Alcohol Policy UK

Tackling young people's drinking pt93: Strathroy educational summer programme; confiscations from 10 and 11 year olds, Darwen and Paisley; Strabane parents to blame

• A successful joint educational initiative between local alcohol and drug awareness agency, The E go Project and the Strathroy Community Association spent four weeks addressing the problems associated with under-age drinking and drug abuse. The summer programme was carried out during the month of July within the Strathroy Summer Scheme, with a total of 15 young people ranging in age from 10 to 14 years-old, addressing various issues related to alcohol and drug use, before then producing a project that raises awareness further in their areas or community.  Ulster Herald
  

• Alcoholic drinks have been seized from children as young as ten during a campaign to combat anti-social behaviour. Darwen police have confiscated hundreds of bottles and cans of lager, beer and cider from youngsters across the town. At least 300 items bottles and cans were found by officers as part of Operation Summer Nights, which targeted anti-social behav-iour over the summer holidays. Hotspot areas included Earcroft and Whitehall Park. Sergeant John Cisco said:

"Each year we have taken part in operation Summer Nights and there has certainly been an increase in the amount of alcohol we seize.  We have confiscated at least 300-plus bottles and cans. In the worst cases we have confiscated alcohol from children under ten, but not much younger than that. The under tens had been hanging around with groups of youngsters who were older.  Blackburn Citizen

• Schoolboys aged as young as 11 were so drunk that they were unable to stand up when police found them at a drinking den. A pile of cheap wine and cider bottles, most of them empty, were discovered just feet away from the youngsters. With them in a Paisley housing scheme were two other children, aged 14 and 15, who had downed so much booze that they couldn’t walk or talk. Now worried police chiefs are urging parents to help them tackle the teeny tippling culture that is putting the lives of Renfrewshire kids at risk. Paisley police boss Superintendent Alastair Neilson said:

“We have found some children in a terrible state through alcohol. It’s alarming and could end in tragedy.” 

The 11-year-old boys were among scores of youngsters rounded up during a clampdown on under-age drinking in Paisley and the neighbouring towns of Johnstone, Renfrew and Erskine. Mr Neilson revealed that more than 200 litres of booze was confiscated from drunken kids and poured down the drain. Some of the youngsters who were caught were taken home and, with their parents’ consent, have been referred to the Young Persons Advisory Project to help them kick the booze habit. Other offenders have either been reported to the Reporter to the Children’s Hearing or the procurator fiscal.  icRenfrewshire

• THE problem of underage drinking in Strabane is being aggravated by parents who choose to buy their children alcohol, a local off licence owner claimed this week. Licensee of Christy's Bar and Off Licence Raymond Barr made the revelation following the recent launch of an underage drinking crackdown by the Federation of the Retail Licensed Trade (FRLT). FRLT Chief Executive Stephen Kelly wrote to 1,000 publicans across the north to ensure they are doing all within their power to prevent underage youths accessing drink. In the letter, Mr Kelly reminded licensees that anyone caught purchasing alcohol for a minor could face six months in prison. This however doesn't appear to be deterrent enough in Strabane according to Mr Barr, who told the Strabane Chronicle that older people supplying drink to youths is a regular problem faced by both himself and his staff.  Strabane Chronicle
  

Scottish Licensing Boards plan tough stance on alcohol-related harm despite resistance from the trade

• Garages and petrol station forecourt shops across Scotland may be forced to stop selling alcohol within two years under new laws. Licensing chiefs in Glasgow are the first in the country to have signalled their intention to prevent garages selling alcohol unless the premises can prove it is the main source of fuel and groceries for the local community. The 2005 Licensing Act allows all boards across Scotland to introduce the measure and with the country's largest board formally indicating that it will be a matter of policy to refuse permission for garages to sell alcohol most others are expected to follow suit. But trade representatives have said the policy is meaningless as there is no evidence of any link between drink driving and the sale of alcohol in garages. They claim that it does little more than punish small retailers, while major supermarkets continue to sell both alcohol and petrol.  The Herald

• Scares that vertical drinking policies will be brought in under new Scottish Licensing Laws have been described as "overblown" as most pubs already include 25 per cent of their premises as seating. This is according to Patrick Browne, chief executive of the Scottish Beer and Pub Association, who added that licensing boards who try to implement such policies would be overstepping their powers anyway.   Reports in the Scottish media have raised concerns that plans to force pubs to provide more seating might jeopardise some of the smaller, character, venues. However, these reports are based on the notion that licensing boards might try to enforce 50 per cent seating. Browne has heard that Perth and Kinross, Edinburgh and North Lanarkshire licensing boards are looking at 25 per cent vertical drinking policies. But he argues that any such restriction could only be brought in using powers under Health and Safety or Building Regulations – and not the new licensing laws.  The Publican

Shipley ships out and the Drinkaware Trust needs a new chair and trustees

Debra Shipley has this month resigned her post as Chair of the Drinkaware Trust, apparently for personal reasons, and the Trust now seeks "an independent Chair with no professional interest in alcohol". 

