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CHAPTER 9 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Key Point Summary

• This project has been the first attempt to look at in a concerted manner, the impact of the selling of alcohol within communities via off-sales across six areas of Scotland. Within a tight timescale there has been collation of data from a number of sources. One strand of evidence that has been difficult to obtain is direct sales data from outlets themselves.
• Alcohol is widely available and cheap, and due to Scottish culture, is accepted within our daily lives.
• The negatives of this focus on what is perceived as visible to communities: young people and excessive drinking; and alcohol related disorder. There is recognition that the wider culture of drinking must be addressed.
• The problems concerning alcohol within communities must include the off-sales sector and its staff as part of the solution that moves beyond the focus on responsibility of selling. Once the sale is concluded the issue moves on; the problems are hidden. Ways to do this could include store managers taking part in local community fora.
• The licensing changes offer an opportunity for engaging better with the off-sales trade and communicating local concerns. However the industry feels that issues concerning display and hours of opening have not necessarily been thought through sufficiently.
• The off-sales sector is the increasingly dominant sector for obtaining alcohol in the UK, and is a huge industry.
• Price is a strong force within this market with discounting playing an important role in developing market share for larger grocers.
• There is also increasing price differentiation between alcohol sold via on-sales compared to off-sales.
• There is considerable debate on the issue of consumption rates and this needs to be properly explored to gauge when off-sales purchases turn into consumption.
• Promotions are dominated by price discount and are seen as the norm; they are expected as part of buying alcohol, especially when it is event driven. This is affecting other aspects of the industry, such as manufacture, branding, quality and marketing.
• Promotions do not necessarily focus particularly on the young, but they relate to price, which is one of the major points considered by young people when deciding what to drink.
• Front loading (the act of purchasing alcohol from an off sales prior to going out on a night out), was thought, by our participants, to be an increasing trend and associated with under 25s behaviour. This practice may begin to change aspects of the overall night time economy.
• This study witnessed no conclusive selling to underage youngsters and the qualitative evidence gathered shows it is not as prevalent, especially in larger outlets. This is in contrast to the AMEC test purchasing results which show a failure rate ranging between 8-26% across the larger outlets.
• However, selling to third party agents on behalf of underage individuals was seen as the key issue that needed to be addressed.
• Alcohol related antisocial behaviour is of great concern, however there is limited evidence that it is concentrated in and around off-sales.
• Focus is on antisocial behaviour that is 'nuisance'/noise related concerning young people congregating in public places.
• Long term solutions to alcohol related antisocial behaviour need to come from better community engagement with young people.
• As part of this, the off-sales sector must be encouraged to link with wider social regeneration programmes.

Conclusions

The research

9.1 This is the one of the first attempts to look in detail at the selling of alcohol within communities from off-sales. It is a small, first step in understanding the impact of a sector of business that has greatly expanded over the last twenty years.

9.2 The research focused on a number of different aspects including a literature review, collation of available industry sector data as well as interviews and focus groups with a wide spread of interested parties (Staff and Managers of off-sales, Area Key Stakeholders, and focus groups of both young [18-25 years] and older adults [>25 years] across six areas throughout Scotland). These areas were chosen due to population spread and included a range of three different types of off-sales outlets in each area. It is, we believe the first time that this range of perceptions and opinions have been collated concentrating on the off-sales sector.

9.3 Despite time restrictions it has been possible to gain some industry wide data, however, it must be noted that one aspect that the research team have been unable to obtain in sufficient detail is local sales data for the six areas. There are several reasons for this; for some of the smaller convenience stores the information on alcohol is not sufficiently broken down into useable data or not collated at all, as well as concerns about confidentiality. However, the main reason has been our inability to convince some of the larger retailers to provide local sales data; we of course believe that this data is produced, but there may commercial considerations which mean companies feel unable to share this data with others in a wider public sense.

Alcohol and the Community - Addressing our Culture of Drinking

9.4 Alcohol is part and parcel of everyday life within Scotland, it is a legal commodity enjoyed on a daily basis with some of our happiest experiences connected, in some part, to the use of alcohol. When asked what they did on an average Friday night at the weekend, the vast majority of people interviewed across the six study areas commented that it involved the use of alcohol.

9.5 The negatives as well as the positives of that relationship are also recognised. Again the vast majority of those participants within the focus groups were aware of the health implications that excessive alcohol consumption brings.

