[AccyJay]

I got this from the Essex police website. Hope it makes thing a bit clearer.

Selling alcoholic drink to a person under 18 years of age

The Licensing Act 2003 maintains the position of making it illegal to sell alcohol to a person under 18 years of age and removes the previous exemptions.

This means it is an offence to buy alcohol for someone under 18yrs with the monthly shopping and then bring it home for their later consumption. If it is spontaneously decided to share a glass of wine from a bottle with a person under 18 then the alcohol was not purchased with the intention at the time of sale and no offence is committed. Research shows that teaching young people to drink responsibly doesn't reduce the risk of problematic drinking later in life. In fact current research shows that we may be teaching them how to binge drink.

It is also an offence for a person under 18 years to consume alcohol on licensed premises.

It is also an offence to buy alcohol and give it to someone under 18yrs - except that a person may buy beer, cider or wine for someone over 16years and under 18yrs to go with a table meal and that they are accompanying that person.

It is also an offence to send a child to obtain alcohol. E.g. a person over 18yrs orders and pays for alcohol over the phone and then they send the child to collect it.

It is a defence to sell if the person had no idea they were under 18 and no cause to have such a belief, or that they satisfied themselves that they were over 18 - For this reason most premises adopt a challenge 21 policy and demand to see only a *passport, photo driving licence or PASS accredited card as proof of age. Nothing else should be accepted.
It remains an offence to provide alcohol to a child under 7yrs

*Please note that Hyndburn's licensed premises are only allowed to accept a valid passport or a photo driving licence.

Advice - Licensing law and guidelines

Erowid Alcohol Vaults : Law : Alcohol Drinking Age in the U.K. (England, Scotland, Wales)