You may be drinking more than you think

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Title – You may be drinking more than you think
Source – The Times
Date – 19th May 2008

This new £10 million initiative seems to finally be a sensible and balanced approach to adult drinking habits in the UK. There is none of the scaremongering, none of the preaching, none of the overly dramatic graphic imagery; this new government campaign is treating us as adults and providing straight forward information.

There is no doubt that there is a section of the population that openly drink to excess and that have become alcohol dependent; but there is also a substantial group who may be drinking excessively without really being aware of it. What is important is that not everyone in the country is treated the same as those who are alcohol dependent and need help to change their alcohol consumption to more manageable levels.

One of the fundamental problems in recent years, as I have discussed previously in this blog, is that the change in alcohol consumption trends over the past decade have not being mirrored by the systems in place for measuring consumption. The system of Units was very outdated and most people don’t understand the limits that were suggested and had no idea how to measure the units they were consuming.

This campaign is subtle but clear. In the television adverts drinks are subtly labelled with their units in a clever way that is not patronising or aggressive. It seems to understand that allowing individuals to understand the consequences of their actions, allows them to change their own habits for their own benefit.

The licensed retail sector should not be scared of these types of educational messages; they would be better to accept them and embrace them. They present a constructive approach to the problems that face the industry and alcohol consumption within society generally. These advertisements are much more helpful than the cruder prohibition routes; or the ridiculous notion that we should go back to serving wine in only 125ml glasses as the solution to all our problems…

The problem with this campaign is that it is very one dimensional and it has to be. There would be little point in the campaign trying to depict a pint of Carling as containing a certain number of units and a pint of Stella containing a different number, that would just confuse the message; they have to depict the maximum that any one ‘type’ of drink may contain. It should be for the industry to embrace this new direction and provide more accurate labelling, this opens to door to even more choice being made available to the consumer, based on accurate information..

The key as always is providing accurate information and to do that it is the people on the front line we need to educate most. If the people actually selling alcohol know exactly what they are supplying then they can inform customers who are then free to make a personal choice on what to consume and how much to consume.

The relative strengths of different drinks and their abv. Is one of many subjects covered in our portfolio of BIIAB approved training courses. These include the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH), Award in Responsible Alcohol Retailing (ARAR) and The National Certificate for Designated Premises Supervisors (NCDPS).


Please visit our website at www.btbl.co.uk

Alcohol Units Guide

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Title – Alcohol Units Guide
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 19th May 2008

Finally the old ‘Units Guides’ have been updated to make it easier to understand the effect that consumption of different drinks of different strengths have and the sensible drinking limits that correspond.

The new unit guides are more complicated by the very nature of the evolving drinks trade. Where once you simply had standard beer, premium beer, wine and spirits, you now have variants within these categories that need to be accounted for. The introduction of alcopops, different alcohol by volumes and serving sizes has made it more complicated to work out how many units people are consuming, but it is not rocket science and the ‘Units Guide’ is a great help.

The important step now in responsible alcohol retailing is to educate staff and customers alike. These two are intrinsically linked, we would like to see every person selling alcohol familiar with the unit guide and able to help customers by informing them when requested.

Should this step frighten the licensed retail sector? Not if it is done in the right way, we need to educate and not to dictate. We need to realise that people don’t go to pubs and shops simply for the alcohol, we need to take the peer pressure out of alcohol consumption. The fact is, that if our customers can feel equally comfortable in the consumption of non alcoholic drinks and hot drinks, the retailer’s margins can improve alongside their social responsibilities.

We run the portfolio of BIIAB licensed retail courses including the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH), the Award in Responsible Alcohol Retailing (ARAR), The National Certificate for Licensees – Drugs Awareness (NCLDA) as well as Conflict Management and Resolution courses (CMR) and security industry training. Our services will help you develop your staff to understand the positive impact responsible alcohol retailing can have on your business.

Please visit our website please visit at www.btbl.co.uk

Hi-tech tool spots child drinkers

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Title – Hi-tech tool spots child drinkers
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 13th May 2008

Any new technology that can make the role of staff easier and protect children from harm by restricting their access to alcohol should be welcomed, but many will think this is a step too far. Undoubtedly this potentially expensive technology’s benefits have been weighed up by Budgens against the problem of alcohol sales to underage drinkers.

The question is how effective such technology really is against good staff training programmes and a strong system of work within the stores themselves. The technology is certainly not a replacement for these.

As I understand it for this technology to work it is reliant on a database created by staff themselves. In effect they have to ‘catch’ people trying to buy alcohol, knives and cigarettes while under age and register those people on the database so that on any future attempt they can be recognised and stopped at the point of sale, until such time as they can prove they are old enough.

It therefore remains vitally important that staff are well trained in licensing law and how to check ‘proof of age’ by attending a course such as the Award in Responsible Alcohol Retailing (ARAR) and that businesses have strict systems in place to ensure underage sales do not take pace such as the ‘Challenge 21’ scheme.

