Our Scottish Adviser, Martin Macdougall, reflects on his first few months with CAP.

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After three decades in policing, I’ve begun a new role centred on prevention - but the purpose remains the same: helping communities to be safer, healthier, and better supported.

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After 30 years in policing, people sometimes ask whether this new role feels like stepping away from public service. For me, it doesn’t. It feels like carrying on the same work - just in a different way.

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I’m now working as an Adviser with Community Alcohol Partnerships (CAP) across the North of Scotland, and although the role is new, the purpose feels very familiar: helping communities stay safer and healthier.

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For most of my career, I saw the consequences of alcohol misuse up close. I responded to incidents, dealt with harm, and saw its effects on individuals, families, and whole communities. That stays with you.

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What makes this role different is its focus on prevention. Policing teaches you that by the time someone is called, the chance to stop harm has often already passed. CAP gives me the chance to work further upstream.

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Across the North of Scotland, I’ve seen how deeply alcohol is woven into everyday life and culture. But I’ve also seen the harm it can cause, especially for young people. That is what drew me to CAP. Its approach is practical and collaborative, bringing together schools, retailers, local authorities, health services, and policing to reduce alcohol-related harm before it takes hold.

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What I value most is that this work is not about telling young people what not to do. It’s about helping create better choices, better information, and safer environments for them to grow up in. That shift—from reacting to problems to helping prevent them—is a big part of why this role matters so much to me.

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Another part of the role that means a great deal to me is the people side of it. The relationships I built over many years in policing still matter. Partnership work succeeds only when there is trust and a real understanding of local communities, and those connections remain incredibly valuable.

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Starting something new after 30 years comes with an adjustment. What has made that transition easier is the support I’ve had from colleagues across CAP in Scotland and the wider UK. Their advice, encouragement, and willingness to share experience have made a real difference, and I’m genuinely grateful.

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If we want to improve Scotland’s relationship with alcohol, we need to start earlier and focus on young people. We also need to work together. My years in policing showed me the reality of the problem. This role gives me the opportunity to be part of the solution, and that feels like a worthwhile next chapter.

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