In the UK you are not allowed to buy alcohol until you are 18, although you are allowed to drink with a meal in licensed premises from the age of 16, if an adult buys it (you can buy your own with a meal in Scotland at 16). Parents are allowed to give their children small amounts of alcohol at home but, in the UK, it is illegal to give any alcohol to a child under 5 years old. (See Wikipedia for a comparison of alcohol age limits throughout the world). Alcohol is a big part of mainstream British culture and most young people grow up in households where their parents drink alcohol and where there is a ready supply in the house.