How should parents respond to parties with cannabis?

A party with cannabis confronts parents with a difficult question: allow it, forbid it or seek a conversation. The law sets clear limits for this, above all when it comes to protecting minors. Within these limits, parents decide how to react. This article helps you find a position without panic and without playing things down.

What the law prohibits

Use is prohibited in the immediate presence of people under 18 (section 5 KCanG). This also applies at a party where adults and teenagers are together. Anyone who breaks the prohibition commits an administrative offence (section 36 KCanG).

Passing cannabis on to minors is a criminal offence. The basic offence under section 34 KCanG provides for imprisonment of up to three years or a fine. Criminal liability attaches to passing on cannabis, whatever the place. A party at home therefore has no special legal status. Providing cannabis for immediate consumption is also a criminal offence, for example handing over a joint (section 34(1) no. 8 KCanG). If the person is over 21 and hands cannabis to a child or teenager, provides it for consumption or administers it, a particularly serious case generally applies (section 34(3) KCanG). The penalty is then imprisonment from three months to five years.

Before the party: clear agreements

1. Decide who is invited and name the minimum age explicitly.
2. Inform the guests' parents in good time, especially for younger guests.
3. Write down rules on use, alcohol and getting home.
4. Keep an emergency number and a reachable contact person ready.
5. Decide when the party ends and who collects the guests.

Such agreements only work when they are known in advance. A message in the evening usually comes too late.

During the party: a clear statement

If guests bring cannabis, a clear statement is needed. Minors may not use it. Do not allow anything you cannot keep an eye on. A calm, unambiguous stance is more effective than loud prohibition, because it does not escalate the evening.

Watch for signs that someone has taken too much. Anyone who shows nausea, confusion or strong fear needs calm and support. In emergencies, call the emergency number.

Avoiding mixed use

Parties often involve combining substances. Cannabis and alcohol together put a strong strain on the circulation and often lead to nausea and vomiting. Both substances have negative effects on concentration and reaction ability. The risk rises when several substances come together, because their effects can reinforce each other.

It is therefore a good signal for parents to address alcohol and other substances equally. The article on mixed use with alcohol explains the risks in more detail.

After the party: the conversation

Talk with your child about the evening, covering more than just bans. Ask what happened, how they feel and whether help is needed. A factual conversation the next day helps more than a lecture in the night. Note what went well and what you want to do differently next time.

If you notice changes beyond the week, a further step makes sense. The Elterntelefon offers advice on this.

When the party is already under way

Sometimes you only learn during a celebration that cannabis is involved. In that case, a calm and clear approach helps. Speak to the teenagers directly and factually, name the rule, and insist that use in the presence of minors stops. Calm usually works better than volume, even when the situation is uncomfortable.

Involve the parents of the teenagers concerned if necessary. Anyone looking after a party with minors bears responsibility for their safety. In emergencies, the rule is simple: call the emergency number, do not wait.

Guests you do not know

At large parties, there are guests you do not know. A guest list or entry by name helps keep track. If you cannot place a guest, let them in only once this has been clarified. The guest's age should be checked if there is uncertainty.

It is also important to keep an eye on what guests bring if there is a suspicion that cannabis or alcohol is available to minors. A clear announcement at the entrance avoids conflict.

Storage at home

Anyone who has cannabis at home must protect it under section 10 KCanG through suitable measures and safety precautions against access by third parties, in particular children and teenagers. For a party with teenagers, this means that your own supplies must be locked away before guests arrive. Violations can be an administrative offence (section 36 KCanG).

Where you can turn

You can reach the Elterntelefon of Nummer gegen Kummer on 0800 111 0 550. The Sucht & Drogen Hotline can be reached on 01806 313031. An overview of youth protection is provided by the article on the ban on use in the presence of minors. How families set rules at home is shown in the article on family rules. Further guidance is given in the article on the right balance between playing down and dramatising.