National Social Marketing Centre

Sub21 used a two-pronged approach to reduce underage street drinking. The campaign was branded Sub21, which resonated with both target audiences of young people and retailers.

1. Youth activities
A 10-week rolling programme of out-of-school activities was designed in consultation with young people and offered on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. The activities took place in a range of locations across the borough, with most taking place at Wallsend Boys Club. In addition to the Club's existing popular offer of football, activities included:

• Graffiti
• Bike workshop and ramp building
• Skateboarding
• BMX skills
• Street dance
• Cookery and BBQ skills
• Film making
• Nail art
• Cyberchaos (i.e. computer gaming)
• Bodyfit

2. Proxy sales
A package of support measures was offered to retailers to help them tackle illegal and proxy alcohol sales:

• A dedicated 24-hour Crime Line
• A dedicated Licensing Line
• ‘Off-Watch' membership with monthly meetings to share information, views and ideas
• Training sessions for staff on conflict management, resolution, intimidation, and how to authenticate ID cards
• At least two weekly police visits per week and full police support when needed
• A Charter Mark sign to display membership of the scheme to the public
• A member's pack, containing advice, guidance, information, and posters and leaflets to display in-store to promote the youth activities
• Regular updates on local issues and news

In return, retailers were asked to implement the following actions, with the support of the local police, licensing and trading standards:

• No alcohol sales to anyone 21 years or under between 5pm and closing time on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and bank holidays
• Sparkling wine and perry drinks to be sold behind the counter and not promoted
• Report any illegal and proxy sale purchase attempts immediately to the 24-hour Crime Line
• Report any irregular behaviour to the Licensing Line
• Support fellow members by reporting incidents, sharing information and ideas
• Promote the Wallend Boys Club and its activities to young people entering the premises by displaying posters, fliers and publicity events

The intervention mix drew on a combination of different elements to prompt and facilitate behaviour change:

1. Control
Legislation and enforcement exist around illegal and proxy purchasing of alcohol, yet it is still a problem in the pilot area. Existing enforcement controls, such as bottle tagging and test purchasing, were seen as ‘antagonistic' by retailers. The support offered to retailers as part of Sub21 included a voluntary ban on alcohol sales to those under 21 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings and bank holidays. This gave retailers and enforcement officers an additional method of control.

2. Design
With the existing lack of adequate youth provision, it was clear young people wanted activities to fill that void. If they were to participate in activities as an alternative to drinking, it was vital they played a lead role in designing and creating the programme and felt a strong sense of ownership. They also needed activities to cost little or nothing, and a place and space that was theirs, easily accessible, and close to where they lived.

3. Support
Research indicated that retailers found the current approach of enforcement ‘antagonistic'. They wanted support and help to work together with police, trading standards and the community. Sub21's support package included twice weekly visits from the police to assure retailers they were not alone, and membership to an ‘Off-Watch' scheme, where they could share news and issues with each other.

4. Inform
Inform was the least important element to achieve our desired behaviour change. Research showed that young people had a low perception of harm or risk in relation to alcohol, and were well aware it was illegal to purchase it, either themselves or by proxy. Lack of information was not a key driver of street drinking. Therefore to focus on education and promoting anti-alcohol messages would have been a waste of time and money.

Summarising the intervention using the 4 P's of the marketing mix:

1. Product: A rolling programme of out-of-hours youth activities, in tandem with measures to support off-licences in tackling illegal and proxy alcohol sales
2. Price: Free of charge to all participants
3. Place: In schools, on the high street, shops, clubs and local community premises
4. Promotion: Face-to-face, school assemblies, off-licence visits, viral marketing, SMS, website, Facebook page, posters, flyers, PR, press and TV coverage

Multiples stages of research were carried out during the scoping and development stages to ensure that interventions developed were tailored for our target audiences of young people and retailers. Customer orientation was an iterative process; we frequently returned to our target audience throughout the project whenever we felt we needed further insight or risked making assumptions about behaviour and attitudes.

