The initiative is a partnership to tackle underage drinking involving the Statutory, Community and the Business sectors.

The initiative is a partnership to tackle underage drinking involving the Statutory, Community and the Business sectors.

Belfast Telegraph 7 th September 2010

Partners Civic Alcohol Forum Rosemount Resource Centre Glen Development Initiative Derry City Council (Environmental Health/CSP/Litter Control/Licensing) PSNI Drink Think Project Derry Healthy Cities/Time IV A Change project Divert Project Outer West Community Safety Forum Foyle Drugs & Alcohol Forum Youth Service Western Drug and Alcohol Co-ordinating Team (WDACT)/ Public Health Authority (PHA) Local school principals CRJ HURT Health Improvement Department WHSCT Retail of Alcohol Standards Group (RASG) (This is a group representing major retailers including Tesco, Sainsbury and Winemark) and the independent retailers in the area. Foyle Off Sales Forum Extern children's services

The purpose of the partnership is to: reduce the incidence of alcohol sales to young people under the age of 18 (minors) reduce proxy purchasing and general supply of alcohol to minors reduce anti -social behaviour associated with alcohol consumption improve the health of young people by reducing alcohol consumption to safer levels improve the general understanding of alcohol strengths and the number of units safe to consume in accordance with the Governments sensible drinking message The partners to the initiative are committed to working togetherto tackle the issue of underage drinking by focussing on restricting access toalcohol by those under 18, and by educating young people and their parents/carers, older siblings and friends about the dangers of underage drinking and the consequences of attempting to buy alcohol if under 18 or for someone who is under 18. We hope that this initiative will contribute to tackling the issues of anti-social behaviour suffered by residents however the project alone cannotsolve all the problems being experienced.

Partnership operation/actions High Visibility patrols Engagement with the licensed premises Engagement with the underage drinkers Education of young people/parents/wider community Empowerment of the local community

Outcomes Key benefit has been improved partnership working Reduced disorder and underage drinking Reduced nuisance and fear for residents Engagement of alcohol retailers No evidence of transfer of problem

Enforcement of possession of alcohol by young people (referral to youth diversion officer) Enforcement of possession of alcohol by young people (referral to youth diversion officer) Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total 2010 2 6 6 11 41 25 18 5 14 9 25 6 168 2011 19 14 11 10 3 10 7 6 4 7 9 10 110

Other indicators Significant reduction in alcohol litter at some of the hot spot areas. Buy in from local alcohol retailers who have set up the foyle off sales forum Feedback from many residents has been that the difference is life changing PSNI Officers, Community Safety Wardens, youth workers etc have noticed a reduction in level of disorder

PSNI view Ray Wilson, PSNI Neighbourhood Sergeant for the pilot area says We are more than happy with the results of this pilot project. We firmly believe that this has been down to the multi-agency approach and the hard work put in by all the partners. This is a success story for the residents of the pilot area.

Next Steps Continue with High Visibility patrols/youth Engagement/Retailers interaction use information gathered to target problem areas Additional work within schools and youth sectors mind your mate campaign to encourage safety when out at night, a social media led campaign Show DVD of the project Annual Youth conference for all schools Conference to disseminate good practice to other areas of Northern Ireland/UK