Alcohol is flooding our health system
January 27, 2013 at 12:07 am | Posted in Security | 2 CommentsTags: alcohol, BYO, child, death, drinking, duty of care, event, hospital, injury, kid, legislation, Naomi Oakley, parent, party, prevention, safe parties, secondary supply, teen, teenage, teenager, tragedy, U-NOME Security, youth
WA’s new party laws won’t prevent this.
Here’s a lovely article that I read with interest, then dismay: Drunk callouts swamp ambos.
Did you know that Western Australia’s stretched ambulance crews are treating ten drunks a day?!
I find this and other figures sobering.
What a pity other people don’t!
Lie of the land
In WA, more than seven teenagers a week are taken to hospital for intoxication.
Unfortunately, the State’s new reactive party legislation will not prevent alcohol abuse at teen and young adult events.
Whether these parties have supplied or BYO alcohol, it must be managed and served properly.
The only way parents can ensure this is to have an alcohol management plan that includes Responsible Serving of Alcohol.
If they don’t, more and more children will be carted off to hospital – or worse.
Shame game
Parents who collect their intoxicated son or daughter from a party should ask (or be asked) a serious question:
How did they allow this to happen to their child?
I have first-hand experience of parents who’ve:
- Picked up their unconscious child from a party.
- Detoured to a hospital to get their kid’s stomach pumped.
- Collected a kid from hospital who was rushed by ambulance from a party.
- Sent the party host the ambulance and/or hospital bill!
Seriously: does this look like a recipe for ‘good times’ to you?
Parental guidance
It’s really quite simple: adults hosting events must be made accountable
Until we have a party management system that requires parents to apply for a permit that ensures they fully discharge their duty of care, kids will continue to end up in hospitals.
And coffins.
So what will it take?
Must we wait until your family is torn apart by (totally preventable) injury and loss?
The answer is right in front of you.
Please read this and think about it!
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
It’s NO ‘accident’!
July 16, 2012 at 7:34 am | Posted in Security | 2 CommentsTags: accident, alcohol, car, crash, death, drinking, duty of care, event, injury, kid, legislation, Naomi Oakley, party, Party Plan Checklist, prevention, safe parties, teen, teenage, teenager, tragedy, U-NOME Security, youth
Youth + Intoxication = Disaster.
In my view, an accident is something you have no control over.
If, for instance:
- you’re driving a car;
- a large spider drops on you from behind the sun visor and
- you crash into a tree,
that’s an accident.
If, on the other hand:
- you’re rushing and driving at speed;
- you tailgate the car in front of you and
- you rear-end them when they brake,
that’s no accident.
That’s plain carelessness.
Media scrum
Sadly, the tragedies listed below were no accident.
Had proper planning been in place, these teen celebrations would have been spared the associated injury and death:
- Five young men killed in high speed crash.
- Young girl killed and four injured in smash.
- Dead girl’s friends claim drink was spiked with ecstasy.
- Man stabbed in chest after house party.
- Man who died after king hit ‘wanted a fight’.
- One dead and three injured in car ‘accident’.
When is enough enough?!
To protect our children from serious injury and death, parents wanting to hold a teen event must:
- Apply for a party permit.
- Have a proper party plan in place.
- Discharge their duty of care to guests and the community before, during and after the event.
But until we introduce legislation to ensure parents do these things, we’re doomed to witness yet more carnage.
Parents must realise it isn’t just about their child’s celebration. Failing to plan an event can all-too-easily lead to the planning of funerals.
As a parent of a teenager myself, I beg you to act responsibly and support my positive proposal for change.
Unless, of course, your child’s happiness and welfare mean nothing to you.
In which case our society is surely lost.
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Death rattle
June 12, 2012 at 7:05 am | Posted in Security | Leave a commentTags: crowd control, death, drinking, duty of care, event, fight, gang, grievous bodily harm, injury, kid, legislation, Naomi Oakley, parent, party, police, prevention, safe parties, security, teen, teenage, teenager, tragedy, U-NOME Security, violence, youth
Our very own killing fields.
What’s up, Western Australia?!
From what we’ve read these last few months, you really are dying to have fun.
Since the start of March, 40 of your teen parties have hit the media for appalling reasons.
