“A Grave Question”: The Children Act and Public House Regulation, c. 1908-1939

Abstract

This article considers the impact of the Children Act 1908 on the regulation of public houses in the period c.1908-39. The Act banned minors under 14 years old from public bars in the attempt to protect them from what were seen by reformers as the inimical influences of licensed premises. The article examines the impact of the Act, illuminating efforts to ensure its strict upkeep during the Great War. Also explored are the tensions surrounding the Act, and in particular its failure to address problems such as the continued presence of children in the vicinity of licensed premises, typically by pub entrances. Finally, the article considers interwar pro-trade lobbying for the revocation of the 1908 ban as part of a wider campaign encouraging family recreation in pubs.