Big Drink debate hailed huge success
Jul 31 2009 by Helen Rae, The Journal
THE region’s biggest public health debate ended with thousands of people from the North East having shared their views on alcohol.
As many as 12,524 drinkers and non-drinkers alike have completed a questionnaire setting out their attitudes towards alcohol – beating the target of 10,000 responses set at the beginning of the campaign.
Last month, the six-week debate was launched by Balance – the country’s first ever regional alcohol office – and supported by The Journal, to assess the impact of drink on the region.
Colin Shevills, director of Balance, said: “We have been overwhelmed by the response we have had to the debate.
“With more than 12,000 people filling in the questionnaire we think this makes it the biggest public health debate of its kind in the North East.
“At the start we set a target of 10,000 responses and we have done fantastically well to beat that. The support we have had from our partners in the health service, police and local authority has been great. We knew once people in the North East got involved they would become very passionate about the debate and that’s exactly what happened.”
On-street teams have been helping people complete questionnaires on the spot.
The questionnaire was anonymous and asked why people did or didn’t drink, how many units they consumed over a typical week, where they purchased alcohol and what situations would make them reduce their consumption.
All the information gathered through the survey will be used to inform a State of the Region report, to be published in the Autumn. The report will inform an updated regional alcohol strategy designed to help people reduce their alcohol consumption.
