Bid to stop adults buying alcohol for children
Friday, 9th October 2009.
Police attempting to crackdown on under-age drinking in parts of Haverhill have been told the main problem is older people buying alcohol for children.
West Suffolk police chief Chief Inspector Martin Barnes-Smith tol a police public meeting in Haverhill last night (Thursday), haverhill was a lovely town with a lot of good work going on and police were determined to do their part by reducing trouble caused by under-age drinking.
The problems tended to be between 5pm and 8pm on a number of estates, he said, and among the measures they were using to crack down were sale-testing carried out by trading standards officers followed up by police, targeted patrolling by Safer Neighbourhood Teams (SNTs) and engaging youth workers to help them.
But representatives of the town's schools and pupils said the problem was not under age buying of alcohol, but older people buying it for them.
Chief Inspector Barners-Smith said they were aware of this and were trying to check with licensees about who alcohol was being bought for, and also going around and picking up children who had been drinking and taking them round to their parents.
There they would ask where they got the alcohol from, although the youngsters were often unwilling or afraid to tell.
A problem of under-age drinking at the Newt Pond area, recently transforned with Lottery cash, was raised by members of the Parkway Residents Association, and police agreed to look at possible solutions.
The residents asked if the no alcohol area in the town centre could be extended to include that area, but Chief Inspector Barnes-Smith said they would look at that although it might be better dealt with in another way.
West Suffolk police chief Chief Inspector Martin Barnes-Smith tol a police public meeting in Haverhill last night (Thursday), haverhill was a lovely town with a lot of good work going on and police were determined to do their part by reducing trouble caused by under-age drinking.
The problems tended to be between 5pm and 8pm on a number of estates, he said, and among the measures they were using to crack down were sale-testing carried out by trading standards officers followed up by police, targeted patrolling by Safer Neighbourhood Teams (SNTs) and engaging youth workers to help them.
But representatives of the town's schools and pupils said the problem was not under age buying of alcohol, but older people buying it for them.
Chief Inspector Barners-Smith said they were aware of this and were trying to check with licensees about who alcohol was being bought for, and also going around and picking up children who had been drinking and taking them round to their parents.
There they would ask where they got the alcohol from, although the youngsters were often unwilling or afraid to tell.
A problem of under-age drinking at the Newt Pond area, recently transforned with Lottery cash, was raised by members of the Parkway Residents Association, and police agreed to look at possible solutions.
The residents asked if the no alcohol area in the town centre could be extended to include that area, but Chief Inspector Barnes-Smith said they would look at that although it might be better dealt with in another way.
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