Safer Communities

The Great Drink Debate survey was launched in Yorkshire and Humber last December, to give the public a chance to share their views on alcohol. The survey asked about individual’s own drinking habits, as well as their views and concerns about the harm caused by drinking habits generally.

Surveys were completed online or in writing. Nearly 12,000 surveys were returned and over 1000 of these were from people in Sheffield – obviously this is an important topic for Sheffield as this return was the highest for any area in the region. The survey in Sheffield was organised jointly by NHS Sheffield and the Sheffield Drug & Alcohol Action Team.

Key findings for the whole survey included:

19% of respondents drank 3-4 times a week and a further 12% drink almost daily
The most popular place for buying alcohol was from the Supermarket
The most popular place for drinking alcohol was at home
The majority of you said that the alcohol industry had the biggest responsibility to tackle alcohol related harm
Your biggest concern by far in relation to alcohol in your area was the resulting antisocial behaviour
In terms of what should be done to tackle alcohol related harm, the majority of you said that action to tackle underage drinking was the priority

The responses to the Great Drink Debate will be used in developing an Alcohol Strategy for the region.