The debate over soft play centres serving alcohol resurfaces
Queries over the appropriateness of soft play centres serving alcohol to parents have been raised once again in online debates this week. But where does the public stand on this blurring of the lines for venues and are their concerns still valid? db finds out.
Venues that are a blend of different things can be a commonality, but a soft play centre can conjure all kinds of feelings amongst parents. Some are housed on business parks, some inside restaurant and venues as an addition to an already licensed site looking to attract families. One in particular caused a stir this week after its “Play Late” sessions, which ate also housed in a church, gaining extra interest for highlighting that while the children play, the parents can enjoy a glass of wine at the on-site bar. But where does public debate still stand on this topic and is there scope for the loophole to become more regulated?
Divisive
Despite the discussions being somewhat reasoned and measured, it has become evident that the topic is extremely divisive, especially among online commentators on social media platforms. Back in 2023, and following on from a Manchester soft-play business finding a stash of empty wine bottles in the lavatory, one brewer revealed to db at the time that the reasons behind why drinking at soft-play centres is “no different to parents drinking in a pub garden” was simply because the venue was catering for its captive market.
Kicking off the discussions once again this week, a Hampstead-based soft play centre, named Hullabaloo, revealed that it featured not just a section for children aged between two and 10-years-old where there are three levels featuring slides, crawl tunnels and hidey holes. There is a separate section for babies up to 23 months with a ball pit, puzzles and a sensory mirror. But added to this there was also an extra area for parents in the form of the venue’s Sanctuary Cafe and Bar.
According to reports in the national press, the Sanctuary Cafe and Bar served cake, coffee and wine and had also signed a deal to team up with Pizza Bun London in Hampstead for an additional food offer to boost its trade.
The site, which is open each day between 9am and 5pm is set to host its next Play Late sessions, where parents can drink alcohol at the bar while their children play, on the dates of: 20 March, 10 April and 22 May. Tickets for the sessions cost £5.50 for babies or £7.50 for juniors, yet the adults attending the venue go free.
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Speaking to the drinks business, respondents who felt strongly about the question of whether soft play centres should serve alcohol revealed two sides of an argument – one in favour of being conscientious about drinking and dwell time and another in the form of reduced parental responsibility.
For instance, on BlueSky, Oli Collett proffered the suggestion that “if kids are allowed at tap rooms then adults are allowed to drink at soft play centres”.
A social drinking spot?
Another anonymous skeeter said that they could recall their experiences of soft play centres in their earlier parenting days and remarked: “I remember feeling like a stiff drink wouldn’t go amiss on occasion” but then, levelled off the response to state that “honestly, the noise, the smells, the requirement/desire to supervise/interact, I cant think of a place I’d less like a social drink” and advised: “If you want combine play and drinking head for the pub garden.”
Chiming in, beer fan and BlueSky skeeter Seân Macgabbhan said: “My soft play centre days are behind me thankfully” but recalled that “the one in Lewes served alcohol” but “I was never in the mood in a place like that and never saw anyone being out of their tree. Am sure it must happen sometimes. I’d leave it up to the centre itself.”
‘Running riot’
Another anonymous skeeter added: “Killjoy here, but it’s a no from me. I go with my friends and their 2yo, and already parents/carers often are rarely paying attention. We had lots of older kids running riot in the toddler section last week, with no adults to be seen. Although I don’t know that it could get worse with booze.”
On the X platform, the views on the topic informed db anonymously that “lots of pubs have a soft play centre” while others insisted that play centres serving alcohol shouldn’t just be “allowed” but “should be required”.
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