In case you’ve been lying drunk in a ditch or king-hit by a bottle, here’s a fool’s guide to the most serious incidents:
25 March. Teen in coma. Police officer kicked unconscious.
1 April. Guest in hospital with serious head injuries from gatecrasher missiles.
6 May. Four teens smashed, slashed and robbed by 30 partygoers.
8 June. Police cars damaged in party violence.
9 June. Machete-wielding thugs fracture teen’s skull and smash property.
These totally preventable situations are injuring your kids, destroying your communities and costing you (and the rest of us!) a fortune in wasted taxes.
When will we see positive action?
How many more children must be maimed to create change in your State?
Are we Australia?
Or Syria?
Parents must be accountable for these events.
As things stand, they don’t need any kind of plan or permit to throw a party for their child.
If your kid were involved in one of the traumas listed above, would you want justice?
If you hold a party that goes wrong, do you really think you’ll avoid a criminal investigation and/or civil suit?
Checking your sickening stats, it’s clear it’s only a matter of time till WA mourns its next dead reveller.
Instead of praying it’s not your child, or hoping for change, why not be the change you want to see?
We need legislative reform. It’s not impossible. It’s not even hard. Here’s the plan. Read it!
Can’t you see the time has come to get with the program?
Or will it take that knock at your door to rouse you from your stupor?
It’s your baby.
Literally.
So show some guts.
And maturity.
Make the call.
Before it’s too late.
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Pull the plug on energy drinks!
June 8, 2012 at 10:17 pm | Posted in Security | Leave a commentTags: alcohol, bottle, drinking, duty of care, energy drink, injury, kid, legislation, Naomi Oakley, parent, party, safe parties, secondary supply, teen, teenage, teenager, tragedy, U-NOME Security, youth
We must stop playing with fire.
As I continue to lobby government stakeholders in relation to safe teen parties, yet more tragedy unfolds.
Another young life wasted. A death that could have been avoided.
Alcohol-related trauma is one of the biggest issues at teen events. My submission takes a holistic approach to its resolution.
Sadly, it looks like it’s going to take many more deaths (or perhaps the death of a politician’s child?) for any serious legislative change to take place.
At the very least, we can introduce an amendment to the Victorian Government’s new Secondary Supply Legislation.
For instance, if we could:
- include bring your own (BYO) alcohol;
- underline the duty of care of hosts; and
- stress the responsible serving of alcohol,
I’m certain this would dramatically reduce the carnage we see each weekend.
Most of the parties I’ve planned and managed over the years are BYO events. The breakdown of alcohol brought into venues (chiefly homes and halls) is as follows:
- 40% pre-mixed (either commercially packaged booze or home-made hooch like cider bombs).
- 30% beer and wine (bottle and cask).
- 30% energy drinks (either mixed with grog or on their own).
My staff and I manage energy drinks the same as alcohol because we’ve witnessed first-hand how they can dramatically change people and even risk life.
We ensure that all drinks brought into an event are labelled and managed correctly by responsible adults.
That’s the proper execution of the duty of care parents have to kids coming to a party they’ve organised.
Anything less is a recipe for chaos, property damage, personal injury, expensive litigation … and death.
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Failure to plan = planning to fail
May 28, 2012 at 3:19 am | Posted in Security | Leave a commentTags: accident, child, crowd control, drinking, duty of care, event, injury, kid, legislation, loss, Naomi Oakley, parent, party, Party Plan Checklist, police, safe parties, security, social media, teen, teenage, teenager, tragedy, U-NOME Security, venue, youth
How to keep the cops from your door.
The mayhem caused by unplanned teen parties is alarming. With no experience of planning a successful teen event, parents are continually putting kids in harm’s way.
As Managing Director of U-Nome Security and Founder of Safe Partying Australia, I’ve planned and worked at more than 700 teenage parties.
Every weekend, I see first-hand exactly why parties are causing tragedy across our nation.
I often wonder how many injuries in the home result from mismanaged parties. Though this was a mature-aged event, it highlights the risks of homes unsuitable for celebrations.
Sadly, this sort of tragedy is far from rare.
Today’s teen parties are more likely to be held in homes. This is because most public venues no longer support them.
To make things worse, there are many more teen events.
