The public health consequences from alcohol consumption are well known. On 22 July 2008, the Department published the North West Public Health Observatory (NWPHO) report, “Alcohol-attributable fractions for England—Alcohol-attributable mortality and hospital admissions”, which summarised the current information on the health risks from alcohol consumption. A copy of this report has been placed in the Library.
Although the Department’s research is currently focused on improving prevention and treatment services, we continue to keep under review the emergence of any major new evidence on the risks and benefits relating to alcohol consumption, to ensure that guidance remains up-to-date.
Local Alcohol Profiles England, run by the NWPHO, provide data for local authorities and primary care trusts (PCT) on the local impact of alcohol use, which allow local alcohol strategies to be tailored to the needs for specific areas.
During 1 July 2008 and 2 September 2008 ‘Safe Space’, a programme to make public spaces safe and to reduce anti-social behaviour, was run in Merseyside. As part of this programme Liverpool PCT and Working Neighbourhood Fund ran ‘Safe Space Plus’, an initiative that specially addressed alcohol related anti-social behaviour and engaged with young people to encourage safe and sensible drinking. Additional objectives for ‘Safe Space Plus’ included enabling access to brief interventions or treatment to reduce alcohol consumption, where appropriate, and raising awareness of the risks associated with alcohol consumption.
The NWPHO are evaluating ‘Safe Space Plus’ and will be outlining the impact of ‘Safe Space Plus’ on young people and the wider community in a report expected to be published in early 2009.