Hosting a safe party for teens

Decide on a guest list. Check people off the list as they arrive - this keeps gate crashers out. Try using some form of ID for entry e.g. student card, paper invitation.

Have enough adults to supervise. A good ratio is one adult to every 7-10 guests. You could invite a couple of the parents of guests to help supervise.

Decide in advance what happens if someone becomes sick or is seriously injured e.g. call their parents, emergency services.

Set a start and finish time for the party. Guests should know when to arrive and when to leave. This helps guests arrange pick up times at the end of the night.

Consider hiring a security guard or two. They can monitor the coming and going of guests throughout the party and be on hand to manage difficult situations that may arise.

Register the party with local police. They can tell you about local laws regarding underage drinking and noise disturbance. They can also be there quickly if anything goes wrong and you need help.

Let the neighbours know you’re hosting a party in case they need to make arrangements as well.

Organise and buy a lot of food and non-alcoholic drinks. Make sure you have plenty to offer on the day.

Set ground rules about what behaviour is expected. Be clear about whether or not drinking alcohol or smoking is okay. Try reaching out to the guests’ parents and let them know the ground rules too.

If a party is shared on social media it’s hard to control who sees it - some parents avoid this by only using paper or email invitations. If you set up a Facebook event, make sure it’s ‘Private’ and ‘Invite Only’.

Negotiate with your teen about who is responsible for cleaning up after the party. 

If using social media to invite people, only add the people on the guest list and maybe their parents too. But remember there’s no guarantee of privacy when using social media. 

Serve plenty of food at regular intervals throughout the party. If you carry around the food on platters it gives you a chance to check in with guests and see how they’re travelling.

If someone faints or becomes unconscious consider calling an ambulance – people can die from a drug overdose or alcohol poisoning. Don’t let them ‘sleep it off’ without first checking on their safety.

Some parents prefer not to drink on the day so they can remain alert and handle any difficult situations that might arise.

Supervise pickups at the end of the night, especially if guests have been drinking. Keep them safe until their ride arrives.

Allowing intoxicated guests to walk home could be dangerous. If they can’t arrange a ride home consider letting them stay the night.

Have a security guard or an adult monitoring the entry/exit. Only let people into the party who are on the guest list and check them off the list when they arrive.

Make soft drinks, juice and water freely available.

Turn down the music late at night – the noise curfew varies by state and territory so check your local laws.