MEPMIS

Alcohol Awareness Week 2011

Did you know.... •Every minute alcohol-related problems cost the UK economy around £48,000 •Every hour more than 100 people go into hospital in England and Wales with an alcohol-related condition •Every day more than 40 people die as a result of alcohol in England and Wales •Every week more than 100 children call ChildLine upset about their parents' drinking - some as young as five years old. Alcohol Concern wants to create a world free from alcohol harm and to build a grassroots campaign movement to achieve this. We believe everyone has the right to enjoy life free from the effects of alcohol harm and only by campaigning for evidence-based local and national policies can this be achieved. The Alcohol Concern Charter Our starting point is the launch in Alcohol Awareness Week of the Alcohol Concern Charter for a world free from alcohol harm which sets out this vision. It's a four-point statement based on the World Health Organisation's own charter on alcohol. We want everyone, including those who represent us in local and central government, to sign up. A call to action To realise the goals in the charter will take considerable effort. We want everyone concerned about alcohol misuse to join us to campaign for effective evidence based polices to make this happen, including both national and local action to: •End the irresponsible promotion of cheap alcohol and deep discounting •Control the availability of alcohol locally by allowing local areas to reduce licence density •Protect children from alcohol marketing •Increase both identification and support for people affected by alcohol misuse. To achieve this we will be campaigning for a range of local and national measures, to be launched in Alcohol Awareness Week. We believe Government must take the lead in setting evidence based national policies to reduce alcohol harm and give local areas the powers and funding they need to act locally. Our call to action is for: •Government to adopt our charter and the national policy measures above in the forthcoming national alcohol strategy •Local Chairs of Health and Wellbeing Boards, Licensing and other groups to ensure local strategies and investment exists to reduce harm via the local actions above •Everyone to join Alcohol Concern to campaign for a world free of alcohol harm A national conversation To highlight the need for a public commitment to reduction in alcohol harm as reflected in the call to action, we are encouraging people around the country to take part in a national conversation based on two questions: •Is the social cost of alcohol too high? •What is a drink problem? To make people think about their level of drinking, Alcohol Concern's new poster on drink strength What's in your drink? is now available for you to print and display. During the week, Alcohol Concern will also be releasing two new reports: •Recommendations for the government's imminent Alcohol Strategy from Alcohol Concern's round table discussions at the party conferences •Outcomes from our youth policy team's shadow Advertising Standards Authority, where young people apply the ASA codes to current alcohol advertising and marketing. Alcohol Awareness Week is an Alcohol Concern initiative in collaboration with regional and national health groups Balance (North East), Our Life and Drink Wise North West (North West), Alcohol Focus Scotland, Alcohol Action Ireland and Alcohol Concern Cymru (Wales). What you can do to support us during Alcohol Awareness Week and beyond •Join us as a member or supporter if you haven't already done so •Sign the Alcohol Concern charter when it appears on the Alcohol Concern website www.alcoholconcern.org.uk/aaw during alcohol awareness week •Invite your MP, AMs in Wales, and/or your local councillors to meet with you during Alcohol Awareness week, and encourage them to sign the charter and campaign too •Lobby your local council to ensure they prioritise the local action above •Use the opportunity to engage with them on the subject of your choice, ie. cheap alcohol and argue for minimum pricing per unit •Promote the Charter and Call to Action through the people you work with and your social media channels. Together we can create meaningful change and significantly reduce alcohol harms.