Hi folx, Does anyone know at what age you can leave a teen at a game by themselves, as opposed to having to accompany them and sit with them the entire time?
I believe it is 13, but really, it depends on the maturity of the kid in question.
From the badge policy page: "Children ages 10 and under are free to attend but must be accompanied by a Parent or Guardian with a valid Gen Con badge." Elsewhere it is noted that any child who wants to participate in a ticketed event must have a badge. I don't know of any other policy governing age that applies Con-wide. Individual events will also have age minimums listed, although event hosts are sometimes flexible if you contact them ahead of time. As helenbb said above, the maturity of the kid matters a lot. My son was easily able to navigate the Con and participate in appropriate events by himself as a young teen, but every kid is different. We also talked in advance about how to communicate if needed, who to get help from if trouble arose, and the like.
Thank you folx. What I'm really looking for is the official policy on at what age a teen may be left at a game by themselves. I'm not asking for advice, my kids have been to Gen Con before and can handle themselves. I simply need to know the official rule on when a teenager can be left unattended.
I see nothing in the attendance policy (https://www.gencon.com/gen-con-indy/policies) or attendance faq (https://gencon.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/categories/360004851152-Attending-the-Convention) that speaks to your specific question, aside from the quote I provided earlier. By deduction, one can conclude that a kid older than ten, with a badge, can attend an event without you accompanying them. Hopefully a Gen Con staff person will chime in soon to provide an official answer.
There is no specific policy for the leaving of a teen alone to game expect as it applies to your responsibility as outlined in the Terms of Service.
https://www.gencon.com/attend/terms_of_service
You acknowledge and agree that you have carefully read this Agreement, fully understand its contents, and hereby accept and agree to it voluntarily of your own free will. You affirm that either (a) you are over 18 years of age and have full right, authority, and capacity to enter into this Agreement and to make the release and assumption of risk described herein, or that (b) your parent or legal guardian has read and agreed to this Agreement.
If you are a parent or guardian of a participant under 18 years of age, you hereby represent that you are in fact the parent or legal guardian of the participant, that you have the right, authority and capacity to enter into this Terms of Service Agreement and to make the release and assumption of risk described herein for and on behalf of the participant, that he/she/they has/have carefully read this Terms of Service Agreement and understood its contents, and that he/she/they is/are hereby accepting and agreeing to it voluntarily of his/her/their own free will.
Mike Boozer Customer Service Manager Gen Con LLC
Ok, very helpful... Thanks Mike!
A timely question :p Thank you!
(14 yo twins with cell phones makes things more comfortable for me to host a game or two again, finally...)
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