9.6 Off-sales outlets are also part of our lives and part of communities. The Staff who work in them also live in the local communities and certainly, through this work, a considerable number know their customers very well. The businesses themselves bring a considerable amount of revenue into local economies too.

9.7 However this research has brought up a number of points with regards to the way we think about alcohol and how it is now sold. A key theme emerging from this work is the acceptance of alcohol as part of our daily lives as never before; this could be due, in part, to a reduction in real terms of the price of alcohol. Off-sales are now seen as the norm, with increased availability, the culture of buying from off-sales is part and parcel of the daily/weekly shop. This is a change from twenty years ago when on-sales provided the dominant role in our drinking habits. This is also matched with the worry expressed by a number of groups involved in this research of a new found acceptance of intoxication.

9.8 Across the focus groups and a number of Area Key Stakeholder interviews was the perception that young people were not simply getting drunk anymore as a rite of passage, but drinking to excessive levels to get highly intoxicated. There is a clear belief across the different groups interviewed that alcohol is not seen as 'special', it is seen as an ordinary commodity, and the perception is that it is more available and affordable than ever before. Off-sales and the provision of alcohol within a community must be placed within that context.

9.9 Consistently throughout the interviews and focus groups the terms 'culture' and the 'Scottish culture of drinking' were mentioned along with the desire to address the 'culture of binge drinking'.

9.10 What this research has begun to get a perspective on is that those selling alcohol take their responsibilities with regards to the providing of alcohol seriously especially when dealing with young people, but understandably the issue moves out of the shops when the sale leaves. In contrast within the on-sales environment the issues do not move on, they are often in or on the doorstep of the establishments in question. The problems related to alcohol are highly visible; the on-sales sector has not been able to ignore this.

9.11 In the off-sales arena the problems are not necessarily close by or immediately visible; the sale is completed and the person continues on their way. This is not to say that the off-trade does not invest time and effort in promoting sensible drinking, it does through campaigns such as ' Drink-Aware', but the overall harm done by excessive drinking is hidden, it is not visible therefore the overall harm and damage is not seen as part of the process they deal with. And to be fair, neither do considerable numbers of the public. Both seller and customer see it as a commodity that is bought and sold to be enjoyed.

9.12 Yet what has become evident through this research is the concern that our young people are not being socialised in responsible ways to drink, where they see the concept of drinking to 'get smashed' the thing to do; there is an acceptance of drunkenness.

9.13 With the increased availability and low cost of alcohol across Scotland from the expansion of the off-sales sector it has to be recognised by all those involved that it comes with both positives and negatives for our local communities.

Off-Sales and Licensing

9.14 It is fair to say that the Licensing Scotland (Act) 2005 does not specifically address off-sales and the selling of alcohol in the community to a large extent. However within this work there has been, as you would expect, slightly different reactions to it and its forthcoming overhaul of licensing provision. ⁵⁶

9.15 The main theme from a public health and community safety perspective was a welcoming that the changes were taking place, and a real sense that it could enable better partnership working both at strategic and local levels involving all parties. It is seen as a good opportunity for better local control, especially with regards to the issue of over provision and the control of licences. However it must be pointed out that over provision as a theme was not focused upon across the six study areas, no specific problems were brought up.

9.16 In the future it seems that new local licensing boards could begin to impact the way alcohol is delivered with potentially better planning of local communities overall. A key aspect of this and the opportunity for local partnership seems to be the role of the new Licensing Officers.

9.17 Obviously these individuals have a number of roles and responsibilities, one of which is taking on board the concerns of local communities and off-sale outlets, as well as licence compliance issues. If this wish for cooperation and partnership is to be realised, then these new posts must integrate into the wider community fabric and not just focus on a narrow compliance remit.

9.18 Managers of outlets and Retail/Industry Stakeholders were also prepared to work through the changes and stressed that they felt overall that as an industry they took their responsibilities seriously.

9.19 Moreover it was clear from our interviews with Staff and Managers that across all six areas and types of outlet, the responsibilities of the Licensing Laws were taken seriously (though Staff in a number of shops did not have wide knowledge of potential changes coming through from the implementation of the 2005 Act.

9.20 What was clear was that outlets are frustrated in terms of potential aspects of the new legislation concerning siting and positioning of displays and change in hours of provision. It was felt that they had not been thought through and to a certain extent were tokenistic.

9.21 One glaring aspect that came through when speaking to some Area Stakeholders and a lot of the focus groups was the belief that changes to Licensing Laws in general would have little effect on reducing the purchasing or consumption of alcohol or addressing concerns regarding problems with alcohol.

Purchasing and Off-Sales

9.22 The off-sales sector is a huge billion pound industry within the UK economy. In terms of overall turnover within the off-sales market in the UK the two largest areas are lager/beer sales and the light wine market. Alcohol plays an important part in terms of grocery sales across the sector and though the sample included in this study is small, lager/beer is perceived as having more of a male orientated profile with the wine market increasing in importance within both gender profiles but specifically within older groups. There is some evidence from the data collated that sales of white spirits such as vodka are increasing in off-sales through their increasing popularity with young women.

9.23 The dominant trend within purchasing has been the expansion of the off-sales sector compared to the static nature of the on-sales arena. There is considerable evidence to suggest that for the majority of people off-sales is now the dominant force in terms of where people purchase their alcohol. Certainly from discussions with Strategic Key Stakeholders within Retail and Industry the belief is that the price differentiation between on-sales compared to off-sales has increased and accelerated over the last five years particularly due to pricing by larger supermarkets.

9.24 There was widespread agreement that price was a major driving force in terms of purchasing with clear examples of cheap, affordable alcohol widely available across the six areas of the study. The evidence also shows that alcohol is at its cheapest level for considerable time.

9.25 However there is substantial debate on the issue of the link between purchasing and consumption. Within this study, from a community safety and public health perspective, there is a clear belief that growth in off-sales with a rise in overall consumption is clearly linked to overall alcohol-related harm. Whereas the retail and industry sector clearly believes that there is still a lot that is unknown about how the alcohol that is purchased from off-sales is consumed and the timescale in which this alcohol is consumed. However, it must be pointed out that within this research it can be suggested that the concept of frontloading is very real (see Chapter 7), as is the fact that the UK has one of the highest rates of underage binge drinking rates in Europe. Both these behaviours involve consumption that is immediate or relatively close to purchase.

Promotions

9.26 The operational definition of 'promotion' can be seen as a short term activity that encourages either switching of brands or increased purchasing. What we have clearly seen as part of this work has been the concept of promotion being dominated within the off-sales environment by price discounting in one form or another. Across retail, industry, health, community safety and the public perspective there was a belief that the off-sales sector was obsessed by price discount and this was largely driven by the desire of larger supermarkets to command market share and increase volume.

9.27 Promotional activity tends to be based on 2-4 week periods set at a regional or national level. For the larger stores a level of local control on promotions is not there, decisions to promote brands in a certain way are decided from a central company standpoint. With the fixation on price and discounting there are limited other considerations.

9.28 This scenario has created the perverse position that promotions are now seen as a norm. This so called short term activity is not seen as different; the expectation from an individual is that there will always be a deal. Throughout our interviews across all groups there was acceptance that customers across all outlets 'liked a bargain' in fact there was recognition from the industry and retail input that if you do not have promotions then you are not 'in the game', and the literature does show that promotions do increase purchasing.

9.29 Within this research the major theme mentioned across all Stakeholders was the aggressive discounting that is apparent within the large supermarket sector. The belief is that alcohol is being used within the overall drive for market share by large grocers. Sporting events and holiday periods are being used to ramp up the discounts, again to create, for example, the peculiar scenario whereby at Christmas, for example, the public are primed to buy alcohol, therefore promotions do not have to be as 'deep', however the reverse is true.

9.30 It is also the perception of those within the industry that we interviewed that this is affecting the way companies handle brand manufacturing, quality, image, and marketing. There is an increasing concern that nothing else matters apart from price. The argument was made that some types of alcohol are rapid repeat sellers for grocers. The spirits market is stable however from the figures provided the lager/beer and wine markets are the drivers.

9.31 The interesting point within this of course is what young people do; 18 to 25's appear be affected by price, they want the most alcohol for their money. Also, the perception from Stakeholders is that the young were very brand aware.

9.32 Within the interviews and data that we have collated, people (not just under 25's) are seen as buying a range of alcohol products and may switch brand but largely keep to the type of drink that they usually have.

