Song and dance over after-ball party guidelines

By REBECCA WALSH

New guidelines to promote safe after-ball parties for secondary students have sparked a mixed response from students and principals.

The Alcohol Advisory Council will publish guidelines on student safety at after-balls in the next few months following perennial worries of after-ball parties leading to possible unsafe sex, drink driving and fighting among young people.

Some principals support any move to create a safer environment for students and others have banned the parties altogether.

The issue of underage drinking was raised this week when Morrinsville College principal John Inger said the school planned to randomly breath-test students at its next social.

Students came up with the idea after drug and alcohol problems at a social held in April - four students were stood down from the school for three days.

Ron Tustin, Northern region manager for ALAC, said the guidelines were for those helping young people to plan after-balls and would pull together successful initiatives from around the country.

They would focus on issues such as security, transport and host responsibility.

But Allan Peachey, principal of Rangitoto College, said he did not "buy into" guidelines and it was not unreasonable to expect standards of students.

"If you reach the point where you have to have guidelines for students' behaviour after the ball, why bother having a ball? ... I expect my students to be better than that."

Mr Peachey said he had no problem with small gatherings at someone's home but he had banned parties at venues where the sole purpose was to drink.

"We have had that experience at Rangitoto College once or twice."

He believed attitudes to alcohol were coming close to making school balls untenable. The lowering of the drinking age to 18 meant many senior students were legally able to drink and questioned why they shouldn't be able to do so at school balls.

"If people are saying it's not possible for young people to relax and enjoy the company of others without alcohol, I will say I think the time for the school ball is over."

But Martin Elliott, principal of Hamilton's Fraser High School, said drinking at after-ball parties was a reality and was almost a "rite of passage".

"I would rather work with those people organising the after-ball party to ensure they are safe places for our kids than pretend they are not going to happen and bury my head in the sand."

For years Mr Elliott had worked with students organising after-ball parties and visited the venue beforehand.

Last year former students, who were now in their 20s, took responsibility for the party. Police were notified and security guards were employed.

Mr Elliott acknowledged that some students drank too much and were sick but he believed most had a responsible attitude to alcohol. Often it was people from outside the school who caused the trouble.

A group of senior secondary students spoken to by the Herald said there was always plenty of alcohol available at parties before and after the school ball.

The students, who did not want to be named, said the school ball was a chance to "scrub up a bit" and have a good time. The after-party would be different.

"It'll be rowdy. There will be a lot of alcohol around. I think at the ball it's like you don't want rowdy, drunken people around," one 16-year-old said.

But the teenagers did not believe after-ball parties were anything to do with the school. It was something that should be discussed between parents and students.

One 17-year-old said most students were "pretty sensible" and should be able to drink at private functions. The guidelines were a good idea. "Security is important. Alcohol is a catalyst for a lot of fights."

Kelston Girls' High School principal Linda Fox said after-ball functions were a matter between parents and students.

She supported any guidelines that helped to raise students' awareness of their own safety.