If these two remain the foundation of good practice and the foundation of a due diligence defence should staff ignore the guidelines you set, then how strong is the advantage in this technology? Certainly it should not be written off anything that can help staff in saving time at the point of sale and help reduce flash points should be welcomed, but it will be interesting to see what reaction they get from the public.

The backlash against national identity cards is substantial, people are increasingly aware of identity theft and although there is no suggestion that this system is susceptible to that; public perception of being added to yet another database may not be favourable. If it is a struggle to get the public to agree to biometric checks at vulnerable points such as airports, how are they going to feel about face recognition technology being used when they go out to buy a bottle of wine and a few snacks at their local Budgens?

Technology has helped businesses and society in many different areas and technology continues to help the licensed retail sector. If this trial is deemed to be a success, how many other ‘big retailers’ will join such a scheme which undoubtedly relies on a large take-up to ensure real success?

For now staff training and effective management remain the corner stone of protecting children from the harm of alcohol.

Beyond The Blue offers training to the licensed retail sector in the portfolio of BIIAB courses ranging from the ARAR to the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH) and the Award in Conflict Management (ACM).
Please visit our website at www.btbl.co.uk

Cannabis goes back to Class B despite drug experts’ verdict

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Title – Cannabis goes back to Class B despite drug experts’ verdict
Source – The Times
Date – 8th May 2008

So it has finally been decided Cannabis is going to be reclassified again back to a Class B drug, on the same level as amphetamines (speed non-injected), barbiturates etc. The reason, well that is because the government wants to send out a clear message; but what is that message?

Cannabis is being reclassified to a class B drug, because we are being told that it’s effects are dangerous that it causes a higher risk of schizophrenia; yet cannabis use has increased in use over the past 5 years but schizophrenia rates have declined. But the government is concerned that the rise of ‘skunk’ could cause an increase in the harmful effects of the drug, yet their panel of experts who spent months looking into its effects, recommended it remain class C. Who are people going to believe experts or government?

But as a class B drug there are greater penalties for use and for dealing, so there will be the deterrent. But it will not be reclassified until 2009, so users and dealers have a nice long grace period. The penalties for possession of a class B drug are up to 5 years imprisonment. But already we are being told that although the punishment will potentially be harsher, in effect they will not be and people will be given a slightly harder slap on the wrist, possibly a penalty notice on a second offence and possibly prosecution on the third offence…deterrent?

More astonishing then this the Home secretary is quoted as saying she ‘is not prepared to risk the future health of young people’, yet at the same time is saying that under 18’s will not be treated any more harshly then they are at present (while cannabis is a class C drug) to avoid criminalising them. Hold on a second… the main reason given for reclassification is to protect young people, yet the reclassification presents them with no stronger a deterrent then it is currently…?

So will dealers be treated more harshly and is that a benefit? Certainly that is true, but there were already severe penalties in place for Class drug C dealers and it is debateable if the reclassification is going to put off any serious drug dealers, even though longer sentences, should they be given, will keep them off the streets a little longer.

Just out of interest those people that smoke ‘regular cannabis’ and not ‘skunk’ are they safe from the effects of this drug; the impression given is that this whole process is being done to put deal with ‘skunk’ users?

So to conclude: Cannabis is being reclassified but not for a while. It is being reclassified because some of it is a danger to health beyond that indicated by a class C status according to those government ministers with their business degrees; even though the best scientists in the country were asked and did not entirely agree. The reclassification will result in tougher punishment but it probably will not be enforced; unless you are under 18 in which case the status quo remains. Is that all clear?

I’m not saying that reclassification is not merited, cannabis is a drug, it undoubtedly has negative health effects and leads to social degradation in certain parts of our society. There is a very strong argument that it acts as a ‘gateway’ drug. Basically our society would be better off if less people used cannabis, but it does seem that the government have got the message very badly wrong, if it was confused before, who knows what users think now, especially after they have had a joint.

But I should not be flippant in this. I just want to point out that the important thing has always been to understand the simple facts. Cannabis is and always has been illegal. Possession is illegal. Cannabis is bad for you and is potentially the start of a very slippery slope and cannabis is an illegal drug. We need to educate people with the facts and not cloud them in political points scoring, because politics already turns young people off. If the Home Secretary really thinks she can connect with young people on this subject, there is an argument that she is too close to the subject and is clouded by its effects….

For those working in the licensed retail sector, the security industry or any role where they have face to face contact with the public, they need to understand the basics about the effects of drugs, the signs and symptoms and how to deal proactively to stamp out the use of drugs in their area of responsibility and how to deal with persons who may be under the influence of illegal drugs. Our training can help you see past the headlines and see the facts clearly.

