Don’t be a mad man on Mad Monday! Celebrate safely!
The season is only just ending for some winter clubs and unfortunately, Mad Monday celebrations are already making the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Planning a celebration for your teammates can be tough, but we’ve compiled a list of tips to help you cover yourselves when it comes to alcohol.
If you are organising an official end-of-season celebration for your club consider these tips in your planning:
* Promote your club’s Code of Conduct before the event so everyone knows what’s expected of them.
* Ensure club members are being served by "RSA (Responsible Service of Alcohol) trained bar staff and that they are well aware of who’s underage: Golden Square Football Netball Club in Victoria for instance, has implemented a wrist band policy for their events. Wrist bands are provided to everyone aged over 18 years. This helps ensure no person under 18 can consume alcohol while at the clubrooms.
* Stop service of alcohol during end-of-season speeches or presentations. This will help reduce the chance of high levels of intoxication and allows everyone to focus on the person who’s speaking.
* Provide plenty of free water, soft drink and other non-alcoholic drinks as well as plenty of food: At their social events, Yarra Junction Football and Netball Club provide free water and soft drink to their designated drivers. They also serve hot food throughout the evening to ensure that members have lots of options available to them besides alcohol.
* Provide safe transport options such as taxi "vouchers, mini bus or designated drivers and communicate this prior to the event: Strathalbyn Football Club has gone the extra mile to ensure their members get home safely. A designated driver ferries club patrons home safely in the club’s own ‘shuttlecock’ mini-van.
* Hold a debrief session after the event to assess how it all went and to help you consider what you can do differently next year.
* Have fun!
The Australian Drug Foundation is Australia’s leading body committed to preventing alcohol and other drug problems in communities around the nation.
Last Modified on 26/09/2013 14:05