20 years ago, people celebrated turning 21. These days, every birthday from 13 on is seen as ‘significant’.
I believe this spike in birthday celebrations is due to American television now available online or via cable in most homes. Our kids are watching teen movies and music videos that promote the coolness of ‘Sweet 16’ and other birthdays.
So, with more events in more homes, we have problems.
While most private dwellings have limited public liability cover in case something goes wrong, it’s far wiser to prevent problems (and subsequent claims) before they occur.
To this end, I inspect every party venue in advance. The many issues I find and flag include:
- Swimming pools.
- Rickety balconies designed and made for domestic use only.
- Extremely steep stair wells.
- Homes in the middle of renovations.
- Homes on busy roads.
Combine these risk elements with underage drinking and explosive social networking and you literally have a recipe for disaster.
I believe that if we had legislation to protect kids at parties, it would:
- Increase community security.
- Ensure our young people return home safely.
- Minimise injury claims stemming from teen party mayhem.
- Reduce the financial impact on our community (e.g. wasted emergency service call-outs and pressure on our already-stretched health system).
You may think this is all someone else’s problem.
It isn’t.
Will you wait until your child fails to come home?
And two grim-faced police officers wake you at 3 am
with a heart-stopping knock at your door?
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
The west ain’t the best!
May 15, 2012 at 3:50 am | Posted in Security | Leave a commentTags: bottle, child, crowd control, event, fight, gang, injury, kid, legislation, Naomi Oakley, parent, party, police, prevention, safe parties, security, teen, teenage, teenager, tragedy, U-NOME Security, venue, violence, youth
Heading to a sad state of affairs.
Perth has been having so many major problems with teen parties that I have to say my piece.
Since the start of March, I’ve counted more than 30 teen events that have hit the media for all the wrong reasons.
The most serious incident was last week when gatecrashers attacked, stabbed and hospitalised four young departing guests.
These figures show that emergency service providers are being tied up unnecessarily every weekend.
Dealing with teen party chaos is stopping units from attending (or preventing!) more legitimate jobs such as road accidents, serious assaults and other crimes.
I shudder even to estimate the cost of using our precious police and ambulance services to clean up the messes stupid parents create!
Western Australia’s long coastline and party-friendly climate have a dark side: WA ‘leads’ the nation in teen party mayhem.
As a result, this otherwise impressive State must make radical changes in relation to teen events.
You may think I’m like a computer virus – always popping up in your face.
But if your child doesn’t make it home from their next party, you’ll wish someone (anyone!) had answered these vital questions I keep raising.
Every single party drama I’ve read about could have been avoided if we had suitable legislation in place.
It’s crazy …
You need a permit to own a dog, dig a pool or build a verandah.
Yet you don’t need a permit to responsibly plan and manage an event that ensures the safety of guests, neighbours and the community.
The days of ‘quiet’ teen parties for up to 100 kids are over.
Make a stand, WA, before it’s too late!
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Teen parties & sexual assault
May 2, 2012 at 5:30 am | Posted in Security | 1 CommentTags: alcohol, child, crowd control, death, drinking, duty of care, event, injury, kid, legislation, loss, Naomi Oakley, parent, party, prevention, safe parties, security, teen, teenage, teenager, tragedy, U-NOME Security, venue, youth
A tragic combination.
The link between teen parties and sexual assault is real and alarming. Here’s the latest horrific story.
How many more times must this happen before we wake up from this nightmare?!
I was recently involved in a situation that resulted in a young birthday boy being charged with sexual assault at a party. Prior to this event, I warned the host parents to control alcohol and organise responsible adults to help manage the party.
Alas, my advice was ignored.
Countless times I’ve seen girls passed out from too much alcohol on vacant blocks near parties. Usually, their girlfriends abandon them to pursue their own (unsafe) sexploits in the bushes and the dark.
Teens leaving parties by themselves is also a common scenario.
In my security company, staff don’t just help parents monitor booze-related issues during an event. At the end of the night, they also engage with kids to convince them to head home with a group of friends or make alternative transport arrangements.
Unfortunately, in most cases, kids with a few drinks under their belt feel invincible.
Worse, there are sick individuals (teen and adult) eager to take advantage of them in and after these events.
