Alcohol Policy UK

Alcohol in the news 30/10/06

• Scotland: Pupils calling for an inquiry into the public health impact of cheap alcohol are to provide evidence to MSPs.  The Public Petitions Committee is to leave its Holyrood base and host a meeting at All Saints Secondary School in the Barmulloch area of Glasgow.  The school said the move proved to students that those in power did take notice of young people's opinions.  Earlier this month, three pupils from the school presented the 1,000th public petition to Holyrood.  The committee will hear the pupils' evidence, which was gained by conducting research in the shops around their school where they found alcohol on sale for less than the price of a bottle of water. BBC News

• Tax on alcohol should rise to reduce binge drinking among teenagers, Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt has said.  Ms Hewitt urged chancellor Gordon Brown to "really increase" taxes on alcohol, especially on drinks such as alcopops, most popular with young people. BBC News  This was the big news on Friday; we'll have more detail and analysis later on Alcohol Policy UK

• A town's seniors are being sent letters warning them against heavy drinking after research showed they keep falling over when drunk.  Health worker Gavin Bryce conducted the research for Brighton and Hove Primary Care Trust, East Sussex.  Worried Gavin said: "Pensioners are much more likely to fall over and hurt themselves in the home after a drinking binge, resulting in long stays in hospital." Sunday Mirror

• Hertfordshire: The dangers of binge drinking will be highlighted in a two-pronged police crackdown this week.  The Know Your Limits operation, a collaboration between Hertfordshire Police and North Hertfordshire District Council, is an attempt by the police to remind people that going out and having a good time doesn't necessarily mean they have to drink too much.  There will be a strong police presence in Hitchin town centre and, as part of the campaign, bar staff from various establishments will wear Know Your Limits T-shirts.  There will also be branded bottleneck covers and sandwich boards giving details to drinkers.  And there will be a mobile police station operating in the Market Place.  The other part of the campaign is the police sending out letters to people who have been involved in drink-related incidents in the past to warn them that if they are involved in similar incidents in the future they could be banned from all pubs in North Herts.  Herts24

Alcohol Policy UK podcast: MOCAM, and the Michael Stone Inquiry (apuk04)

Here is the first podcast in a new series of twice-monthly shows focussing on alcohol harm reduction news, interesting practice and policy developments.  Mike Ward joins Libby Ranzetta for a discussion about Models of Care for Alcohol Misusers (MOCAM) and the implications for substance misuse treatment from the Michael Stone Inquiry.

Show notes

• 00.00 Intro: music by Kaimoko; please get in touch (using comments at the end of this post or voicemail using the Mobatalk panel on the right of this page or an audio comment using WaxMail, or email.

• 01.17 In the news: Launch of the screening and brief interventions 'trailblazers'; foetal alcohol syndrome; links to AA membership and reduced rates of violent crime.

• 08.29 MOCAM: background to its development; consultation process; Alcohol Concern's Commission in the Future of Alcohol Services and 'tier zero'; lack of focus on carers; categorisation of drinkers; the four tiers of interventions; ANARP; standards and frameworks; social services commissioning role; DANOS ; what difference will MOCAM make?

• 19.11 Michael Stone Inquiry (part 1, part 2): mental health bill that got axed; Christopher Clunis Inquiry; Anthony Hardy Inquiry - the 'Camden Ripper'' ; Stone's drug treatment; Stone's alcohol use; familiar themes in the inquiry conclusions; are people with personality disorder treatable?; alcohol treatment within drug services

download the mp3 file (right click), listen now, or subscribe to the podcast feed.

Jobs: Coventry alcohol harm reduction coordinator, Drink Aware Trust Chair and Staffs alcohol education advisor

Alcohol Harm Reduction Coordinator, Coventry
Closing date: 31st October

Drinkaware Trust Chair, London
Closing date: 10th November

Adviser for Alcohol Education, Staffordshire (shouldn't it be spelt advisor?)
Closing date: 3rd November

HMP Winchester Survey of Prisoners’ Alcohol Misuse

Hampshire DAAT's Alcohol Strategy Coordinator, Mike Webb, has finalised research into alcohol misuse amongst the local prison population.  HMP Winchester Survey of Prisoners’ Alcohol Misuse report can be downloaded here.

