Research

Youth, Alcohol & Crime

(Problems & Effective Responses)

Friday, 13 November 2009

The Watershed, 1 Canon’s Row, Harbourside, Bristol, UK

Heavy drinking, sometimes associated with crime and disorder, causes great concern, both within the United Kingdom and in many other countries. Young people, especially teenagers and those aged 20-24 years are a high risk group for binge drinking and its negative effects. There has been an enormous recent increase in alcohol consumption amongst young people in the UK. Teenagers are drinking twice as much as they did in 1990. Moreover, this rise has included young women, who are increasingly becoming involved in alcohol-related disorder. Many people now avoid their town and city centres due to the late night noise and aggression associated with youthful heavy drinking. It has been estimated that there are more than 1,000,000 alcohol-related violent crimes annually in the UK. Alcohol consumption is associated with large numbers of accidents, injuries, illnesses and premature deaths. The situation is both serious and deteriorating. In view of this, a review of both evidence and responses is required.

An international conference, Youth, Alcohol & Crime, has beenarranged jointly by the Alcohol & Health Research Unit at the University of the West of England, Bristol. This meeting will bring together leading authorities on issues related to young people, alcohol, crime and disorder. 

The speakers include leading police officers, lawyers, psychologists, psychiatrists and social scientists from the UK, Iceland, the Netherlands and Sweden. They will review evidence about young people, crime and disorder, young people and alcohol, the alcohol-crime connection, cultural and social influences on drinking and violence, factors associated with the UK’s growing alcohol problem, government policies, effective crime reduction strategies and the future direction of policy related to young people, alcohol, crime and disorder.  This meeting will be of interest to anybody with a professional or personal interest in issues related to young people, alcohol, crime and disorder. Professional groups who will find this of interest include the police, lawyers, doctors, nurses, clinical psychologists, therapists and counsellors, social workers, social scientists and policy-makers. The keynote speaker is Professor Robert Parker, Presley Center for Crime & Justice Studies, University of California, Riverside, USA.

Cost of Attendance: £150 (Includes VAT, and includes morning tea/coffee and buffet lunch)

Student discounts are available.

This meeting is supported by the Alcohol Education and Research Council.

The Conference Bookstall will be operated by Blackwells.

The Alcohol & Health Research Unit (A&HRU)

The A&HRU is based in the Centre for Public Health Research in the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at the University of the West of England, Bristol. The research team was established in 1978. It objectives are the following:

To carry out research related to beverage alcohol, together with other social and health issues including tobacco, illicit and prescribed drugs, HIV/AIDS, risk taking and sexual behaviour; To publish and disseminate the results of the Unit’s research for the information of researchers, clinicians, professionals, students and others concerned with the themes indicated above; To work in co-operation with researchers, clinicians, and professionals concerned with alcohol and social or health issues; To assist researchers, students and others in the conduct of their work related to alcohol and social or health issues.

The research team has included social scientists, psychologists, nurses, social workers, environmentalists, economists, medical practitioners and statisticians. The A&HRU is a centre for research and consultancy with special reference to health and social issues. It is at the forefront of research into alcohol in the United Kingdom and is recognised internationally as a centre of excellence in the field.

The work of the team has been wide-ranging. It has focussed on issues related to alcohol, tobacco, illicit and prescribed drugs and has highlighted particular groups such as young people, women, and those in specific professions (such as anaesthetists, brewers, distillers, company directors and nurses). Topics have included occupational risk-factors, harm minimisation, economics, health promotion, risk taking, prisons, sexual behaviour, HIV/AIDS, the sex industry, counsellor training, non-prescribed medication use, clinical evaluations and needs assessments. A&HRU members are routinely consulted by a variety of agencies to advise on national and international policy making in relation to alcohol, illicit drugs and allied subjects. The A&HRU is responsible for the UK components of the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs (ESPAD) and the UK and Isle of Man parts of Gender, Alcohol & Culture: An International Study (GENACIS). Both ESPAD and GENACIS involve over 30 countries. Members of the research team have produced over 300 scientific publications, including over 20 books.

Draft Programme

Chairpeople & Speakers

• Professor Thoruddur Bjarnason, University of Akureyri, Iceland.
• Dr Douglas Cameron, Department of Psychiatry, University of Leicester, England
• Mr John Carnochan QPM, Violence Reduction Unit, Strathclyde Police.
• Mr Gavin Dingwall, Leicester De Montfort Law School, De Montfort University, Leicester.
• Professor Henk Garretsen, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tilburg, the Netherlands.
• Professor Richard Hammersley, Centre for Behavioural Aspects of Health and Disease , Glasgow Caledonian University.
• Professor Roy Light, Bristol law School, University of the West of England, Bristol.
• Professor Rodney Morgan, School of Law, University of Bristol.
• Professor Robert Parker, Presley Center for Crime & Justice Studies, University of California, Riverside, USA.
• Professor Martin Plant, Alcohol and Health Research Unit, University of the West of England, Bristol.
• Professor Moira Plant, Alcohol and Health Research Unit, University of the West of England, Bristol.
• Dr Bruce Ritson, Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP), Edinburgh.
• Dr Samantha Wells, Centre for Addiction & Mental Health, London, Ontario, Canada.

Contact Details

Mrs Jan Green,
University of the West of England,
Glenside Campus,
Blackberry Hill,
Stapleton,
Bristol,
BS16 1DD,
United Kingdom

0117 328 8800
Fax: 117 328 8900
Jan.Green@uwe.ac.uk

Application Form

If you would like to attend the Addiction and the Family conference, click here to download the application form. ( 33k)