9.33 However underage drinkers are unlikely to be discerning about promotions; the main aim is to purchase whatever they can for the cheapest price so that the alcohol can be drunk virtually immediately. However, what large scale discount promotions do is feed into the overall awareness that alcohol can be incredibly low priced, available, and culturally the norm; "everybody is buying it", it's an ordinary product, part of day-to-day life; "there is always a deal on". Underage drinkers may not use the large supermarkets to the extent that the rest of the community do, but they see their parents, aunts, uncles and families getting low priced deals.

9.34 Recent studies have shown that cheap drinks promotions in off-licences have an effect on alcohol consumption (e.g. Kuo et al, 2003), however there is some amount of confusion as to whether alcohol promotions with off-sales do present a problem (e.g. Northern Ireland Drinks Industry Group, 2005; Portman Group, 2003). In 2006, we have just seen the first fall in consumption for a number of years.

9.35 The initial evidence from the literature suggests that drinks promotions in off- sales could be curtailed to some degree (Kuo et al, 2003), however the concept of promotions that we have found in this study is one where there is always a deal which is largely, if not exclusively, focused on price discount. No specific promotions were quoted as directly appealing to the young or encouraging in the strictest sense binging of drinks, however the cheapness of the deal was undeniable. It is difficult to suggest exact recommendations on promotions when the promotion culture in presenting alcohol has almost moved into the sphere of how every other product is promoted within the wider shopping sense.

Behaviour and the Negative Consequences Associated with Alcohol Sales in the Community

9.36 When focusing on the behaviour of individuals and communities and issues surrounding the sales of alcohol from off-sales, the major themes concentrated on three key areas.

Front Loading

9.37 The first of these is the issue of front loading where all participants across the study, though they may have not necessarily known the term or used it, were familiar with the concept. Across Stakeholders and focus groups there was a widespread belief that people were front loading and it was especially connected with under 25 year olds drinking before they go out for a night out.

9.38 Off-sales were also seen as the main way in which people obtained their alcohol, but it must be pointed out that there are subtle distinctions to be made when discussing front loading. Within this study we have clearly been given examples of under 25's going to an off-sales shop and purchasing alcohol for the purpose of drinking it before they then go out for the evening. There is also perhaps older age groups who are 'front loading' before they go out, but this alcohol is coming from the overall amount that they buy, for perhaps, a week. This needs to be examined further but in both cases it is widely accepted that people are making the distinct decision to drink at a home or another place before going out; there is an increasing concept of "having a wee party before going to the dancing".

9.39 Not surprisingly all groups including representatives from retail and industry accepted that the main reason front loading occurred was cost, with the relative cheapness of alcohol and ease of buying alcohol via a supermarket or other off-sales establishment compared to the perceived cost of drinks within the on-sales environment, people saw it as an opportunity to save money on a night out.

9.40 The topic does need further investigation because there is the suggestion that front loading is changing the concept of what going out means especially to under 25's. The perception of a number of participants within this research is that they are going out later in the evening to reduce the amount of money being spent, but also some Stakeholders felt that front loading also could begin to have an effect on the antisocial behaviour displayed within city centres or within on-sales environments. If individuals are turning up later to establishments more inebriated or entering establishments slightly 'merry' then topping up, the dynamics of what happens later changes.

Selling to Those Underage

9.41 Overall, the available literature evidence demonstrates that selling to underage people in off-licences has been prevalent across a number of countries. Indeed recent test purchasing studies in the UK show a reasonable percentage of outlets selling to those underage (up to 20% tested). The literature suggests that stronger enforcement of the law through regular checks and test purchasing, along with server training and media coverage of these measures could help reduce the level of irresponsible selling (e.g. Huckle, 2005; Holder, 2000; Grube, 1997). Such enforcement would be under the remit of the proposed Liquor Licensing Standards Officers, and/ or the police.

9.42 It is important to state as part of this project no direct selling to underage young people was witnessed by the research team. Of course this study is limited, but it must also be pointed out that the Staff interviewed across the different outlets were seen to be selling responsibly and felt that they could 'spot' underage attempts. Indeed a number of the professionals and Key Stakeholders interviewed for this study felt that actual underage attempts in buying alcohol were limited.

