Thirteen local authorities in Wales are to be accredited by the Chief Constables of the Welsh Police Forces. The Chief Constable of Gwent Police Mick Giannasi will officially welcome them into the “extended policing family” and certificates will be presented by representatives from respective Police Force areas on Thursday December 10th at the Celtic Manor Hotel, Newport. Mr Giannasi will be joined by Dr Brian Gibbons, Minister for Social Justice and Local Government and Dave Holland, Wales Heads of Trading Standards, at the ceremony.
The initiative means that Trading Standards Officers, who work for the accredited local authorities, will have the power to tackle underage drinking by issuing penalty notices for disorder to persons found selling or supplying alcohol to children under the age of 18. Trading Standards carry out test purchase checks on traders to establish whether they will sell alcohol to the underage, and a range of enforcement options are available in the event of an illegal sale being made, including prosecution and review of the alcohol licence. Thanks to the joint initiative with the four police forces of Wales, Trading Standards Officers will now be accredited to issue £80 penalty notices for disorder to the sellers of alcohol, something which previously had only been possible by a uniformed police officer. The five local authorities in the Gwent Force area have been accredited with the same powers since 2007 bringing the total to 18.
Over 50 employees of the local authorities attended courses, run by Gwent Police, to receive training which included background to the Community Safety Accreditation Scheme; how and under what circumstances they should issue a penalty notice; conflict management and what information needs to be recorded. These individuals will receive their certificates at a later date.
Gwent Police’s accreditation programme has been recognised as best practice throughout Wales. The underlying principle of accreditation is that participants in the scheme and Gwent Police will complement each other to provide an improved service to the public, based on mutual support and enables people who are not police officers to exercise certain police powers.
Social Justice Minister Dr Brian Gibbons said:
“The increasing culture of underage drinking and the problems like anti-social behaviour, and health problems later in life is a problem that must be addressed in Wales. Tackling the sale of alcohol to young people is a key part of the Welsh Assembly Government’s substance misuse strategy, so I am pleased to be working with Trading Standards and Gwent Police to find new ways of enforcing current legislation around under-age drinking and encouraging those who sell alcohol to check the ages of young people.”
Mick Giannasi, Chief Constable, Gwent Police said:
“This is a welcome extension of the policing family and enables a speedier, quick and effective justice and can reduce the administrative burden on the courts. I am also very proud that such an accreditation scheme is expanding beyond the boundaries of Gwent and other organisations are seeing its value as we have for many years.”
Jacqui Morgan, Chair of Wales Heads of Trading Standards also welcomed the initiative, adding:
“Trading Standards Services in Wales are committed to reducing the incidence of under age drinking and the health and anti-social behaviour problems that can be associated with it. I am delighted that this new power is now available to assist us in this important area of work.
Although the penalty is issued to the person at the till, we will still continue to take the necessary action against the licence holder. Premises selling alcohol need to have clear procedures for staff training and make sure staff clearly understand that if there is any doubt whether a purchaser is old enough to buy alcohol, proof of age is requested and if doubt remains the sale must be refused.”
