Last updated at 10:34, Monday, 27 August 2012

Bottles of strong cider, spirits and cans of cheap lager fill a table at Carlisle police station. They have all been seized from underage drinkers in the city.

Ros Willatt

A video is posted on their Twitter feed under the heading “you can tell it’s the school holidays”. Summer boredom and nice weather are a combination that traditionally lead to a surge in youth disorder in communities across Cumbria.

The county recently hit the headlines for the wrong reasons, after it emerged that the number of teenagers being admitted to hospital with alcohol-related illnesses in Copeland and Allerdale are among the highest in the country. It is a worrying trend that continues year on year, despite efforts to deter young people from experimenting with booze.

As well as the health risks, underage drinking can also result in increased vandalism and antisocial behaviour. In Carlisle, Operation Nectarine targets hot spots in the west of the city during the summer holidays. PCSOs and special constables conduct high-visibility patrols around Raffles, Denton Holme, Hammonds Pond, St James Park and Bitts Park. Shops in Morton, Raffles and Upperby are also a focus.

Inspector Tony Quinn, who covers this patch, says officers proactively stop young people and seize alcohol if found.

This stance aims to prevent crime and reassure communities. Seizing the drink is one solution, but police in the county are also taking a more proactive approach to combating trouble – focusing on prevention, and working with others.

Initiatives such as the Summer Splash campaign – run in conjunction with other agencies such as Connexions, Riverside, Barnardo’s and Friends of the parks groups – are key to this.

The sessions – which offer fun activities for young people – take place on Friday nights throughout the holidays in Chances Park, Morton, or at Hammonds Pond, Upperby. During the three hours, participants can get involved in everything from biking, climbing and zip wires to drumming workshops, archery and dance sessions.

Last year the initiative was hailed as helping to cut trouble in the west of the city over the holidays by almost half. A similar sports and activities club for youngsters in Brampton also led to a 17 per cent drop in criminal damage in the town.

And this year even more young people are getting involved. Ros Willatt, a professional advisor with Connexions – recently renamed Inspira – said: “It’s been doing fantastically well. The numbers were good last year but have gone up even more. We have been getting over 300 children and young people each week.

“We’re also getting a real mix of ages, from under 10s right up to 18-year-olds. They are coming down for a free Friday night out with some great activities.”

Insp Quinn believes that putting on events like this have long term effects, and hopefully mean that in future years the younger ones will make positive choices.

He adds that another key tactic that is really making a difference is restorative justice: “I personally think that this is having a big impact.

“We get the offender and victim together in the same room and say this is how your behaviour impacts on them. It can be really uncomfortable for them but because of that it has a lasting effect. It is all about holding them to account for their behaviour.”

Insp Quinn adds that the force is also tackling antisocial behaviour in a different way, giving priority to repeat and vulnerable victims – and that is also showing results.

Overall, in the Carlisle West area, the number of incidents of antisocial behaviour since April 1 is down by 25 on last year. But looking at the three-year average, it has dropped by 456.

“It isn’t just one thing. There are a lot of different schemes starting to come together and really drive down antisocial behaviour. It’s a long term approach,” he adds.

Summer Splash has been so successful they are now looking to do something similar during the autumn half term. But the problem with any of these initiatives is often funding – as well as finding the right kind of activities so that they appeal to older teenagers, not just children.

Garry Schubert is the development manager at the Carlisle and District SPA Foundation – a not-for-profit group focusing on sport and physical activity.

His team work, alongside the local councils and agencies like Riverside, on a wide range of projects for children and young people. Over the summer holidays they have been running a Go For It activity sessions for the under 12s, which have been a huge success.

But he believes there is the scope to do a lot more for the older age group, however in the current economic climate funding is an issue.

“We need to do more for the 12 to 19 age group. There are youth clubs out there, but again funding for those is limited.

“For me, there is a desperate need for alternative activities for the teenage age bracket. This is what’s at the top of our agenda next,” he says.

Although they are well supported locally, from the councils and partner organisations, he adds that national funding is not as easy to come by. But he believes that if they can prove it is something young people want, they will find a way to deliver it.

“The other side of it is knowing what young people want to do. They may not have any interest in traditional sports and want to do the more extreme sports. There’s also a big emphasis on girls’ sports.

“We need to be realistic about it and really engage with these young people, otherwise it’s a waste of taxpayers money. But we’re really positive about it,” he explains.

Over the next half term, the group plans to put on pilot sessions to test the water before trying to access new pots of money. They also want to better utilise local community centres and look at ways of developing existing sports clubs that are full to capacity.

Garry adds that, when you get the formula right, it is a real winner. One of the most successful clubs they are involved in is at Trinity School’s leisure centre on Friday nights, where teenagers can use the gym, pool, take part in five-a-side football and dance sessions.

“That’s one of the most successful. We get about 50 or 60 people every Friday night but could have hundreds coming down,” he adds.

First published at 09:52, Monday, 27 August 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk