Alcohol can play a positive role in British culture as part of social and family life through sensible drinking. However excessive alcohol consumption among some groups in society is a cause of serious concern and is reflected by both the Government and the general public. The concern covers a number of related issues such as health implications or crime and disorder levels. The Oxfordshire Alcohol Strategy looks to address the concerns of alcohol misuse.

Alcohol and Health:

Alcohol misuse is directly linked to deaths of certain types of diseases such as liver cirrhosis and associated with other causes of death such as stroke and coronary heart disease.

The NHS recommends that you should not regularly drink more than:
3-4 units of alcohol a day for men,
2-3 units of alcohol per day for women.

What is a unit?

See the 'Know Your Limits' website for more information.
Link to 'Know Your Limits' website (www.knowyourlimits.gov.uk)

For men who are regularly drinking more than 8 units a day and women regularly drinking more than 6 units a day (50/35 units per week respectively) the risks of various diseases, such as liver disease or stroke, are significantly higher. In 2005, 4160 people in England and Wales died from alcoholic liver disease; an increase of 41% since 1999 according to the Department of Health.

Individuals who consume excessive amounts of alcohol may benefit from some kind of intervention or treatment, and can fall into four general categories of alcohol misuse. These have been identified by Models of Care of Alcohol Misusers (MoCAM) 2006.

• hazardous drinkers - 'are drinking at levels over the sensible drinking limits, either in terms of regular excessive consumption or less frequent sessions of heavy drinking. However, they have so far avoided significant alcohol-related problems.'
• harmful drinkers - 'are usually drinking at levels above those recommended for sensible drinking, typically at higher levels than most hazardous drinkers. Unlike hazardous drinkers, harmful drinkers show clear evidence of some alcohol-related harm. Many harmful drinkers may not have understood the link between their drinking and the range of problems they may be experiencing.'
• moderately dependent drinkers - 'may recognize that they have a problem with drinking, even if this recognition has only come about reluctantly through pressure, for example from family members or employers. The level of dependence of drinkers in this category is not severe.'
• severely dependent drinkers - 'may have serious and long-standing problems. This category includes individuals described in older terminology as 'chronic alcoholics'. Typically, they have experienced significant alcohol withdrawal symptoms. They may have progressed to habitual significant daily alcohol use or heavy use over prolonged periods or bouts of drinking.'

Individual drinkers may sit within a number of different categories during their lifetime and may choose to engage with relevant treatment services or not.

PDF download of

• Full copy of MoCAM (2006)
• Review of Effectiveness.

Alcohol, Crime and Antisocial Behaviour:

Underage drinking and drinking by young adults is perceived as a real problem by the public. There are strong links between high levels of youth alcohol consumption and other risk factors such as youth offending, teenage pregnancy and exclusion from school, but the exact nature of this relationship is not fully understood. Neither is it clear to what extent alcohol influences criminal activity and specifically violent behaviour and the night time economy. According to various Home Office publications, around half of all violent incidents take place at the weekend and the majority occur at night (between midnight and 6am).

Various pieces of legislation have had an impact on alcohol and crime. The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 gave emphasis to 'partnership' working between a wide range of agencies (such as police, district councils, primary care trusts and fire and rescue services) to combat local concerns through community plans; alcohol misuse is always a key priority. The introduction of the Licensing Act 2003 saw licensed premises given greater flexibility in operating hours and licensable activities that they could offer as well as additional enforcement powers to authorities.

Oxfordshire's aim is to:

'Minimise the negative efffects and costs associated with alcohol on individuals, families, local communities and public services in Oxfordshire, while ensuring that people are able to enjoy alcohol safely and responsibly.'

Purpose of the Oxfordshire Alcohol Strategy

This Strategy has been developed in order to identify and clarify the issues surrounding alcohol and the negative effects it can have on individuals and the wider community. This document is intended to have a strategic overview of the issues and sets out how the Oxfordshire Safer Communities Partnership intends to tackle the harm caused by alcohol misuse between April 2008 and March 2011 and links to the three year Community Safety Plans drawn up by the five Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRP's) for Oxfordshire (Cherwell, West, Oxford City, South and Vale of White Horse). This Strategy will be reviewed at the end of each year and updated. It will be a working strategy and will be revised as appropriate with the development of other policies in support of the overarching vision for Oxfordshire during the three years of the plan.

The development of the Strategy had been based on the national policy framework and local information gathering and consultation and builds on the original Oxfordshire Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy 2006-2009. It is drawn up under 'Community Safety' but it is immediately acknowledged that the Strategy cuts across many other areas of responsibility, most obviously Health and Young People.

Themes

There are five overall themes or aims contained within the Strategy. Others may be added as required and when appropriate to reflect wider policies which contribute to the overarching vision for Oxfordshire. A clear set of objectives have been developed under each aim supported by relevant action plans.

• Crime, Violence and Anti Social Behaviour
• Education and Advice
• Health and Treatment
• Environmental and Situational Factors
• Young People

National Policy Framework

Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England (2004)
In 2004 the Government introduced a national Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy. The strategy focused on preventing, minimising and managing the harms caused by alcohol misuse.
(download pdf copy of Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy document)

Models of Care of Alcohol Misusers (MoCAM) (2006)
This was produced by the Department of Health in conjunction with the National Treatment Agency (NTA) and provides a clear framework for the commissioning and provision of treatment for hazardous, harmful and dependent drinkers.

"Safe, Sensible, Social - the next steps in the National Alcohol Strategy" (2007)
This built on the foundations laid by the 2004 Strategy and focussed on the delivery of three priorities:

• laws and licensing powers
• drinkers who cause or experience the most harm
• an environment that actively promotes sensible drinking

(download pdf copy of Safe, Sensible, Social document)

Choosing Health in the South East: Alcohol (2007)
This report makes some key points about the harm caused by alcohol in the South East. The report recommended a number of priorities:

• Binge drinking in young people.
• Workplace alcohol policies should be implemented.
• High risk and vulnerable groups.
• Additional treatment services should be commissioned.
• Public health professionals should work together with local partners to tackle crime and disorder.

(download pdf copy of Choosing Health document)

Youth Alcohol Plan (2008)
The Youth Alcohol Action Plan (2008) looks to address the unacceptable practice of unsupervised young people consuming alcohol in public places, supporting parents with clear guidelines and strengthening the standards across the industry in relation to reducing the availability of alcohol to under 18's and encouraging responsible advertising. This plan refers to existing strategies and policies such as Aiming High for Young People and Targeted Youth Support.

(download pdf copy of Youth Alcohol Plan document)

Adult Alcohol Services

National Organisations - Alcohol

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