Improve support for those in need

We call on the Government to use the upcoming Alcohol Strategy to improve support for those in need, through policies such as a ‘treatment levy’, enforcing action against age inequalities and improving training for health and social care professionals.

There are an estimated 590,000 alcohol-dependent people in England, but less than one in five are receiving treatment.

Due to severe disinvestment in alcohol services, providers are not able to meet the needs of specific populations, such as older people, affected children and family members, and people who are black, Asian and from minority ethnic backgrounds. There are 1.13 million alcohol-related hospital admissions annually, many of which could be prevented, and alcohol-specific deaths in the UK are at their highest level since 2008.

This is why we need to improve support for those in need, so that more people can access alcohol treatment well before their alcohol-related health conditions worsen.

All references can be found in the full Alcohol Charter, which you can download at the bottom of this page.

The Alcohol Charter is supported by over 30 organisations across the drugs and alcohol sector, and has received increasing cross-party parliamentary support.

To improve support for those in need, we call on the Government to:

We also call on the Government to:

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Protect public health

We call on the Government to protect public health through policies such as a comprehensive review of alcohol duties, tighter restrictions on alcohol marketing and improved licensing.
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Focus on alcohol-related crime and disorder

We call on the Government to reduce alcohol-related crime and disorder through policies such as reducing the drink-driving BAC limit, investing in family drug and alcohol courts, and expanding the delivery of brief interventions in criminal justice settings.

Download pdf

Download the full Alcohol Charter

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