Stephen Hogg, one of the original trustees has also left, presumably after moving to the other side of the divide between the industry and everyone else.  He joined as Senior Communications Officer at Centrepoint, but since April has been at the Wine and Spirit Trade Association.  The Trust now seeks one Trustee from an alcohol related background and two lay Trustees.

More info here.

Brown to review licensing laws whilst their impact is hotly contested

From BBC News:  Gordon Brown has said he could overturn the recent law allowing pubs in England and Wales to open 24 hours a day. The prime minister said binge-drinking was "unacceptable" and that he would "not hesitate to change policies" if he thought this was necessary. He told Labour's annual conference the government would shut down off-licences selling alcohol to children. Mr Brown began a review of extended licensing hours, brought in by Tony Blair, when he became PM in June.

Meanwhile, the Daily Mail says the "Home Office tried to hide surge in drunken attacks" arising from the new laws.

Serious violence and murder near pubs and clubs in the early hours rose by almost 130% in the year after licensing laws were relaxed. But the Home Office omitted the figure from its report into the impact of 24-hour opening, claiming it was "not statistically significant".

Ministers have now been forced under Freedom of Information laws to reveal the missing data, which was simply replaced with a blank space when the research was published in July. The rise of 127% was recorded across 18 police regions in city centre locations or near pubs and clubs between 3am and 6am. It covered the most serious types of violent crime, including murder, attempted murder, manslaughter and wounding. The number of such crimes taking place throughout the day remained broadly stable.

There were 940,522 violent crimes and cases of disorder and criminal damage between the hours of 6pm to 6am in the year after the reforms, an increase of 6,300.

On the other hand, the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) is claiming the new drinking laws in England and Wales have led to “significant” falls in late night alcohol related violence in central London (well, in Westminster and Camden anyway).   Caterersearch reports:

The BBPA chief executive, Rob Hayward, has written to all London MPs detailing figures showing a double-digit reduction in alcohol related crime in the boroughs of Westminster and Camden since the start of the new Licensing Act in November 2005.

In Camden alcohol-related crime was found to have decreased by 15% between the start of the new regime and November 2006, which was the first fall in three years. Westminster saw an 11% fall in violent crime between midnight and 4am during the same period.

Hayward said the figures collated by the BBPA showed a “significant fall in the incidence of late night alcohol related violence” since the introduction of the act. He said: “The success of implementing what was the biggest overhaul of the licensing laws in over 100 years, has been achieved by co-operation between responsible licensees, the police and local councils and communities, all of whom have played their part.”

Plymouth alcohol arrest referral

Plymouth's alcohol arrest referral scheme was featured on BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning, having screened its 1000th customer for alcohol problems.

Here's some information on the scheme from Devon and Cornwall Police:

Since the 7 March 2007 specially trained police officers in Charles Cross Police Custody centre have been carrying out a ‘screening’ procedure with detainees for identifying levels of alcohol misuse. Screening involves detainees completing a simple questionnaire aimed at identifying those most at risk from alcohol misuse, irrespective of the reason for their detention.

Detainees are then offered appropriate advice and information in an effort to facilitate change over time in any harmful drinking behaviour. This is potentially groundbreaking activity. Although alcohol arrest referral schemes exist elsewhere in the country, Plymouth is thought to be the first City to offer advice to all detainees in custody, irrespective of the reason for their detention.

The scheme, part of the Plymouth After Dark project, is funded through Neighbourhood Renewal Funding.  More details here.

Managing the night time economy: taxi marshalling Aylsebury; Charminster cumulative impact policy

• TWO taxi marshals are to be introduced in Aylesbury to supervise late night taxi queues in the town centre, the district council have revealed this afternoon. The pilot scheme, run by Aylesbury Vale District Council, will provide visitors with a safe and convenient way to get a taxi home after a night out in the town. The marshals, who start this weekend, will be on duty in Exchange Street (outside Chicago's) and in the Kingsbury area from 11pm to 4am on Friday, Saturday and Monday nights. They will ensure only licensed cabs pick up passengers, stop queue jumping, and discourage all forms of anti-social behaviour. The marshals will wear high visibility fluorescent jackets, and will be linked to the police and local venues by radio. Bucks Herald

