Is Alan Sugar right? Should parents send their children out to work at 13?

I agree, glammanana, it is so useful to get something on your CV and to get used to the discipline of getting yourself off to work. Another grandson collects eggs at a duck farm and has to leave home at 6 a.m. to get there on his bike. He found the job himself and earns nearly £10 an hour because most people don't want to wade through duck droppings in a huge barn on a cold morning!

Mine have never been told to look for a job at 13 they choose to go and work a few hours for extra pocket monies,they all had an allowance from DH and I and they have never regretted their decisions.I think it made a great impact on their future careers the boys going on to military service and the experience that they already had held them in good stead for the leadership roles that they achieved in their chosen career.

I agree with you Greatnan and glammanana. When my children were 13, I handed over to them their school dinner money, child benefit and established pocket money, and suggested they start learning to budget their allowance to take account of lunch, entertainment and clothes. I was always prepared to step in and help out if they didn't get the hang of it, and would occasionally buy expensive items like shoes, coats, and of course school uniform.

They did quite a bit of ducking and diving - started making lunch boxes up for a start! I noticed I was giving more lifts in the car to save bus fares. Then, each of them supplemented their allowance in some way, asking if there were extra jobs they could do and offering to do things for neighbours, got paper rounds, younger brother started working with older brother attending computer fayres and got paid for Sunday mornings, one got a backroom job in the local Spar shop, putting stock away, another did shampooing in a local hairdressers. They managed very well, and their social lives didn't suffer, they were able to buy things they would have had to convince me about, and they learned about the value of money.

Greatnan, I actually looked up the work regulations for school children, and they aren't allowed to start before 7.00 a.m.! You don't say whether your grandson is still at school, but I'm sure there was a case recently where a boy had to give up his paper round because he had to start at 6.00 a.m. to get it finished and be ready for school in time.

I know the rules are there to prevent exploitation, but surely there should be some leeway allowed if a child shows the initiative to go out and get a part-time job, only to be told he/she can't do it because it would mean starting too early/ending too late. (They can't work after 7.00 p.m. either).

He was 17 and doing AS levels - He is now 20, doing an NVQ in Public Service at a local college and still working at the duck farm.

My student GD has had paid work from the age of 13 when she started as a paper girl. She then worked in the paper shop and now is a fast food waitress. Her half brother, similarly, had paid work from13 and, as a recent graduate, does actually have a job. Surely a record of being willing and able to work must look good on a CV? My DS1 started his catering career as a kitchen porter while still at school - a broken leg nipped his career as a paper boy in the bud - and his brother cleaned the recreation centre attached to his school. By comparison, I was a spoilt brat!

I think Alan Sugar's premise is correct. Teenagers who want something expensive, but not necessary for their lives should be told that they should either save up for it or get a job and earn the money. My family circumstances made weekend work or paper rounds impractical but if I wanted extra money my mother would pay me to do extra chores at home, gardening, mending, ironing - and it had to be done properly.

DD got a paper round at 13, became a waitress at 16 and was very proud that when she graduated from Drama School she was the only one in her year not to immediately sign on, not because she had lots of acting work but because she already had one part-time job and she found others. It meant that when she decided to follow another career she had a cv that showed her flexibility and adaptability in working in a range of jobs, plus she had previous employers willing to giver her a reference.

The best example you can give children is to have a good work ethic yourself. My DH and myself have hardly ever had a day off work ourselves and all 3 of our children hardly ever had a day off school. They are the same now at work and their own children are the same at attending school. We also never let them have everything handed to them on a plate, even if we could afford it. They all had jobs while still at school and all are now successful in their different careers.