The information will be used to develop a Community Alcohol Partnership (CAP). The tried-and-tested initiative has been launched elsewhere in Scotland to make communities safer and protect young people.

The Viewpark and Bellshill CAP will work with youth services and local organisations to provide alcohol-free activities for young people. It will also work with local schools to educate young people about underage drinking and ensure that they are equipped to make the right decisions about issues such as alcohol and drugs and anti-social and criminal behaviour. Working with local retailers, the CAP also aims to help them avoid making underage sales and reduce ‘proxy’ sales where adults buy alcohol for under-18s.

Residents of Viewpark and Bellshill are being urged to share their views in an online survey: https://www.survey monkey.co.uk/r/NV63226

‍CAPs have led to a 61% reduction in weekly drinking by teenagers, a 50% drop in young people hanging round shops and asking adults to buy alcohol, and a 42% decline in anti-social behaviour involving drinking in the areas in which they operate.

Partners in the Bellshill CAP include secondary schools, Trading Standards, Scottish Fire and Rescue, Community Learning & Development and Focus Youth Centre. The CAP will be co-ordinated by community officers based at Bellshill Police Office.

Inspector Michael McCullagh, who is based at Bellshill Police Office, welcomed the new CAP, saying: “Bellshill remains a safe and friendly place for our children, and we want to ensure that it stays that way. I am pleased to see the community coming together in this new CAP to highlight the risks of underage drinking and reduce alcohol harm among our young people. We look forward to looking at the survey results and using residents' feedback to tackle problems with underage drinking in the local area.”

Derek Lewis, Chair of CAP added:

"I am always pleased to see the launch of new partnerships. We know from research that underage drinking can lead to many social and educational problems for children and young people. We also know from our evaluations that CAPs are having a significant impact on reducing alcohol consumption amongst 13- and 16-year-olds in in the areas in which they operate. Local CAP schemes are established and run by people from a variety of organisations within their communities, including retailers, local authorities, police forces and schools to identify and tackle the problems associated with underage drinking. All CAPs are tailored to the needs of their local community which means that they are highly effective in getting to the root cause of the problem."

About Community Alcohol Partnerships:

CAPs bring together a range of local stakeholders with a shared interest in preventing underage drinking and encouraging responsible drinking among young adults. A rigorous evaluation framework shows how this innovative partnership approach has brought significant reductions in alcohol supply to children, alcohol-related anti-social behaviour and underage street drinking, with CAP areas demonstrating:

• 61% average reductions in weekly drinking among 13–16-year-olds
• 99% of retailers passed Challenge 25 compliance test for alcohol sales
• 86% of retailers did not sell alcohol when they suspected it was a ‘proxy’ sale
• 50% reduction in young people hanging around shops, asking adults to buy alcohol for them
• 42% reduction in youth alcohol-related anti-social behaviour
  

For more information see: www.community alcoholpartnerships.co.uk

For media information please contact: Samantha Patel, Communications Manager, CAP: sam@community alcoholpartnerships.co.uk