Head welcomes plans for under-16 energy drink ban

Mitchell Allsopp said energy drinks had a 'noticeable effect' on students

A headteacher has said he is a "big fan" of plans to stop under-16s from buying energy drinks.

Mitchell Allsopp, from The Grove School in Market Drayton, said he banned the drinks from his school and had the "full support of parents", but children sometimes bought their own and hid them in bags.

He said children "run a sugar gauntlet" of shops selling the drinks on the way into school and could be influenced by adults on social media.

Up to a third of UK children are thought to consume these types of drinks every week, and some popular drinks contain more caffeine than two cups of coffee.

Mr Allsopp said: "We do see energy drinks arrive in school and we've got a policy where we'll confiscate and literally pour them away."

But despite this, he said "a minority" still bring them, often buying them from shops on their route in to school.

He said there was a noticeable effect on students drinking them.

"They're not able to regulate themselves correctly," he said, adding that they often peak and then drop in energy levels very quickly, aswell as being distracted.

Under current labelling rules, any drink, other than tea or coffee, with over 150mg of caffeine per litre requires a warning label saying: "High caffeine content. Not recommended for children or pregnant or breastfeeding women."

Young people have smaller bodies and their brains are still developing, which can make them more sensitive to caffeine, say experts.

For most adults, up to 400mg of caffeine a day - about four cups of instant coffee or five cups of tea - is safe.

Mr Allsopp said his biggest worry was the energy drinks were "sometimes the only thing that they're having in their day".

He said about 100 of his 900 pupils took advantage of their breakfast club, to give them a healthy start to the day and he tried to educate the children on the effects of energy drinks.

But he said: "The ban at shops is really important."

The new law in England, proposed by health secretary Wes Streeting, would stop anyone under the age of 16 buying energy drinks such as Red Bull, Monster and Prime from shops, restaurants, cafes, vending machines and online.

Mr Streeting said the government had "been called upon" to act by parents, teachers and children.