Scoping research (2007-2008)
Following an initial phase of desk-based secondary research carried out by the NSMC, independent researcher Dr Helen Lloyd was commissioned to conduct:

• 10 interviews with youths picked up by the police for drinking on the streets
• 10 interviews with parents of those youths interviewed
• Four interviews with local shopkeepers
• Four interviews with local residents
• Interview with North Tyneside trading standards lead
• Two participant observation sessions on Friday evenings in Whitley Bay and Wallsend with underage street drinkers
• Audit of out-of-hours youth provision (i.e. affordable and accessible groups and facilities) in the local area

The aims were to:

• Investigate the motivations, patterns and possible exchange for street drinking behaviour in the target group
• Gather observational and pragmatic data from youths engaging in street drinking, particularly their motivations for ‘hanging out' in a particular place
• Explore attitudes among local shopkeepers regarding young people's access to alcohol
• Explore attitudes regarding youth behaviour among members of the local community
• Create an ‘asset map' of local community resources and their possible contribution to creating a behavioural exchange
• Engage with representatives from trading standards to gain baseline knowledge of local partnerships and initiatives

Comparative reviews (2008)
The comparative reviews consisted of interviews and desk-based research. The aim was to identify good practice elsewhere, find out what works and what doesn't and draw on the experience and expertise of those working on similar projects.

Youth activities
We undertook desk-based research and identified a number of successful projects providing exciting and successful participation programmes for young people. A mix of phone and face-to-face interviews were held with Camden Roundhouse Studios, Bolton Boys and Girls Club, the Salmon Club and Mobex North East.

Illegal and proxy alcohol sales
We undertook desk-based research to identify schemes that were successful in reducing underage illegal and proxy alcohol purchasing. We conducted telephone and face-to-face interviews with Cleveland Police, Saltburn Police, St Neots Police and Radcliffe-on-Trent police. Cleveland Police attended a meeting with retailers to share experiences of their successful scheme.

Feasibility study
Following the comparative review on other schemes, we conducted a further study on the feasibility of introducing a scheme to tackle illegal and proxy alcohol purchasing in the pilot area. This included interviews with licensing and trading standards and desk-based research.

Consultation and focus groups with retailers (September 2008)
A focus group was held to garner views of local retailers towards a proxy sales intervention, based on the comparative review findings and feasibility study. This involved investigating retailers' perceptions and attitudes towards existing and similar interventions in place in the UK, and the merits and drawbacks of each approach.

Workshops and focus groups with young people (December 2008)
A series of workshops and focus groups were held with young people from Churchill Community College. The aim was to investigate their attitudes, beliefs and views about themselves, their community and alcohol, and to find out what kind of activities would appeal enough to compete with street drinking.

Scoping research
Research with young people revealed that the motivational drivers of street drinking in North Tyneside were complex and varied, incorporating psychological, familial, social and cultural factors. Feelings of boredom are common in adolescence, but for our target audience they were exacerbated by a dearth of affordable and accessible out-of-hours recreational facilities and social spaces specifically for young people aged 13 to 19.

Street drinking was the most frequently reported recreational activity amongst those interviewed. The main motivational drivers of this behaviour were:

• Lack of out-of-hours leisure provision
  The perception that there was nothing else to do and nowhere else to go was held not just by young people, but also by most parents interviewed. This perception was verified by an audit of local youth services, which revealed that youth provision fell by two-thirds at the weekend, and there were almost no dedicated places for young people to hang out.
• Normalisation of drinking and importance of friends
  Street drinking was perceived as a routine leisure activity and synonymous with ‘being with friends'. Most young people did not associate drinking with harm or danger. A minority of youths reported engaging in other recreational activities, mainly football, which reduced their street drinking.
• Cost and availability of alcohol
  Easy access and low cost of alcohol, along with high levels of proxy purchasing, contributed to the numbers of young people street drinking.

Comparative review
Comparative reviews showed that successful youth activities had a developmental element to them, rather than just providing ‘drop-in' facilities. Young people responded well to activities that taught them new skills, were structured and developed their knowledge over a series of sessions. Involving young people in the selection and design of activities was vital if they were to take ownership and interest. However, too much responsibility in the planning and delivery can make them feel pressured, so a fine balance of involving young people with adult guidance and leadership is important.

A common theme that emerged in the illegal and proxy alcohol sales comparative review was the option to ban alcohol sales to under 21-year-olds as a method of tackling proxy sales. This took the ‘Challenge 21' type schemes to a new level. Schemes were most successful when communities came together and strong partnerships were formed.

Focus groups
Retailers were supportive of introducing a ban to under-21s, but felt strongly that all retailers (including supermarkets) must participate for it to be feasible. They also felt a regular police presence would be vital in supporting them.

The workshop and focus group with young people revealed a strong affinity with their local area and pride in being a ‘Geordie', but young people felt alienated by their own community. Performing arts and music were less popular activities than vocational and leisure based ones. There was a strong leaning towards urban and street based activities, such as graffiti, street dance and skateboarding.