9.43 The perception from the retailers and the industry was that great strides had been made in terms of time and effort in addressing the issue of selling to those underage. This was often focused on in terms of training for Staff. It is clear that for the larger supermarkets and chain stores this is true for the six areas that we have covered. What is not so clear is how smaller, independent outlets have addressed training across Scotland. Certainly the smaller outlets that were covered in this limited study employed Staff that were experienced and confident, and many mentioned going on licensing courses as well the fact they also knew a lot of their customers. There was the perception from some Key Stakeholders that this may not be the case across Scotland.

9.44 It is also clear that a number of Stakeholders across the six areas were convinced that underage attempts would not be prevalent across larger supermarkets due to the investment in training, the confidence of having a larger Staff group for support, and the social barrier of where alcohol is situated. This was also backed up by the focus groups conducted with young people where the larger stores were not the places they had attempted to get alcohol when they were underage. The smaller dedicated off-sales and convenience stores were seen as the places to get alcohol.

9.45 It is important to be realistic in terms of what Staff, within smaller, local shops are expected to deal with. These outlets are trying to run a business often in competition with other larger retailers and clearly Staff have to make judgements regarding the selling of alcohol. Evidence within the literature suggests that potential solutions to the problems of selling to those who are underage or those who are already intoxicated can take many forms - including server training, police enforcement or media involvement (see Holder 2000; Buka and Birdthistle, 1999; Wolfson et al 1996).

9.46 The ' Think 21' policy was offered by participants as a clear platform of this overall decision making process. However this focus on 'Think 21' may not help some inexperienced Staff who live in communities that they serve, who know a number of the people they serve, and are thinking of their own safety. To make the best decisions is difficult at points when customers are demanding alcohol to be sold. A number of Stakeholders throughout this study felt that it was unrealistic to expect Staff in some communities to turn down business.

Third Party Selling

9.47 Across all participants at both a local and strategic level, selling alcohol to a third party was seen as the main way that underage youngsters obtained their alcohol and the greatest challenge to address. Indeed through the limited observation within the case studies there were clear examples whereby the research team witnessed third party selling. However it is clear that the individuals involved in the selling could not have been expected to have known that the older individual was buying for a young person who was underage. The examples that were observed were not the stereotypical old man buying vast amounts of cheap cider and expecting change from one sale and then purchasing other items, with a gang of young kids hanging about outside waiting for him. The sales observed were nothing remarkable; an individual buying alcohol and then passing it on, nothing 'out of the ordinary'. Both Staff and Managers felt that too much pressure was on them to make the 'right decision' and some Strategic Stakeholders did feel that this issue was a particularly difficult 'nut to crack'.

9.48 The issue of third party selling returns to the acceptance of alcohol within our communities and the acceptance of a rites of passage regarding underage drinking. Indeed within certain focus groups it was noted that there was nothing particularly wrong with this practice, but also focuses on the inability of us all to question social situations in front of us. Can we expect Staff to intervene and challenge an individual who is clearly over 18 or 21 years about where the alcohol they are purchasing is going when others do not intervene?

9.49 Some of those interviewed and involved within the community safety arena requested more focus on challenging this behaviour through tougher police action but this must be balanced against the available resources and also the nature of proving that an individual has purchased and handed over alcohol to underage drinkers.

9.50 It must be said that it is also not just strangers buying for children, many of those interviewed said that it involved older siblings, aunts, uncles, family friends and parents. Therefore the issue of third party buying and selling has to be addressed more comprehensively and not just with a focus on off-sales staff.

9.51 One final point that must be raised is the fact that the vast majority of the under 25 year olds interviewed as part of the focus groups all admitted to drinking underage as well as the majority of the older adults (with rare exceptions). This also links to the culture of drinking within our communities and the nature of underage drinking as something that youngsters do. It is seen as a ritual however what may have changed is the nature of it and the way young people are getting excessively drunk.

Antisocial Behaviour

9.52 There is no doubt that there is a clear problem with increasing alcohol related antisocial behaviour within our communities. There are clear links within the existing literature between alcohol and disorder as well as violence related injuries, however there is within the literature a lack of clear evidence focusing on the impact of alcohol promotion on antisocial behaviour. There is also a lack of clear evidence to whether or not any of the antisocial behaviour or violence is connected in any way to off-sales and the selling of alcohol in the community.

9.53 However in looking at the six areas for this study it is clear that the both Stakeholders and those who live in the communities saw clear connections between young people, alcohol and disorder. It is interesting to note that this disorder came in the shape of nuisance antisocial behaviour and a general concept of loitering. This is backed up within the observation sites as was witnessed with the 'hanging about' of groups of 'youngsters' drinking in both urban and rural areas.

