Alcohol Strategy

This document details Wolverhamptons Alcohol Strategy for 2009 – 2011. It is the first multiagency alcohol strategy for Wolverhampton and represents the desire and commitment from a range of organisations to work together in a coordinated and strategic manner to prevent and reduce alcohol related harm in Wolverhampton. The production of this document has been overseen by a multi-agency subgroup of the Safer Wolverhampton Partnership and Health and Well Being Partnership called the Alcohol Oversight Group. To support the introduction of the strategy an action plan has been developed that involves local partners in delivery and will be reviewed on an annual basis. 

The action plan can be viewed on the following websites: http://www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/ http://www.wolvespct.nhs.uk/ http://www.saferwolverhamptonpartnership.org/ The strategy advocates the use of a public health approach to partnership working, to balance resources and interventions between prevention, risk reduction and treatment. This local strategy supports the Governments Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for Englands (2004) and the updated version Safe.Sensible.Social the next steps in the alcohol strategy (2007). Key partners who have played a pivotal role in the development of the strategy include Wolverhampton City Council, Wolverhampton City Primary Care Trust, Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust, West Midlands Police, West Midlands Fire Service, West Midlands Probation Service, Wolverhampton Magistrates Court, the Youth Council and the voluntary and private sector. Scale of the problem in Wolverhampton The national burden of disease and harm caused by alcohol misuse is now well understood. Many of the health and social problems that we experience in this City are not unique to Wolverhampton, but nevertheless are serious and require an urgent and coordinated response from several key agencies. A snapshot for Wolverhampton shows: Health & Health services

• Estimates suggest that there are 36,000 harmful and hazardous drinkers (aged 15-64 years) and 6,200 dependant drinkers (15-64 years). This generates a high number of hospital admissions.
• Approximately 1.4% of all deaths are a direct result of alcohol-related disease. Wolverhampton has higher mortality rates from chronic liver disease than the national average, and at least 40 premature deaths occur each year. Crime and community safety.
• Rates of alcohol-related violent crime are significantly worse in Wolverhampton compared to the national average. Wolverhampton has the sixth highest rate of recorded alcohol-related crime out of 34 areas in the West Midlands. Families, Children and Social networks
• In line with national averages, between 1000 and 6000 children in Wolverhampton may be affected by hidden harms associated with parental alcohol misuse. 
• Half of all teenagers as young as 16 admit to binge drinking and around 25% of children aged 11-15 drink an average of 10 units of alcohol a week. Workplace and the economy
• In the absence of local data, nationally, nearly three quarters of employers say alcohol misuse is a problem in their company. Local costs would include lost output due to absenteeism, reduced employment and reduced employment efficiency.

Vision for the City The Alcohol Strategy for Wolverhampton was developed between October 2007 and July  2008; and was steered by a multi-agency subgroup of the Safer Wolverhampton Partnership and Health & Well Being Partnership, called the Alcohol Oversight Group. Extensive research and consultation undertaken as part of the development of the strategy has identified the following key themes:

• Crime and community safety - to reduce alcohol-related crime and disorder including domestic violence and anti-social behaviour wherever this may take place.
• City Centre image - to use the Licensing Act, environmental health and planning provisions to promote a safe and sensible drinking culture which supports a safe and vibrant evening and night-time economy. It is important to note that many of these issues have been highlighted through other pieces of work namely: the regeneration of the City Centre, the Flight of the Flamingos Report and the Deliottes Project.
  Treatment and support for services for alcohol-related ill-health – to improve access to appropriate prevention, treatment and support services for alcohol related health and care needs. Reducing the impact of alcohol abuse is one of four strategic priorities (and one of 11 specific goals) set out in the Strategic plan 2008-2013 for Wolverhampton City PCT. This 5 year initiative has secured the necessary investment required to improve alcohol treatment and support services in Wolverhampton. Children, young people and families – to protect children, young people and families against alcohol-related harm through early intervention, tackling under-age sales and by helping them address alcohol-related problems. It is particularly important to reduce the impact that alcohol-fuelled domestic violence has on families.
• Prevention and culture change - to increase awareness of issues relating to alcohol misuse and promote opportunities to develop a responsible drinking culture. These themes can be brought together to form a long-term strategic vision for the City of Wolverhampton, that will require a comprehensive approach to both planning and delivery.Strategic Priorities for 2009-2011 Addressing all these wide-ranging and complex issues will require a co-ordinated and sustained approach for many years to come, however the esources available to tackle alcohol misuse are limited. Through consultation, three strategic priorities have emerged and these will be our priorities for the next two years.

These are:

Crime reduction and Community safety                                                                                     Licensing and Regulation Access to treatment services

The following section briefly details how we may achieve these priorities which in turn link to the  Strategic Action Plan for Alcohol 2009-2011 which can be viewed on the following websites:
http://www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/
http://www.wolvespct.nhs.uk/
http://www.saferwolverhamptonpartnership.org/

Crime reduction and Community Safety
We need to:

• Reduce alcohol-related violent crime and disorder in key hotspots in the city centre and neighbourhoods 
• Reduce alcohol-related domestic violence and the impact this has on families

Licensing and Regulation
We need to:

• Implement appropriate initiatives to increase the availability of safe night-time transport
• Improve the collection and effective use of local intelligence to inform the review of the Statement of Licensing Policy by the Licensing Authority thereby supporting policy development that will work towards achieving the long-term vision for the City
• Implement an effective enforcement policy to tackle under-age sales 
• Develop multi-agency enforcement arrangements to deal with problematic licensed premises

Improved access to treatment services
For this developmental work area we need to:

Improve referral pathways into treatment programmes Develop relationships and work with criminal justice agencies Improve local intelligence and data collection on the harms caused by alcohol abuse Ensure the commissioning of evidence and needs based alcohol services in Wolverhampton Work in partnership with the Healthy Schools Initiative to develop an education package for use in schools to raise awareness of the harms caused by alcohol and signpost support and advice services.

Perceptions of Alcohol Use in Asian Communities Summary
M•E•L Research was commissioned by Wolverhampton City PCT in June 2010 to conduct an exploratory piece of investigative research to explore perceptions of alcohol use and alcohol treatment services within the Asian communities living in Wolverhampton. The final report was delivered in November 2010, and this document is a summary of the final report. 

The Strategic Action Plan for Alcohol 2009-2011 sets out work activities for achieving each strategic priority.