Parents who host parties can minimise the risks if they provide adequate duty of care by assigning responsible (and sober!) parents to:
- Monitor bedrooms, toilets and hiding places.
- Establish how guests are getting home.
The latter precaution may prevent kids from walking home alone or entering a vehicle driven by someone who is unlicensed, unknown to them, or too intoxicated to drive.
Each weekend, as I head home at around 2 am from working at a party, I see two or three young women drunk, alone and wearing barely a stitch of clothing.
I firmly believe that legislative change in relation to teen events could prevent the horrendous situations I’ve cited.
I want my kids to get home from parties safely.
How about you?
Click here to learn more.
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Who pays the mortgage?
April 26, 2012 at 12:32 am | Posted in Security | 1 CommentTags: alcohol, child, crowd control, death, drinking, duty of care, event, fight, injury, kid, legislation, Naomi Oakley, neighbour, parent, party, police, prevention, safe parties, secondary supply, security, teen, teenage, teenager, U-NOME Security, violence, youth
Truth is far worse than fiction.
The things people say!
Here are things parents commonly say before a teen party.
Along with the reality.
‘We know them; they’re all nice boys.’
Then they drink.
‘The kids will be okay in the pool while they drink.’
Then we have two broken noses and a brawl at the end of the night.
‘Our balcony will be fine for this party of 100.’
No it won’t.
‘We’ve had a stern talk to our son and he said they won’t drink much.’
Yes they will.
‘Our son thinks we don’t need security.’
Yes you do.
‘Our daughter doesn’t want the drinks managed.’
When we find two half-naked girls passed out behind the property, we call an ambulance.
‘They’re a quiet bunch.’
No they’re not.
‘They’ve promised to keep the guest list to 100.’
150 patrons later, two guests have been hit, security staff have been injured, the police are outnumbered and we need back up. Fast.
‘Do we really need to cloak bags?’
Once we start finding hidden drugs and booze, they get the picture.
Take out
This message is about keeping our teens alive.
Parents, having a party isn’t just about you and your child.
It’s about:
- Duty of care to guests.
- Responsible alcohol serving and management.
- Keeping parties safe for any staff attending.
- Looking after your neighbours.
- Ensuring kids leave your home (and get to theirs) safely.
If you don’t want to do this right or you can’t make the tough decisions to make it happen,
DON’T HAVE A PARTY!
Or the next teen death may be on you.
Parents must be made accountable.
We need legislative change.
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Gatecrashers – a protected species!
March 13, 2012 at 9:56 pm | Posted in Security | Leave a commentTags: alcohol, bottle, cell phone, crowd control, death, drinking, duty of care, event, kid, legislation, mobile phone, Naomi Oakley, parent, party, police, prevention, safe parties, security, teen, teenage, teenager, U-NOME Security, venue, violence, youth
Today’s gatecrashers: faster, smarter & potentially lethal.
Around 90% of teen parties go off the rails because BYO alcohol isn’t controlled as it’s brought onsite. The host/parent who manages this common problem is almost there.
Yet the remaining 10% of teen events fail because of a different problem: gatecrashers.
I’ve worked hundreds of teen parties. I’ve had gatecrashers threaten to cut my throat.
Here’s my gatecrasher spotter’s guide – collated from years of (very nasty) experiences.
Common gatecrasher characteristics
- Teenaged.
- Wears a cap (usually backwards).
- Carries a backpack (with clinking booze).
- Smells of alcohol.
- Is often smug.
- May carry an item that can be used as a weapon (e.g. empty bottle, garden tool).
Common streetwise (smart-arse) remarks
- ‘We have a Facebook invite.’
- ‘We aren’t coming into [INSERT HOST NAME]’s party.’
- ‘We’re just waiting out the front for [INSERT NAME].’
- ‘It’s a free country; we can stay here.’
- ‘You aren’t the police.’
- ‘We’ll have our own party.’
- ‘We have more people coming to our party.’
Caution
While determining gatecrasher issues is extremely difficult, you can assess your risk.
For instance, your chance of gatecrashers increases dramatically if:
- Your venue is close to shops or a railway station.
- Other parties in the area have had gatecrashers.
- Your guests live locally.
Phone a million friends
Mobile phones are the real killer. Most guests carry one – with SMS or social media access to their mates.