9.54 Again it is important to note that although the main theme across the six areas was a focus on young people and alcohol related antisocial behaviour, virtually none of this antisocial behaviour was happening in and around the off-licences. In only one site within the observation sessions was public drinking by 'youths' taking place close to an outlet (no other antisocial activity was observed along with this drinking).

9.55 As seen within the observation, young people engaged in drinking outside want to find places to do it without adults around, often in parks etc. as a number of the under 25's interviewed explained they just want to "hang about" and "get a buzz". Certainly within this study there was no evidence that off-sales across a range of outlets presented a particular focus for antisocial behaviour.

9.56 What is apparent is that across all participants (both across Staff, Stakeholders and the public [young and old]) was the belief that young people's drinking habits were focused on excessive drinking and drinking to the point of loss of control. The role that off-sales play in this is that they are the most likely avenue for those under 25 and younger to obtain alcohol (usually via a third party). If there is antisocial behaviour occurring as a result of this drinking, then in the main it is not occurring in and around the outlets, with limited antisocial behaviour, if any, occurring in the shops from adults who are refused sales and abuse the staff.

Issues Relating to Specific Drinks

9.57 'Buckfast' was mentioned both by Stakeholders and members of the communities (especially as older adults) as popular with groups of young males who are perceived to engage in antisocial behaviour. We also noted within the research that in certain locations the sale of 'Buckfast' was restricted as a response to local concerns, however in other areas considerable amount of the drink were sold. In these areas, despite not being promoted, there was still a clear demand for the product.

9.58 What is clear is that there was a request from a number of individuals both within the Retail Sector, Community Stakeholders and Strategic Key Stakeholders to recognise that there was an over emphasis on the concerns over 'Buckfast'; it was far more important to address the wider concern of the level of overall drinking by young people of strong, cheap, affordable alcohol.

Tackling Antisocial Behaviour

9.59 Across many initiatives in the UK there is a general lack of systematic evaluation of the effectiveness in terms of reducing alcohol related crime/disorder and anti-social behaviour (Reid Howie Associates, 2003).

9.60 In the literature available particular off- sales guidance suggests that: making the outside of the store less attractive may reduce groups congregating by, for example, removing low level walls from outside the premises; removing any directly adjoining canopies that provide shelter from inclement weather; and ensuring that the area outside the store is such that it may deter youths from congregating. In addition this document suggests becoming involved in community crime reduction initiatives ( ACS/ BRC/ WSA, 2004).

9.61 Within the literature there are suggestions that areas outside off-sales establishments could be made less desirable as a place to be through various environmental measures (e.g. Jackson, 2005; ACS/ BRC/ WSA, 2004), along with the introduction of new laws against loitering outside off-sales establishments (e.g. Swanson, 2004).

9.62 A motion to the Scottish Liberal Democrat conference 2004 called for a new offence of loitering outside licensed premises, which was prompted by concerns about gangs congregating outside off-licences and intimidating members of the public (Swanson, 2004). According to Swanson (2004) crackdowns have also been announced on off-licences which become a magnet for antisocial behaviour.

9.63 An unusual solution, preventing groups of youths congregating where they are unwanted, is using piped classical music. According to Jackson (2005) some Co-op stores are trying this out outside some of its shops. The Tyne and Wear Metro was one of the first to use this solution, having heard of the success of some schemes in Canada, it plays classical music at some of its outlying stations. According to a spokesman this has virtually eliminated the problem of young people hanging around, getting involved in low level antisocial behaviour such as swearing and harassing passengers. Pilot projects have also begun at London Underground stations and a bus station in East Yorkshire (Jackson, 2005).

9.64 What this essentially does is take the problem away from the outlet but does not address, as we have found in this study, the issue of young people drinking to excess, unsupervised in local, open community spaces. Long term solutions to address this must include representation from off-sales and especially involve the new posts of Licence Officers.

9.65 Within the changes incorporated in the new Licensing Act is the opportunity for local communities to voice concerns. These concerns have to be placed in the context of what a licence holder can actually affect; they sell alcohol and then essentially the problems are invisible from the store context. Yet there is scope for addressing the selling of alcohol and the wider responsibilities within the community. It would be important to include the Licence Officers as well as licensees within local communities to partake in, and have input, into bodies such as local Community Planning Partnerships, community safety forums or, those whose remit addresses alcohol related issues.

