While dogs appear to be more popular with the public, Britons are more permissive on where children should be accommodated
Last year, the Lower Red Lion pub in Fishpool Street went viral for displaying a sign outside declaring the pub to be both “dog-friendly” and “child-free”. Speaking about the policy, landlord David Worcester said: "I have no objection to children in any other pub, ever, I just don't want them in mine.”
"I just want to create an environment where my customers can sit and relax, it only takes one child to kick off and that spoils it for absolutely everybody.
The policy drew a great deal of criticism, but it does raise question two longstanding debates: where should children be allowed, and what about dogs?
A YouGov survey looks at where public opinion stands on dogs, children, and where they should be accommodated.
How do public attitudes towards dogs and children compare?
The results of our survey suggest that – seemingly like the landlord of the Lower Red Lion – the British public may be bigger fans of dogs than children.
Almost half of Britons say they “love” dogs (46%), with a further 26% saying they like them. Only 10% hold a negative opinion of canines, while another 16% are neutral on ‘man’s best friend’.
When it comes to children, 31% say they “love” them, with slightly more saying they “like” them. One in nine (11%) say they dislike or hate kids, and 20% say they don’t have strong feelings either way.
Combining responses to the two questions finds that 40% of people gave a more positive answer of dogs than children, compared to 28% for the reverse – 30% gave the same answer to both.
Yet when it comes to venues, our results show the public are more accommodating of children than dogs.
Where do people think dogs should be accommodated?
Of the 12 locations we asked about, dogs are most welcome in pubs that do not serve meals. Overall, 82% of people think dogs should be allowed in at least a portion of such venues, including 57% who think they should be allowed in the majority or entirety of the premises.
Almost three quarters of the public (72%) think dogs should likewise be allowed in coffee shops, but they are split between the 38% who think dogs should be allowed throughout or in most of the space versus the 34% who think they should be restricted to a certain section.
After this point, where the public do tend to think dogs should be allowed, the tendency is to think they should be allowed only in certain sections of that venue – this includes pubs where food is served, casual dining restaurants, fast food outlets, and airline flights.
Most Britons think that dogs should be banned entirely from gyms (69%); spas (66%); fine dining restaurants (63%); art galleries (56%); and museums (54%), with a plurality also saying so of libraries (48%).
Where do people think children should be accommodated?
The British public are far more accommodating of children than dogs. Across the 12 locations we asked about, more than 90% said children should be allowed in at least a portion of the venue for eight of them.
Indeed, around least three quarters or more say children should be allowed full run of fast food restaurants (81%), museums (82%), art galleries (79%), coffee shops (75%), and libraries (72%).
While there are some perennial complainers about children on airlines, 66% of Britons say that children should have the run of planes, with only 16% saying there should be some areas kids are restricted from and 12% seeing it more that there should be an area they are restricted to. Just 3% think children should be banned from flights.
Fine dining is another area that people often complain about the presence of children, but again we see that the public are generally willing to allow children in some way. While only 26% think children should be allowed throughout fine dining restaurants, another 18% think they should be allowed in most of the venue, and another 35% think they should be allowed in their own section. One in six (17%) say fancy restaurants should ban children entirely.
Even at their least permissive, it is still only a minority of the public wanting to ban children from venues. The highest figures we see are 28% who think children shouldn’t be allowed in gyms at all, and 34% who say they shouldn’t be permitted in pubs that don’t serve food.
How many people’s answers match the policy of the Lower Red Lion?
If we return to the Lower Red Lion’s self-description, if we consider to match with “dog friendly” to correspond to “dogs should be allowed throughout” and that “child-free” corresponds to “children should be banned entirely”, then we find a mere 1% of the public give combined answers which match that policy (for a pub which serves food, which the Lower Red Lion does).
By contrast, were it a pub that does not serve food, then 10% of Britons build the same combined dog-children policy as the Lower Red Lion.
Is it acceptable for couples to ban guests from bringing children to their wedding?
On the theme of permissible children’s attendance, we also asked the public about weddings and workplaces.
While couples attempting to ban children from their weddings has often been a bone of contention, most Britons consider doing so to be acceptable (64%), although a much reduced 26% consider it “completely” acceptable.
One in four (27%) say it is unacceptable for couples to attempt to prohibit guests from bringing their children, including 11% who deem it “completely” unacceptable.
Perhaps surprisingly, there is relatively little difference between Britons with children and those without, with the 62% of those with under-18s saying it is acceptable for couples to block children from their wedding being similar to the 66% of those without children saying the same. The main difference is that those with under-18s are less likely to see it as “completely acceptable” than their childless peers, at 31% compared to 42%.
In fact, the most noticeable difference in opinion is between men and women. While most men still see a ban on children as an acceptable requirement for couples to make (57%), this compared to 72% among women.
Is it acceptable to regularly bring your children to the office?
When it comes to bringing children to work on a regular basis, the public are decidedly anti. More than three quarters (78%) say this is unacceptable, including 45% who consider it “completely” unacceptable.
Just 14% say it is ok for an office worker to frequently bring their children to the office for a full work day, including a mere 3% who say it is “completely” fine.
What do you think about children, dogs, where they should be allowed, and everything else? Have your say, join the YouGov panel, and get paid to share your thoughts. Sign up here.
Photos: Getty