At Beyond the Blue we run many courses that cover these concerns including the National Certificate for Licensees – Drug Awareness (NCLDA), the National Certificate for Door Supervisors (NCDS), Conflict Management & Resolution courses (CMR) and run bespoke Drugs Awareness courses for clients with specific needs.


Please visit Our website at http://www.btbl.co.uk/

Reefer Madness

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Title – Reefer Madness
Source – The Independent
Date – 7th May 2008

It’s true what they say ‘that everything is politics’ in other words everything we do in our lives is linked to politics, what should not be true is that ‘politics should be everything’.

The situation with the reclassification of cannabis as a class B drug seems now to have been decided, it will not happen until 2009, but everyone knows it will happen. But what it will achieve is another question. It does seem that this is more a political decision than a morally guided one.

I am not suggesting that cannabis should be anything but a controlled substance, but if you have an established system of control then use it effectively don’t manipulate it simply to grab the headlines. The classification system has always been based on scientific fact and the harm that each drug causes, not what fad the government feels would be ‘popular’.

The problem with the scaremongering that is going on at the moment with the message effectively being ‘if you smoke cannabis you will get schizophrenia’ is that cannabis users are being treated as if they are idiots. Most know this is not the case and they know that cannabis is not cocaine, crack or heroin; so what do they do, they ignore the message altogether.

But why exaggerate; there are facts out there that should be simply communicated. Gordon Brown is hardly going to get ‘in touch’ with the disaffected youth by saying ‘skunk is a variety of cannabis of a lethal quality’, it just sounds ridiculous. No cannabis user believes cannabis can kill you, so why say something so flippant? Why pretend that ‘skunk’ is 30 or 40 times stronger than herbal cannabis was 10 years ago when in reality 2 or 3 times is probably closer to the mark. This exaggeration from someone who claims never to have smoked cannabis is hardly going to convince regular users. Surely just the fact that it may be 3 times as strong sends out strong and fundamentally, a believable message. Show a balanced scientific view of the potential for psychotic problems later in life and people will actually sit up and listen.

So if the experts are to be ignored and the classification system skewed in favour of political points scoring, what value is there is the classification system? Unfortunately not too much, but maybe that has more to do with the perception we have been given of the system itself. Ask the average person on the street what a class C drug classification means and you will regularly hear misconceptions; it is barely harmful; there is no penalty for possession; it is legal; it is decriminalised. What you will rarely hear is, ‘it is for controlled (illegal) drugs’ and that it carries a potential 2 year prison term for possession…

So maybe politicians should stop trying to make headlines rather concentrate on the facts about cannabis being an illegal drug with sanctions against those who use it and deal it. Maybe they should concentrate on the proof and conclusions of the scientific community which are scary enough without having to exaggerate them to the point where people (already sceptical of every word that comes out of politicians mouths) simply ignore them.

It seems to me that all the headlines have achieved so far in to confuse people further and if cannabis was a brand (and the ‘cannabis leaf’ may as well be) it has been given a lot of free publicity!

The danger of cannabis use is something that people need to be educated about. Both users and those that work with people who may be under the influence of illegal drugs. At Beyond The Blue we run bespoke awareness courses for organisations which examine any particular problems they may have with illegal drug use, as well as courses for the licensed retail sector and security industry including; the National Certificate for Licensees - Drugs Awareness (NCLDA), the National Certificate for Door Supervisors (NCDS) and our In-House Security Induction courses (IHSI). We examine the classification of drug during all of these courses and keep candidates right up-to-date with any changes that occur for what ever reason that may be… Our interest is not in headlines, it is in the facts.


Please visit our website at www.btbl.co.uk

Rise in arrests of women drunks

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Title – Rise in arrests of women drunks
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 2nd May 2008

The demographics of alcohol consumption has certainly shifted in the last decade and licensed retailers have noticed this change and have catered for it by providing ‘female friendly’ premises and sourcing their product lines to better suit this potentially lucrative market. However they also have a responsibility to do so in a responsible manner and to provide the safety net many are still only comfortable in providing to their male customer base.

Just yesterday I had arranged to go out for a drink and a meal with three male friends to a bar / restaurant in central London. On arrival the Door Supervisor treated us with complete contempt, to the point where had I been on my own I would simply have walked away. But we had a reservation and on a Friday night in London sometimes you have to take a seat where you can get it.

We were viewed with suspicion, held literally at arm’s length and told in no uncertain terms to wait while he checked out our story; he turned his back on us and spoke into his radio mic. Now I felt like I was really unwelcome. The point is that the four of us hardly cut the classic image of violent trouble makers, after all my speciality is in the management and resolution of conflict, one of my friends is a serving policeman, the other works for the government in a capacity that means he keeps a low profile at a church fete and the other works in the city (Ok so one out of the four of us may be considered slightly higher risk…). Yet while we were being scrutinised several groups of women accompanied in some cases by male friends, were simply ushered through without a second glance….