The survey questionnaire was completed by 405 prisoners, out of a total population of 697, and revealed some startling findings around alcohol misuse. These included:

Health

• Winchester prison has 10 times as many hazardous/dependant drinkers than the general population

• The average consumption among those who said they did not have a drinking problem was 43 units per week; those who said that they did have a drinking problem averaged 157 units per week
  

• 35% of prisoners believe that they have a drinking problem

Violent Crime
The link between violent crime and alcohol consumption was repeatedly highlighted:

• 46% of prisoners stated that alcohol was linked to their criminal activity, with violent crime accounting for half of these offences

• Of those prisoners who believed that they have an alcohol problem, over half stated that their offence was for violent crime

Service Provision        

• 49% said that they would use an alcohol service within the prison; however 37% of this group are not  eligible to access current service provision

The report concludes that there is a significant proportion of the prison population within HMP Winchester with serious social and offending problems that may be strongly linked to drinking behaviour; such prisoners recognise this problem and have expressed a desire to access services to address it. The Prison Service Alcohol Strategy for Prisoners (Addressing Alcohol Misuse) and its Treatment Interventions Good Practice Guide (both available via here) provide an alcohol treatment framework but this has not yet been resourced, while provision nationally is extremely limited and patchy.

Given the strong link between alcohol and offending, the potential reduction in re-offending through addressing problem drinking behaviour would indicate that this would be a cost-effective intervention strategy.

Contact Mike for more details on 01962 826033; or via the Hampshire DAAT website.

News for 18/6/06

• Men who have sex with drunken women risk being found guilty of rape under proposals to increase conviction rates. Ministers want to close a legal loophole which results in thousands of cases failing to reach the courts because the victims have been drinking. At present, women are deemed to be capable of consenting to sex as long as they are not so drunk that they are unconscious. However, under the proposals which could be announced as early as next month in the Queen’s speech, it will be up to juries to decide whether the woman was sober enough to know what she was doing.  Times Online

• Northern Ireland has 400,000-plus binge drinkers, according to new statistics revealed on 16th October as health chiefs launched a major awareness drive to dramatically reduce excess drinking across the province.  The figures show that more than 40% of Ulster men and over 30% of women here are booze bingers.  They further revealed that some 246 people died last year in Northern Ireland directly as a result of alcohol.  Meanwhile, Department of Health figures show that every year there are around 7,000 admissions to Ulster's acute hospitals due to alcohol misuse.  Binge drinking was branded "a major problem" by Ulster's health minister.  Paul Goggins was speaking as the Health Promotion Agency launched a new hard-hitting advertising campaign to warn of the health dangers of binge drinking.  Belfast Telegraph

• Norwich: The number of late-night violent attacks and drunken assaults has fallen following the change in licensing laws.  And although Chief Constable Carole Howlett first feared the extended hours would fuel a rise in alcohol-related crime, the first set of complete figures since the introduction of 24-hour licensing showed 584 fewer violent offences in the county during the last six months compared with the same period last year.  Criminal damage, another offence often associated with alcohol consumption, also fell.  Norwich Evening News

• Binge drinking by young people in Cumbria is creating a health timebomb which will fuel a sharp rise in alcohol-related illness, a hospital consultant has warned. The stark warning was spelled out by Dr Chris MacDonald at Carlisle’s Cumberland Infirmary, where doctors are treating increasing numbers of young adults – particularly women – for alcoholic liver disease. He blames the disturbing rises in alcohol-related health problems on the wide availability of cheap drink and rising levels of binge drinking. The consultant gastroenterologist made his comment as it emerged that a 22-year-old old north Cumbrian has died from cirrhosis of the liver.  News & Star

• Worried staff at a children's hospital are treating five under 16s a week for alcohol-related problems.  Victims can be as young as nine. One case involved an 11-year-old who had to be referred to an addicts' service for counselling. Another involved 13-year-olds falling asleep in class because they were hung over.  It is such a big problem that Alder Hey hospital in Liverpool was forced to introduce a programme 16 months ago to deal with it.  A&E head nurse Kim Williams said: "Our youngest admission so far was just nine. We know that if one of them has ended up here another five have staggered home."  Out of 253 patients treated, 71 per cent were girls and one in ten patients had "severely decreased consciousness."   Mirror

London Agenda for Action on Alcohol Update published

The London Agenda for Action on Alcohol - Update Report September 2006 has been published by the Greater London Authority.  The report  builds on The London Agenda for Action on Alcohol - Mayor of London’s priorities to reduce alcohol related harm in the capital.

The report was commissioned from Ranzetta Consulting to consider the implications for London of a range of recent developments in policy and action in addressing alcohol related harm, but much of it will be relevant elsewhere. It looks at recent national and regional changes relating to alcohol harm reduction, identifies examples of good practice, and identifies areas for regional action.

Download the London Agenda for Action on Alcohol Update

Know Your Limits alcohol campaign launched by government

From the Home Office:

A new campaign launched this week urges young drinkers to know their limits and to stay within them. The advertising campaign uses television ads, posters and a Know Your Limits website to get the message across that too much alcohol actually makes you vulnerable, even while it makes you feel tough.

