Young people

Useful information regarding 13 to 18-year olds.

Restrictions on Employment whilst your child is under compulsory school age

England, Wales & Scotland

In general, a child under 13 years cannot work unless they are engaged in modelling/TV or other media work or paper/milk rounds. Exceptions to this would be babysitting/odd jobs for family and friends etc. Bylaws exist in most local authority areas allowing children aged 13 and over to be able to take up light work such as paper rounds – however the employer must apply for a licence. It should be noted there is no legal minimum age for a babysitter paid or unpaid as the responsibility for the child remains solely with the parents. However, babysitters over 16 years of age can be held responsible and face conviction if they deliberately harm or leave a child in their care.

Working time restrictions

13 – 14-year olds

during term time, only allowed to work for two hours on weekdays and Sundays
during term time, only allowed to work for five hours on Saturdays
during a school holiday, they can work 25 hours max a week as long as they do not exceed five hours on a week day or a Saturday and not more than 2 hrs on Sunday
cannot work before 7.00 am or after 7.00 pm on any day

15 and 16-year olds

15 or 16-year olds working while still at school, their rights are almost identical to those of 13 – 14-year olds. However, during school holidays they can to work for up to 35 hrs per week as long as they do not exceed eight hours on a weekday and Saturdays and not more than 2 hrs on Sunday.

16 to 18-year olds

No longer at school and aged 16 to 18, the law refers to them as a ‘young worker’. Because they are no longer at school, there are fewer restrictions on when they can work and for how long, but there are still some rules.

England

In England, your leaving age depends on when you were born. You can leave school on the last Friday in June as long as you’ll be 16 by the end of that year’s summer holidays.

But you must stay in some form of education or training until you are 18

Your options are:

full-time education – e.g. at a school or college
an apprenticeship or traineeship
part-time education or training – as well as being employed, self-employed or volunteering for 20 hours or more a week.

Scotland

In Scotland, if you turn 16 between 1 March and 30 September you can leave school after 31 May of that year.

If you turn 16 between 1 October and the end of February, you can leave at the start of the Christmas holidays in that school year.

Wales

In Wales, you can leave school on the last Friday in June, as long as you’ll be 16 by the end of that school year’s summer holidays.

Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland, if you turn 16 during the school year (between 1 September and 1 July) you can leave school after 30 June.

If you turn 16 between 2 July and 31 August, you can’t leave school until 30 June the following year.

The parting of the ways

Moving out of the family home – whilst for some this is planned and prepared for, such as teenagers moving into further education this often means leaving home for the first time to go to College or University, into Halls of Residence or ‘digs’ such as shared accommodation with other students. For others moving out may be due to various other reasons and sometimes not at all planned. Such as conflict within the family where a situation is no longer tolerable, or a teenager just wanting to spread their wings and go it alone or move in with a friend or partner.

Whichever of the above applies or for any other reason it will no doubt be a worrying time for any parent as to how their offspring will cope and manage away from their home environment.

Teenagers can leave home or be asked to leave their home once they reach 16 years of age, wherever possible this is discouraged by the Authorities such as Social Services as there is very little support available. Local Councils are under no obligation to give preference to teenagers and will always encourage other options or returning home.

The alternatives to living ‘rough on the streets’ may be moving in with a friend or relative, finding a homeless hostel, the YMCA or a bed-sit. Of course, most of the aforementioned will require financial means. The only benefit available initially to a teenager who has no job is the Job Seekers Allowance, or if the teenager already has a job it is more than likely he/she is on low wages, if either of these is the case there may be additional help with housing benefit.

Maintaining some contact with the teenager even through family/friends especially if the parting was on bad terms is always recommended as whatever caused the problem may be resolved at some point in the future and a relationship re-built even if at a distance, as opposed to a total loss of contact.

Rights and responsibilities

Consumption of alcohol and smoking

It is a criminal offence to give alcohol to a child under five (unless it is given by a doctor on health grounds or is given in the case of sickness or for some other urgent reason).

Between the ages of 5 and 16 years, there is no legal restriction on the consumption of alcohol at home or on other private premises.

It is a criminal offence for someone under 18 to buy alcohol or drink alcohol in a pub. It is also a criminal offence for someone to buy alcohol for someone else if the other person is under 18 and the alcohol is to be drunk in a bar or a pub or in the street.

Anyone working in a pub will be committing a criminal offence if they sell or allow someone under 18 to drink alcohol in a pub. However, they will have a defence if they can prove that they had no reason to suspect that the person was under 18.

If police suspect a young person of possessing alcohol (or something they believe to be alcohol) in a public place other than licensed premises, they can confiscate it. The police can also confiscate alcohol (or what they think may be alcohol) from someone of any age if they suspect some of it has been, or is intended to be, drunk by someone under 18 in a public place. The police can arrest anyone who tries to prevent them confiscating what they believe to be alcohol.

It is illegal to sell cigarettes, tobacco or cigarette papers to anyone under 18.

Smoking is banned in all public places and workplaces, whatever your age.

Contraception

There are no age restrictions on giving contraceptive advice and supplies. As long as they understand the possible risks, a doctor is allowed to prescribe contraception if a child is under 16 without the consent or knowledge of a parent.

By law, your doctor must encourage a child to discuss with the parents the fact they have been to see them about contraception. However, they will only tell parents or another adult that the child has been to see them in very exceptional circumstances. An example of exceptional circumstances is when a doctor believes they are at risk of serious harm. They would always discuss this with the child first, before telling anyone else.

Abortion

Whatever age a child is, they have the right to a confidential consultation with a doctor about the possibility of having an abortion, provided they make it clear that they don’t want a parent to be told.

If they are under the age of 16, they can have an abortion if two doctors agree that they have good reasons under the abortion laws. They don’t need the parent’s consent, as long as the doctors believe:

the child understands the decision, and
it would be in their best interests to have an abortion without the parent’s consent.

However, doctors usually prefer the matter to be discussed with the parents and will try to persuade the child to do so.

If a doctor has a moral objection to abortion, they should make this clear and arrange for the child to see someone else who is willing to help.

If the child does not want to see their own GP, they can get help from another agency, such as a local family planning centre or a Brook Advisory Centre. If it is a young woman under 17 and seeking advice on abortion, agencies such as the Family Planning Association will require one of the parents to attend an interview with them. If they are under 16 and are to have a legal abortion in Great Britain, one of the parents must travel with them.

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