Free Pints to Tackle Binge Drinking Among Young Adults
Comments (0) Drinkaware research shows young adults ashamed of their drunken behaviour
Alcohol charity Drinkaware is today (1st September) unveiling a £100 million campaign to encourage 18-24 year olds to evaluate their drinking habits and in the long term, change the social acceptability of drunkenness. The campaign is launched alongside new research from Drinkaware which shows that one in three young adults (32%) claims they don’t need advice about alcohol(1). This is despite the fact that in the last twelve months, almost one in four (23%) have been ashamed of their appearance when drunk, 25% have not known how they got home, nearly one third (31%) have blacked out, one in 10 (9%) have been in a fight and just under half (48%) have vomited due to drinking too much.
In a new approach to tackling alcohol misuse, pubs, bars, phoneboxes, supermarkets and off licences around the country will carry campaign posters, drink mats, stickers and shelf strips presenting tips for smarter drinking. The campaign’s ‘Why let good times go bad?’ logo and strapline will also be featured on 13 million products including neck labels on bottles, cans and multi-packs. Free pints of water from pubs, bars and clubs to encourage young adult drinkers to pace their drinking is one of four creative executions people will see linked with the campaign.
The Campaign for Smarter Drinking* is funded by the drinks industry and run in partnership with Government. The biggest ever responsible drinking campaign will present young adults with practical tips to help them curb the ill effects of their drinking: eating a meal; drinking water or soft drinks between alcoholic drinks; looking after mates and planning your journey home. Other campaign features include:
- One in two UK phone boxes showing one of four campaign posters**
- Staff in pubs, off licences and supermarkets up and down the country educated in alcohol awareness.
Chris Sorek, Chief Executive of Drinkaware, says: “When people are drinking and having fun it can be easy to get carried away and not recognise the point when a good night can take a turn for the worse. Changing the drinking culture in Britain won’t happen overnight, but with the right support, information and advice, young adults can change their own drinking patterns.
“Some young adults think they know all there is to know about alcohol, but simple tips like eating before going out drinking, pacing yourself with water or soft drinks, looking after your mates and planning your journey home, can help them stay safe and prevent their good times going bad.
“The financial and social impact of alcohol misuse affects everyone. Parents, teachers, health professionals, charities, the drinks industry and central and local governments all have a part to play in reducing the harm caused to young people by alcohol misuse.”
Each year, alcohol misuse for all ages costs society the NHS around £2.7 billion, although the wider cost to society including crime and disorder, social and family breakdown and sickness absence is estimated at closer to £25.1 billion(2). Binge drinking among adults under 25 is of particular concern with nearly 50,000 16-24 year olds admitted to hospital in England and Wales in 2007/08 due to alcohol related causes(3). New research from Drinkaware shows three in 10 18-24 year olds (30%) drinks to get drunk when they go out.
Alan Johnson, Secretary of State for the Home Office, says: “Alcohol-related violent crime has fallen by a third since 1997, but no-one is suggesting the job is done. We must educate our young people that binge drinking is socially unacceptable and can have grave consequences. This is not just the responsibility of the Government, but for us all, and that is why I am pleased the drinks industry is making this commitment.
“We are determined to tackle alcohol fuelled crime and disorder which damages our communities, ruins lives and costs the UK economy billions each year in police and hospital resources.
“Police now have more tools and powers to tackle disruptive drinkers and we are consulting on new rules to ensure businesses that sell alcohol are doing so responsibly.”
Andy Burnham, Secretary of State for Health, said: “The majority of people drink responsibly but for too many alcohol has become a serious health problem.
“The alcohol industry has a big responsibility to tackle excessive drinking and there are many things we can do, by working together, to promote a healthy attitude to alcohol. This campaign is a good step forward – I hope it will help to change attitudes.”
A Drinkaware report, ‘Why let good times go bad? Tackling binge drinking among British 18-24 year olds’, also shows that:
- 55% don’t keep track of how much they’re drinking when they’re out;
- 46% don’t drink water or soft drinks to pace themselves when they’re out drinking;
- Over a third (34%) drink nine or more units when drinking socially – for both men and women this is more than double the daily unit guidelines. 18-24 year olds drink more units in an average session compared to any other age group(4);
- More than three quarters (77%) don’t like it when their friends get too drunk and end up being a burden.
Throughout the campaign, Drinkaware will work with major employers, social networks, clubs and colleges to deliver messages to young people.
For a copy of the Drinkaware report, ‘Why let good times go bad? Tackling binge drinking among 18-24 year olds’, or to download campaign creatives and other materials, please visit www.drinkaware.co.uk/embargoednews username journalists password embargo.
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For more information please contact the Drinkaware media team:
Siobhan McCann: 020 7307 7465 or 07827 971744 smccann@drinkaware.co.uk
David Fraser at Frank PR: 020 7693 6999 or 07971 840206 drinkaware@frankpr.it
