Police caution parents ahead of Labour Day weekend grad sleep-out events

North Vancouver

2023-08-31 11:13 PDT

As we move into the Labour Day long weekend, North Vancouver high school students are preparing for an exciting and defining school year; especially for grade 11 and 12 students.

As in previous years, some students entering grade 12 will be participating in the traditional grad sleep-out camping and party events on the North Shore. As the weekend approaches, North Vancouver RCMP are offering students and parents some guidelines for discussions around celebrating safely.

In our experience, students who have participated in grad sleep-outs are generally responsible young people enjoying the natural increases in freedom we all experienced as we grew up, said Cst. Mansoor Sahak of the North Vancouver RCMP.

We just want to remind them, and their parents, that with increased freedom comes increased responsibility. Those responsibilities include abiding by Provincial and Federal laws, Municipal bylaws, and respecting the rules of good citizenry.

Although these young people now bear most of the responsibility for their conduct, it’s not absolute yet. There remains an onus on parents to continue to be a positive influence on their children, and to help them make good choices, he said. The North Vancouver RCMP will be taking a protective approach on enforcement of liquor, traffic and local bylaws. We will also have extra officers working in anticipation of the busy weekend.

Tips and Resources - Opening up the discussion

Let your children know that you are open to conversations with them and want to hear their thoughts. You can do this in a casual or a more planned way (for example, at a family meeting).

To open up the discussion, it is helpful to:

• Try to avoid lecturing or sermonizing and focus more on having an open discussion
• Keep a relaxed attitude and encourage your children to ask questions and to tell you what they think
• Try to understand your child's point of view
• Don't expect teens to agree with you about everything just because you are the parent (Keep in mind, though, that parents have rights too!)
• Develop active listening skills
• Be as concise and objective as possible when explaining the facts about drugs

Released by

Cst. Mansoor Sahak

Media Relations Officer
North Vancouver RCMP
147 East 14th St, North Van., BC, V7L 2N4
Website: nvan.rcmp-grc.gc.ca (English only)
Office: 604-985-1311
Cell: 778-228-1619
Email: mansoor.sahak@rcmp-grc.gc.ca

Released by:

Email: nvan_media@rcmp-grc.gc.ca
Website: nvan.rcmp-grc.gc.ca (English only)

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