Bringing together local agencies, licensing authorities, health bodies and the police, the Government scheme aims to help areas with high levels of drink-related crime and health harms with co-ordinated initiatives over a 15-month period.
National Pubwatch chairman Steve Baker said he was optimistic that his organisation would continue to operate effectively within the named areas, as long as the LAAAs embraced a collaborative approach.
He said: “We already have a strong presence in these 20 areas, and we will continue to do everything to help the local partnerships work with their local Pubwatch schemes to make the night-time economy safer.”
However, Baker added: “I hope these partnerships don’t come along and try to set up their own equivalent schemes. To my mind, that wouldn’t be a very cost-effective way forward.”
'Grown-up debate'
Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers strategic affairs director Kate Nicholls claimed there was “huge potential” for LAAAs to be beneficial, and there was an opportunity to use the debate to talk about the positive action pubs and bars are taking to combat drink-related problems.
She said: “Given that 70% of alcohol is now consumed away from licensed premises and the problems that we face with alcohol in our communities are less to do with the pub, I think there is an opportunity both at a national and local level to have a very sensible grown-up debate about are the problems we face as a community and as a society, where those problems are emerging, and how best to tackle them.”
Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, said the LAAAs will give increased support to tackle high rates of alcohol-related harm. He added: “Similar programmes such as Community Alcohol Partnerships have been shown to reduce underage drinking and antisocial behaviour by as much as 40%.”
The 20 LAAAS are: Blackpool; Croydon; Doncaster; Gravesham; Gloucester City; Greater Manchester; Halton; Hastings; Liverpool; Middlesbrough; Newham; Northamptonshire; Nottinghamshire; Pembrokeshire; Scarborough; Slough; Southend-on-Sea; Stoke-on-Trent; Swansea, and Weston-super-Mare.