• A TOUGH new policy that makes it much more difficult for new bars, pubs and restaurants to open is being considered for Charminster in Bournemouth. The area, which is especially popular with foreign students, could be made the subject of a cumulative impact statement. This would mean no more licensed premises would be able to open in Charminster unless they could specifically prove they would not increase public disorder. Bournemouth town centre is currently the only place in Dorset affected by this policy, where it has already been used to prevent an additional off-licence opening in St Peter's Road. Town centre Inspector Neil MacBean said there had been a massive increase in licensed premises in Charminster and police were currently considering whether a cumulative impact statement would prevent it from becoming plagued with antisocial behaviour.  Dorset Daily Echo

Workplace alcohol policies need a boost: new survey

A new survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) exposes employers for failing to support employees with substance dependency problems. Just 38 per cent pay enough attention to the problem by co-ordinating rehabilitation support to help individuals with drug or alcohol problems return to work. The findings also show that four out of ten employers believe alcohol misuse is a significant cause of employee absence and lost productivity. One third says that drug misuse has a similarly negative effect in the workplace.

Despite the findings Ben Willmott, employee relations adviser for the CIPD and report author, said that little progress has been made in the last six years:

"Since 2001 the number of organsiations with drug and alcohol policies has remained around the same (58 per cent) and where organisations do have policies they are doing very little to actively promote them. Simply adding a policy to a rarely used staff handbook is unlikely to ensure the issue is seen as an ongoing priority."

In further evidence that prevention is better than cure, almost a third admitted to dismissing employees in the last two years due to alcohol problems because the problems had got out of hand. Willmott advises bosses to train managers in dealing with the issues. Currently only a third do so. The Health and Safety Executive currently estimates that up to 14 million working days are lost each year to alcohol related problems at an estimated cost of £2 billion each year. HRzone.co.uk

Download the report Managing drug and alcohol misuse at work

Tackling young people's drinking pt92: Foxton consfiscations; invisible ink: alcohol test strips

• MORE than 100 bottles of alcohol have been seized from a group of youths in Foxton, Cambridgeshire, on Saturday 15th evening, following a complaint by a member of the public about a group of youths being rowdy in the village. Officers attending the incident discovered a large group of youths who were in possession of more than 100 bottles of alcohol, all of which was confiscated. The youths had got the alcohol from either parents or shops in the area. Pc Iain Perry said: “There is clearly a link between underage drinking and youth related anti-social behaviour and we will not tolerate it."  EADT

• Shops selling alcohol are marking bottles with invisible ink in a bid to crack down on adults who buy booze for children. The secret code allows police officers who catch underage drinkers to trace where the alcohol was bought and identify who purchased it using the shops' CCTV footage. The scheme is being trialled in Cheshire, Lancs, and North Wales. Lancashire Trading Standards officer Chris Storey said: "We estimate about 95 per cent of the kids around here get an adult to buy booze for them. They will stand around the corner and ask an older friend or relative to go and get a bottle of Strongbow or White Lightning cider for them."  Sunday Mirror
  

• NO UNDERAGE drinkers in Cheddar have been caught by a new alcohol test strip- but police have warned they will still be carrying out random checks. All police community support officers and police officers in the Cheddar area were issued with drinks testers last month, which they can put in drinks to see if they are alcoholic. Teenagers drinking underage often try and conceal it in public by carrying alcohol in bottles with soft-drink labels on them.  Weston and Somerset Mercury
  

Alcohol health worker posts

Alcohol Hospital Liaison Nurse, Haringey Advisory Group on Alcohol (HAGA)
2 posts at Band 6
Closing date 10/10/07
Details here

Primary Health Care Liaison Nurse, Haringey Advisory Group on Alcohol (HAGA)
Band 7
Closing date 10/10/07
Details here

Alcohol Healthcare Practitioner, Dudley Aquarius
£22,293 to £25,437
Closing date 26/20/07
Details here

DPPO/alcohol control area news update

Designated public places orders (DPPOs) (sometimes called alcohol control areas or zones) are a tool that can be used by local authorities to deal with the problems of anti-social alcohol drinking in public places.

Once a DPPO is in place the police can use their confiscation powers to enforce the restriction. It is not an offence to consume alcohol within a designated area, but failure to comply with an officer's requests to stop drinking and surrender alcohol without reasonable excuse is.

DPPOs are available in areas that have experienced alcohol-related anti-social behaviour problems. They have been used across the country in areas ranging from a single street or park, to town centre or city-wide areas.

There are too many stories in local media about proposed or agreed DPPOs to report separately.  So for some time I have simply been tagging them using the social bookmarking service del.icio.us.  You can see all the tagged stories here.

Further information

• DPPO page on the government's Respect site
• Explanatory Memorandum To The Local Authorities (Alcohol Consumption In Designated Public Places) Regulations 2007
• Guidance for Local Authorities