The joint Department of Health and Home Office campaign is aimed at 18 to 24 year olds, although it also reaches out to younger, illegal drinkers. 

Public Health Minister Caroline Flint emphasised that this is not a morality campaign, but an effort to encourage common sense. 'We are not trying to demonise alcohol or stop people enjoying themselves,' she explained. 'This is about encouraging young people to have a good time, but to also know their limits.'

One of the ads has been posted on YouTube - Hen party enjoy and unforgettable big night out! 

An email from The Forster Company ("social change communications consultancy" - they are responsible for the social marketing side of the campaign, not the design of posters etc) has gone out to some in the field, saying this about the campaign:

The government has  announced the launch of the next phase of the national alcohol alcohol harm  reduction strategy. A hard-hitting  advertising campaign will begin to target 16 - 24 year olds to prompt  consideration of the risks associated with excessive drinking, particularly in relation to their own personal  safety.

The goverment hopes that other 'at risk' groups will also benefit  from a renewed focus on alcohol consumption, including pregnant women and adults whose drinking levels may pose risks to their health.

Professionals working in health, criminal justice, local  government, education, the voluntary sector and the drinks industry will be crucial to the campaign's success, and constructive cross-sector partnerships  are needed. Regular updates from the government will keep practitioners  informed about issues such as   

• new leaflets aimed at young people, pregnant women and other 'at  risk' adult  drinkers  
• the first campaign pack containing key facts and messages about sensible drinking, specialist advise and ideas for community-based  action 
• regional alcohol action days - forums for professional  intermediaries  to address key issues, develop local solutions and share successful  approaches

The government recommends that any activities around alcohol or related issues could be incorporated into the forthcoming campaign.  Any  good projects that could be used as best practise or case studies could be emailed to [email protected]

This campaign starts to fulfil commitments made within the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England (2004), although calling it the 'next phase' is odd - what was the first phase?  It will be interesting to see how the government plans to communicate with the alcohol field - does it know who we are?  Watch this space.

 

Back on the 16th

APUK is on holiday till 16th October when we'll be back to launch our first podcast in a new series of regular shows.  The main topic of discussion for the first one is MOCAM, but it will also cover a news update and the Michael Stone Homicide Inquiry.

Alcohol, Crime & Drugs Data & Information Officer post

Greenwich council is advertising for a data officer who will have a specific remit for alcohol related data.  The post is funded jointly by Neighbourhood Renewal and the DAAT. The idea is for the officer to act as a central alcohol data coordinator for the borough.

Greenwich wants to collect and map its alcohol related health, crime and social impact data in one place to inform its ongoing assessment of need.  In addition the DAAT will be hoping so see which areas, population groups etc are most affected by alcohol related harm - looking at the links between alcohol and inequalities.

Greenwich is taking a particular interest in treatment data.  Over the next 15 months a sample of people accessing alcohol services at a variety of points will be tracked to see how people are moving through the treatment system, where they are dropping out of the system, and how they are doing.

Details here.

Closing date 20th October

News for 4/10/06

• Older women who are drinking within the recommended limits of one to two glasses of spirits daily are more likely to survive and more likely to remain in good health than women who do not drink, suggest new data from a long-term study of Australian women.  "Our findings indicate that the recommended limits of one to two drinks per day seem appropriate for women aged 70-80 years," reported Dr Julie Byles, who is director of the Research Center for Gender, Health and Aging at The University of Newcastle in Callaghan, Australia.  Reuters. Abstract here.

• After decades of complaints about drunks, prostitutes and menacing down-and-outs, traders and the Safer Swansea Partnership are making the bold claim the city's High Street problems are over. According to the partnership, which includes businesses, Swansea Council and the police, "On-street drinkers and intimidating gangs are now rare, and are effectively dealt with." What was once the city's main street became a haven for undesirables during recent decades and came to be seen as a no-go zone, largely avoided by shoppers and visitors. Now the area's unwanted characters have been hit with a barrage of anti-social behaviour measures that have included 24-hour CCTV coverage and an alcohol control zone which makes on-street drinking illegal. icWales

• The Daily Echo and the police team behind its Call Time on Glass campaign were recognised at this year's Dorset Justice Awards.  Bournemouth's alcohol licensing enforcement (ALE) team and the Echo picked up an award in the category of innovation in working with communities to tackle crime or the fear of crime.  With an average of more than 40 glass-related assaults over the past three years inside venues in Bournemouth town centre, the ALE team set about encouraging venues to change from glass to polycarbonate plastic.  24 venues have change to polycarbonate and these venues represent in excess of 25,000 "vertical drinking spaces" - over half the town's capacity.  Daily Echo