The Times has an interesting article about Northamptonshire school kids having their lunch in a nearby pub. Their school doesn’t have cooking facilities and the pub is happy to help out at a time when over fifty pubs are closing every week in Britain. Needless to say, a couple of pints of heavy or a glass of cab sauv are strictly off the menu for the pupils.
Not every pub regular would want to share their lunchtime ploughman’s with thirty eight year olds and I can think of at least a handful of boozers that are still slightly sulky at allowing women in, never mind kids. Still, it’s not a bad idea. At least initially, it must be exciting for the children and can only help demystify the pub for them. Who knows, their gentle introduction to pub life might just discourage them from going crazy when they start hitting the bar in their teenage years.
What do you think? Is taking school children to the pub in a very controlled manner a good idea or is it introducing them to an environment that should remain out of bounds until they are older?