The best counter is automatic mandatory cloaking of all bags (including clutches) on entry.
You can also spread the word that anyone caught inviting people via mobile will be asked to leave.
Yet this doesn’t stop guests carrying phones in their pockets.
If a guest is standing near a fence, continually on the phone, you can be sure they:
- Have told others about your party.
- Are waiting to help them breach a weak point in your perimeter.
Solution
Parents hosting teen parties have a duty of care to provide a safe environment for guests.
Incompetent amateurs and overconfident adults CAN NOT stop a party from rapidly getting out of hand due to gatecrashers.
On the other hand, experienced, professional crowd controllers:
- Check guests via a written list.
- Monitor entry and do property walk-throughs.
- Patrol surrounding streets.
This is really important. I can’t stress it enough.
If you spot kids hanging round and can’t get them to move them on, call the Police immediately. A few kids can increase fivefold in just 20 minutes.
And if you think gatecrashers are just children out for a bit of fun, think again: today’s parties can be fatal.
Gatecrashers know what they want, and are well-versed in getting it.
They’ll run rings round you.
Conclusion
Parties go out of control because parents don’t take charge and plan.
If parents can’t be bothered, it falls to councils.
Why? Because of the destruction these events are wreaking on our communities.
There are no excuses.
And the answer is right here.
Action?
Gatecrashers are certainly a vile breed.
But cop this: it’s not an offence for them to enter your property!
While I can tell you how to spot and stop them, I can’t explain why our laws protect them.
That’s up to our leaders.
Which means it’s up to you.
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Teen dreaming
February 29, 2012 at 9:42 pm | Posted in Security | Leave a commentTags: alcohol, child, crowd control, drinking, duty of care, event, kid, legislation, Naomi Oakley, nightmare, parent, party, police, safe parties, teen, teenage, teenager, U-NOME Security, venue, youth
Don't turn your child's party into a nightmare.
I’m concerned at the growing number of licensed venues being used for teen parties. They raise issues parents need to know.
Venues see teen events as easy money, but rarely convey the legal implications to parents.
Two weeks ago, another gatecrasher horror story hit the media.
A venue is liable for the event it hosts. It risks massive penalties for breaching liquor laws.
I recently handled a 16th birthday at a tennis club. There were huge problems with 16 and 17 year olds accessing alcohol via friends.
Had Police or Commission for Gambling & Liquor Regulation (VCGLR) Compliance Inspectors turned up, the party would’ve instantly been shut down.
A disaster for the birthday girl.
These authorities often go undercover to do random venue checks. So you never know when they’re going to pop up.
Bum steer
I spoke with Police about my tennis club drama.
They said it wasn’t something I should worry about, as it related to the venue.
This didn’t sound right to me.
If I’m asked to send my staff to control a teen event, I research the venue ahead of time for my client to see if it’s suitable and safe.
So I called VCGLR and found that my suspicions were correct.
Tangled web
Most licensed venues wishing to host teen parties require a specific limited licence to do so.
If a tennis or bowling club has a club licence, only a member of the club (or their relative) can host a party. On the day, every person attending must be signed in by the member.
You also need a ratio of one responsible adult for every ten underage teens to ensure they don’t drink.
Football clubs have a different type of licence that permits underage kids at the venue until a set time (e.g. 11 pm) after which they must leave. This applies to awards nights and parties.
If a licensed cafe hosts your party, the above ratio of adults to teens applies. Parents MUST supervise all guests and ensure no underage alcohol consumption occurs.
Better safe than sorry
As you can see, it’s complicated.
In short, if you want to host a teen party at a sporting club, cafe or anywhere else with a liquor licence, you should contact VCGLR (or the relevant liquor licensing commission in your state) for accurate information.
While you’re at it, get them to email the info in writing, so you have all the details of your enquiry. You may need it.
The best way to avoid this tangled web is to use venues that don’t have a liquor licence.
Unfortunately, with teen parties, this leaves only private homes and limited public venues like halls.
If you’re a parent seeking a practical way to handle alcohol at teen parties, drop me a line and I’ll send you information about our ‘booze bag’.
It’s a proven method that can be used anywhere kids bring booze.
Naomi Oakley, Founder, Safe Partying Australia.
Naomi Oakley
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