” for everyone.
The new rules came into force today, making the pub an “adults-only space” from 7pm onwards.
Children must remain seated at a table with their parents and be supervised at all times — a policy the pub said has always been in place.
They will also not be allowed to run around, climb, or play inside the venue.
In a statement, the pub said: “Over the past few months, we’ve received feedback from customers regarding children in the pub. We want The William the Fourth to be welcoming to everyone, but there have been occasions where the pub has resembled a creche.
“Unsupervised children can pose risks not only to themselves but also to other customers and our team.
“We remain committed to being a family-friendly pub during the day, but to ensure a safe, comfortable, and enjoyable environment for all our guests, we are introducing the following rules regarding children.
“From 7pm onwards, the pub will be an adults-only space, giving adults a child-free atmosphere in the evening while still offering families generous daytime hours. We will be opening from 3pm from next week so there are more daytime hours.”
by OneNormalBloke
26 comments
Loads of pubs don’t allow kids after 7pm and haven’t done for years. Why is this a news story?
I have children and I’m certain pretty much every pub already has a no kids after 7pm rule, it seems quite common.
Isn’t 7pm kids pub curfew mandated in multiple London boroughs?
The Shakespeare and The Prince in Stoke newington, please take note!
Should just bar the bad parents.
The Holly Tree, Forest Gate is like a soft play centre at the weekends. Has an adults only area.
What happened to the good old days when kids could not only go in a pub, but also get served, no questions asked. (do i need a /s ?)
I don’t understand how this is an actual article in a newspaper.
My local has had a “no kids after 7” rule for about 20 years. So we take our kids home at 7. It’s fine and also ENTIRELY REASONABLE.
Good. Pubs are for adults
Crown and Greyhound in Dulwich London is like a bloody daycare even after 7.30pm.
I thought the 7pm thing was a condition of the licence. That’s what I was told when I worked behind a bar.
Why the fuck would you take your kids to the pub anyway unless it’s a harvester or something that has a playground??
It’s a pub. If you’re drinking you’re in no shape to look after children.
There are few enough adult spaces. Pubs should be just that. Children and alcohol don’t mix well IMHO.
About fucking time. You get told off by assertive mums for being a bit merry round their precious darlings – whilst they run around screaming.
Your kids were your choice; not mine.
They should ban the parents who allow their children to run around unsupervised.
my local (the only pub for a sizeable radius) is a total no-go area for anyone over 12 (until about 9pm). total lord of the flies type stuff. why is this in the news? why the hell shouldn’t it be? it’s a big cultural shift. i’m all for whatever keeps pubs from shutting down, but is it really a good revenue stream? how much do children spend at the bar, over someone like me, who feels excluded?
1. Loads of pubs are child free by 7. So much so that we take it as the standard cut off.
2. Pubs are striggling to kerp going, si many welcome the parent pound.
3. Some pubs dont allow children at all, and as a parent I have always bern fine with that.
4. Lots of pubs have become food lead so they welcome families, if wet lead then I get the desire to keep childen to limited access.
5. Being angry at children being childen is the wrong way to look at it, be angry with parents not doing parenting.
6. I love to sit in the pub and have 4 pints, but I dont if I an with my daughter.
7. We have a serious lack of community in the country, and cross generational mixing is an essential element of building community.
I loathe this culture generally. Sure it’s not a good idea to have kids in piss-up pubs, but you go to the continent and kids are in bars and such ’til late and are well-behaved and don’t cause any bother.
British kids? They run amok or are stupified by their parents’ doling out of loud bloody smart media and so they don’t develop manners to act appropriately in pubs and such when they’re old enough to go in by themselves, and generally act like shits. I’m pretty sure this is one of the reasons we have such a poor reputation abroad.
We’ve got a weird loathing of society generally in this country. Sad.
I lived in Walthamstow (William IV is right on the e17e10 boundary) for 10 years and look I know it’s tough for pubs, but man, people were taking the absolute piss. Middle class parents who don’t want their lives to change so unleashed their unsupervised children to run amok so they can keep smashing beers with their mates. By the end I pretty much exclusively went to The Nags Head precisely cos it had a no kids rule. I don’t mind if a pub is a family pub, that’s a good thing, but it’s more parents deciding every pub is a family pub, letting kids run around in pubs with tons of tables and no outside space, or going into a small pub and taking up all the space with prams, lunchboxes and crayons
Good.
Brewdog in Waterloo had kids running around the place at 10:30pm on Saturday. I can live with it if the kids are seated and not being noisy but it’s a place for adults, especially after 7pm.
Had a kid bounce off me when I was returning from the bar with 5 pints. The mums response was to just say how she told him not to run around.
We banned them at 5 from what I remember, caused a few fights when families arrived late to booked parties and had to almost immediately leave. I know childcare is expensive and it’s tough for parents to get out, but nobody wants a screaming baby in a smoking area on a Saturday night.
My local has a no kids after 7 rule and it’s fucking great. I always enjoy being there at 7.05 on a Friday night and watching parents try to argue with the landlady that their precious child is special and should be given an exemption so they can keep drinking. The landlady kicks them out every time.
Good so many pubs and other establishments like coffee shops have become unbearable crèche like environments in Waltham forest, I also find the same for the adults who’ve moved into the area bunch of pompous wankers, the nags head in the village banned kids altogether. The Queens arms and the Castle on the weekend can’t be fucked with it most of the time.
The fourth used to actually be a good pub with good food a shame people didn’t support it then, with the European opening round the corner last thing needed was another pub selling overpriced beers and pizza.
I remember growing up going to pubs with family having to be well behaved at all times, these days it’s a free for all
This used to be a standard thing so good. I’ve been in the Salisbury on Green Lanes which does generally clear out of kids by a certain time but I’ve witnessed parents leave chips and crayons mashed into tables and mess all while allowing kids to run around disturbing others… Parents need to do better enough of this Gentle parenting crap.
The Alma in Crystal Palace doesn’t allow kids under 10 years old full stop.
Comments are closed.