Now this will not be a new story to most men, but it is exactly the sort of experience that undermines Door Supervisors. Poor customer service skills, prejudice relying on very outdated dynamic risk assessment and a complete failure to understand the society in which they work. There are undoubtedly situations where large groups of men going into a bar may present a higher risk, but the criteria for the assessment must go further then male / female.

The figures highlighted in this article demonstrate that not only must the threat assessment between male and female change, the industries capability to deal with aggressive or violent female customers must be recognised and addressed and it must take a much more responsible attitude towards retailing alcohol to this demographic. We can no longer assume that the consequences, for example, of promoting brands to female customers carries less risk then similar promotions towards male customers does.

The licensed retail sector evolves alongside our society generally and it is vitally important that those working within the sector maintain their awareness of these changes and evolve their systems to cope with, as well as to benefit from, this evolution.

At Beyond The Blue we offer our customers the portfolio of BIIAB licensing and security courses including the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH) and the Award in Responsible Alcohol Retailing (ARAR). For those people seeking to obtain their Door Supervisor Licence we run the National Certificate for Door Supervisors (NCDS) course as well as providing employers with bespoke training specific to their premises with our In-House Security Induction Training (IHSI).
Please visit our website at www.btbl.co.uk

‘Out of hours’ noise service is reinstated

Title – ‘Out of hours’ noise service is reinstated
Source – Staines Leader
Date – 1st May 2008

Understanding the policies of your local licensing authority as well as your local council as a whole, gives you an advantage and advanced warning of what you can expect.

All councils have websites on which they publish everything you will need to know and spending as long as it takes to go through their website paying special attention to their licensing policy, will give you an insight into the kind of regulations they will enforce and what they will tolerate. It is also worth getting to know the key players in your local council and not see them as the ‘enemy’, after all they have a great deal of influence over your business.

It always makes good business sense to work with the local council; generally you can resolve problems, without them needing to resort to using the powers they have to sanction you. So if you have a big night on or an outdoor event, don’t wait for the out-of hours noise service to turn up at your door, contact your local council and work with them, if you have good reason they will often make exceptions especially if you do all you can to reduce the disturbance from your event.

Councils are not there to work against you, they are elected to serve all in the community and that includes you. The local licensed premises or event is important to residents just as reducing disturbance and nuisance is. The council will help you find an acceptable balance.

Joining a local pub-watch scheme will also help your cause as licensing officers regularly attend these events and anything you can do to prove that you are a responsible retailer will help your cause, part of that process will be to prove that you and your staff have the appropriate level of experience and training to perform responsibly in your role.

We provide training to the licensed retail sector through the portfolio of BIIAB courses including the Award in Responsible Alcohol Retailing (ARAR), the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH), the National Certificate for Door Supervisors (NCDS), National Certificate for Designated Premises Supervisors (NCDPS) and the National Certificate for Licensees – Drug Awareness (NCLDA).

We also provide Event Management solutions which include environmental acoustic monitoring experts who work closely with local authorities to ensure compliance occurs before it is enforced.

Please visit our website at http://www.btbl.co.uk/

Two-day alcohol ban at off-licence

Title – Two-day alcohol ban at off-licence
Source – Staines Leader
Date – 1st May 2008

It may not seem like a particularly harsh punishment considering the options available to the licensing authorities, but it is a very constructive approach by them in rehabilitating the retailer and a stark warning to other retailers. The authorities are out there carrying out test-purchasing with underage children to catch out rogue traders and much harsher punishments have been handed out in other parts of the country.

What you need to remember is that the two-day ban on selling alcohol is not the only inconvenience and cost to this business, additional expense and lost time in dealing with this process will certainly have been expensive to the business and you can be sure that trading standards will be keeping a very close eye on them from now on.

These incidents are easily avoidable, obviously simply not selling alcohol to children is the first step and the ‘challenge 21’ scheme is the simplest form of defence. It should be noted that test-purchasers must disclose their actual age when confronted. The second line of defence would have been to have all staff effectively trained and not to rely simply on the Personal Licence holder who in this case clearly was either not present at the time of the purchase or in effect sanctioned it.

By putting staff through the BIIAB’s Award in Responsible Alcohol Retailing course (ARAR), it provides retailers with a defence of due diligence as the short exam at the end of the course contains compulsory questions on the licensing objectives including the sale of alcohol to children. But even more than the due diligence defence, it gives staff the foundation they need to retail alcohol responsibly and to understand the licensing objectives in the first place; prevention being better then the cure…

We provide training in the portfolio of BIIAB courses for every level of staff working in the licensed retail sector from the National Certificate for Designated Premises Supervisors (NCDPS) to the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders (NCPLH) and the ARAR.

Please visit our website at www.btbl.co.uk