Our behavioural goals for young people were to reduce (not eliminate) the number of young people drinking alcohol on the streets, the amount they were drinking and the number of attempts to purchase alcohol illegally for the duration of the intervention (May-July 2009). We also aimed to reduce the number of young people involved in incidents of antisocial behaviour and crime caused by alcohol during this period.

For retailers, our behavioural goal was to encourage them to implement a ban on alcohol sales to under-21s on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.

As a learning demonstration site, our task was to create a model that, if successful, could be rolled out.

Our main target audience were young people aged 13 to 17 in the areas of Wallsend, Battlehill and Howdon attending the three local colleges. Our research showed that young people began to take up street drinking on a regular basis and as a leisure activity from the age of 13, continuing up until they became legal consumers at 18.

Local authority data showed that Wallsend had the highest levels of binge drinking in the Borough, and this area covers some of the most deprived wards in the country. Consultation for the Sustainable Communities Strategy showed concerns from residents in this area, particularly a perception that young people were drinking on the streets and contributing to a fear of crime. Our research showed that there were few facilities for young people in the area, which seemed to compound the issues.

The youth activities were designed to appeal to different segments of the target audience, e.g. nail art and street dance for girls, skateboard ramp building and cyberchaos for boys. A ‘night club' was also trialled to attract 11- to 13-year-olds.

Our secondary audience were all local retailers within the same pilot area, who sold alcohol. These were generally small, independent, family run businesses. The ‘Big Four' supermarkets, plus local branches of national chains were approached but, with the exception of Aldi, refused to engage or participate.

Exchange for young people
In exchange for the thrill and recreation of drinking alcohol and spending time with friends on the street, the youth intervention offered young people a dedicated place they could go with their friends to take part in urban and street activities. For those drinking to alleviate boredom, the programme of activities offered them something different and exciting to do.

Sub21 was heavily promoted to young people through presentations in assemblies by the programme co-ordinator, who did so in a fun, exciting and compelling way.

All activities were free for young people and venues were local and easily accessible.

Exchange for retailers
For retailers, implementing the under-21 ban involved exchanging initial short-term profit by refusing sales of alcohol to 18- to 21-year-olds with reduced proxy purchases, vandalism, theft and intimidation outside their shops. Retailers benefitted by attracting more customers, who had previously avoided the shop due to intimidation by young people, and increasing their sales and long-term profits.

In return for implementing the under-21 ban, retailers also received the support they desired from the police, trading standards and licensing.

PR was very successful for both strands of the intervention and there were regularly press and radio coverage of the scheme, including prime time coverage on local BBC TV. This helped add value to the project and motivate young people and retailers to join Sub21.

Competition for young people
Sophisticated marketing of alcohol to young people is a major competitor. Drinks like Bella and Lambrini are clearly targeted at young people with their price and packaging. Cheap alcohol deals at well-known supermarkets make proxy purchasing particularly easy.

The lack of alternative youth activities meant there was no competition for Sub21 activities.

Competition for retailers
Lack of time and enthusiasm was a competing factor for retailers, as was the lack of commitment and persistence from the local authority. The scheme was heavily promoted through shop visits by the police, trading standards, licensing and young people from Wallsend Boys Club. A local retailer was also appointed as an ‘ambassador' to encourage other retailers to sign up.

The behavioural challenge was investigated iteratively by ethnographic interviews and participant observation, and the emerging data was subsequently subject to thematic qualitative analyses to develop the behavioural theory that informed the intervention mix.

A key element of this theory revolved around the symbolic meaning of drinking with friends. The excitement of meeting in a large group on a Friday evening lifts young people's spirits and creates a celebratory atmosphere symbolising free time and the start of the weekend. Adults engage in similar rituals to mark space and time, e.g. the end of the working week is symbolised by ‘going down the local' with friends. Understood within the wider social context, young people's behaviour is therefore not unusual. The problem arises, however, when young people congregate in public spaces in large groups, drinking alcohol.

By providing young people their own place, space and activities to celebrate coming together, Sub21 attempted to recreate that ‘Friday feeling' without involving drinking on the streets.

The Diffusion of Innovation theory was also used in the development of the proxy sales intervention. Recognising that different individuals adopt new behaviour at different rates and that retailers are more likely to join the Sub21 scheme if others do so, early adopters of the intervention were recruited as ambassadors to persuade others to join.