Responsible service & Challenge 25 policy

What you need to know

The plain-English guidance that comes with this document.

• This policy is your due-diligence defence and your licence's best friend. An age-verification policy is a mandatory condition of every alcohol licence, and if you're ever prosecuted for an unlawful sale, showing a written policy plus trained, signed-up staff plus a refusals log is exactly the defence the law allows. Without it you're exposed.
• Three offences, not one — train all of them. Underage sales get the attention, but serving someone who's drunk and proxy sales are equally criminal and equally likely to feature in a licence review. Bar staff need to be as confident cutting off a drunk regular as they are asking a young customer for ID.
• Refusing a drunk customer is the hard skill — back your staff. It's the refusal most likely to cause conflict, so staff need to know the pub will support them, and need a calm script: stop serving, offer water, help them leave, log it. A manager should step in if it escalates. This protects your staff, your other customers, and your licence.
• Challenge 25, and know your ID. The safety margin of "under 25" makes the under-18 judgement manageable. The mandatory condition requires ID with a photo, date of birth and a holographic/UV mark — so passports, photocard licences and PASS-accredited cards are the safe list. Don't accept a photo on a phone.
• Spiking is now its own offence — treat every report seriously. Recent law made spiking a specific criminal offence, and schemes like "Ask for Angela" have made pubs a front line for customer welfare. Believe the person, keep them safe, preserve the glass, log it, and call the police. How you respond can matter enormously to someone.
• Under-18s on the premises is fine — serving them alcohol isn't. Children can generally be in most pubs with an adult, and can buy soft drinks and alcohol-free products; the line is alcohol, and the risk is an adult buying it for them. Make sure staff know the difference so they neither serve unlawfully nor turn away lawful custom.
• Display it, sign it, keep it. A signed copy per member of staff is your training evidence; Challenge 25 and welfare-scheme notices should be on display. Revisit the policy when the law moves and adapt the welfare scheme and drugs approach to your pub and area.