Warringah Mall: Teens told they can no longer hang out in groups of three or more

Sydney’s Warringah Mall has been accused of ‘discrimination’ after school principals were advised to tell students they weren’t allowed to socialise together in groups of three or more at the shopping centre.

Warringah Mall has ‘banned’ groups of teens hanging out together.

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Reports teenagers cannot hang out in groups of more than three at Warringah Mall have caused a furore on social media, with some parents saying it is discrimination.

On Friday a Westfield Warringah Mall spokeswoman insisted there was no blanket policy in place in relation to groups of young people.

However, Northern Beaches Community College Mackellar Campus principal Christine Del Gallo confirmed the mall was speaking to all school principals and asking them to tell children not to hang around in groups of more than three.

Christine Del Gallo is the Principal of Northern Beaches Secondary College Mackellar Girls Campus. Picture: Elenor Tenderborg

“We have been in conversation with the security from Warringah Mall who said they were talking to all principals about the increasing issue of large groups of students gathering at the mall and intimidating the general public,” Ms Del Gallo said.

“This is a particular problem on Wednesday afternoons, which is when most schools have sport, and Thursday evenings.”

She said the mall had told her they were going to take steps to address this.

“They said it wasn’t OK for the kids to hang out in the carparks or in the food courts if all they were doing were hanging and not shopping or eating,” Ms Del Gallo said.

As a result she spoke to Mackellar students about the issue.

She added this was a matter for all schools on the peninsula, not just Mackellar.

One of the food courts at Westfield Warringah Mall.

“My big message was that in social situations they need to be mindful and considerate of other people around them,” she said.

One source told the Manly Daily that businesses were concerned about the problem of shoplifting.

However, mums voiced their anger on social media sites this week, saying lots of well-behaved children spend money at the movies and in the food courts.

A Dee Why mother of two, who did not want to be named, said her 12-year-old had been at the mall with friends and was told by security they had to split up. When both groups bumped into each other in a shop they were evicted.

Reports teenagers can’t hang out in groups of more than three at Warringah Mall have caused outrage. Picture: Stock Image.

“I’m cranky,” she said. “They were doing nothing wrong. How can they tar all kids with the same brush? It’s discrimination.”

A Westfield spokeswoman said: “As a social meeting point in the local community, Westfield Warringah Mall strives to ensure all our customers feel welcome, comfortable and safe when visiting the centre. We don’t apply a blanket policy in relation to groups of young people at any of our centres.

“Every situation is different and our experienced team makes decisions on how to manage situations on a case-by-case basis — always with the safety of our customers at heart.

“As part of our role in the local community, and in line with our community engagement plans, we regularly meet with a range of community groups and stakeholders, including local schools.

“Minor incidents are actively managed and we work closely with local authorities, including police, as needed.”

However, the spokeswoman added they welcome all members of the community into their centres, including youth.

“To make our centre more teen-friendly, we regularly organise specific events and activations that provide free entertainment for this age group,” she said.

“For example, we recently added complimentary arcade games and hosted FIFA on Xbox stations, allowing teens to challenge their friends at our gaming station.

“Next weekend we will launch our two-week activation for the Sydney Surf Pro sponsorship which will see an event at Arena Cove featuring a mechanical wave machine and other games.”