9.66 The concern expressed throughout a number of the communities looked at within this work was that young people were drinking in ways that alarmed them and that it was linked to boredom and apathy because they 'had nothing to do'. This perception is not new, and is perhaps a simple understanding of a more complicated picture. However, the solutions to addressing the better engagement of young people within our communities do not solely fall at the feet of off-sales Managers. However those same Managers, Staff, producers, suppliers and customers from across the community do live in the same places as our young people live; we are all part of the solution. The local solutions must include the sellers of alcohol and they must be better engaged with, so that we begin to address how a number of our young people feel that the best choice to them on a rainy night is to go to an open space and drink large quantities of strong, cheap alcohol.

Recommendations

9.67 At a wider societal level there needs to be further concerted local action on addressing community attitudes to drinking and acceptability of drunkenness. This should include the better engagement of local licensees across the range of off-sales outlets within communities.

9.68 Therefore as part of the responsibility of the Licensing Standards Officers and/or Local Licensing Forums in each area a better interaction and connection to local groups such as community planning partnerships or community safety groups needs to be encouraged.

9.69 In addressing alcohol related antisocial behaviour within communities the literature does suggest that there should be more alcohol education offered within the school environment (e.g. MacKintosh et al, 1997) as current substance education tends to focus on drugs (MacAskill et al, 2001). This should be welcomed but it must focus on challenging behaviour and concepts of risk with specific attention given to the role and interaction with off-sales and how we buy alcohol in our communities.

9.70 There does need to be stricter enforcement through the courts with regards to those who are found to be selling to those who are underage and especially those buying on behalf of underage youngsters. The level of action against those has in the past been minimal. Without criminalising young people unnecessarily, licensing laws and regulations should ensure that age restrictions are effectively enforced, as well as perhaps addressing the consistency of laws surrounding public drinking.

9.71 Training of Staff (especially in smaller outlets) has to move beyond a primary focus of a 'Think 21' policy and the responsibility on purely selling to those underage. Much more focus should be placed on the importance of third party buying for those underage as part of the training remit. In general, good practice suggests refresher training sessions are necessary to prolong the basic impetus of ID checks (Buka and Birdthistle, 1999; Wolfson et al, 1996).

9.72 The training and development of Staff within the off-sales sector should include more detailed and realistic contexts in the experience of dealing with the public. There may be scope to enforce a stipulation on staffing within off-sales that new staff have to be supervised by an experienced colleague for a specific time period. The aim should be to enable the building of confidence in young and inexperienced staff to interact and engage clearly with those purchasing allowing them to make better informed decisions.

9.73 In addition to this, an agreed national Proof of Age and No Proof No Sale scheme has to be further investigated with developments in technologies potentially offering a more substantial identification options.

9.74 Wider health promotion and media focus should be addressed with challenges to the culture of third party buying and selling of alcohol. Responsibility of selling to those underage should not just focus on Staff within off-sales but a wider campaign questioning the acceptance of adults buying for those under 18 years old.

9.75 Local action on the promotion of alcohol from the evidence within this report is not necessarily worth pursuing unless the issue with regards to overall price of alcohol is addressed. Within this report it must be recognised that the areas of competition and pricing have not been fully investigated as the Scottish Executive requested focus on policy solutions that concentrated on the current Scottish legislative framework.

9.76 However, it must also be noted that within the literature there is evidence that increasing the price of alcohol may be an effective method of reducing its use by young people. Deutsche Welle, (2004); MacKintosh et al, (1997); Ponicki (1997) suggest that policies to reduce alcohol consumption should consider the entire price/ quality spectrum alongside differences in absolute alcohol per volume. There are instances of targeted taxes in a number of countries, namely in response to young people's preference for certain types of drinks. France, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark have employed this intervention with relative success (Babor, 2003).

9.77 This project has been an initial step in understanding the impact of off-sales and the selling of alcohol within communities in Scotland but what is apparent is that considerable amounts of popular alcohol brands are very cheap, affordable and accessible. Price promotion and discounting was seen as a fundamental driver by both industry and health and community voices, and this can only be addressed by serious discussion involving market leaders, the alcohol industry and government.

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