Unight Aberdeen News

Operation Oak

Sun 27 Nov 2011 - submited by Shelly Wall

A message from Grampian Police - Operation Oak

In 2006 Operation Oak was introduced by Grampian Police and the Aberdeen Community Safety Partnership to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour in the City Centre. Violent crime is now at a six year low making Aberdeen City Centre one of the safest in the country.

We want to pass on some tips and friendly advice so that you greatly reduce the chance of being a victim of crime, or worse, arrested or injured.

In our experience, a fair chunk of the reported crime at this time of year could be avoided. It is a great shame to see that a moments stupidity gets someone a criminal record and greatly reduces their career options to get or keep a job when they return home.

Seeing grown men and women in tears when they realise what they have done, and the consequences of their actions, is not a happy sight. So please think before you do something daft and watch your intake of alcohol; when you are drunk is when you are most vulnerable.

You are probably getting the gist now that, while we will police the City Centre in a friendly, neighbourly and safety-minded manner, we will not let the minority spoil it for others. We will arrest and will take a hard line with those who try.

City Centre Local Policing Team
servicecentre@grampian.pnn.police.uk
T/0845 600 5 700

Challenge 25 - Mandatory Condition

Wed 14 Sep 2011 - submited by Gillian Esson

CHALLENGE 25 - New Mandatory Condition on Liquor Licences

On 1 October 2011, a new mandatory condition on liquor licences will commence, requiring an age verification policy to be in place. This involves all on sales and off sales premises to verify, on production of ID, that those who appear to be under the age of 25 years who are trying to purchase alcohol, are in fact over the age of 18 years and thus allowed to lawfully make the purchase.

The Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 allows for 3 forms of identification to be accepted by licence holders and their staff (however discretion still remains with the premises as to which of the 3 they will accept):

Passport;
European photocard driving licence; and
PASS accredited proof of age card.

Please bear in mind that if ID belonging to someone else (regardless of age) is used or a person's own ID has been tampered with, this is an issue that may be referred to and dealt with by the Police.

"So, if you are lucky enough to look under 25 you will be asked to prove that you are aged 18 or over when you buy alcohol. If you are under 18 you are committing an offence if you attempt to buy alcohol."

www.challenge25.org

Flash Message Press Release

Tue 02 Aug 2011 - submited by Gillian Esson

22/07/2011

UNIGHT Aberdeen in conjunction with Grampian Police is to contact around 50,000 people through Facebook in an effort to reduce violent offending in Aberdeen city centre.

The messages have been put out by the UNIGHT Aberdeen group, a coming together of of 21 socially responsible licensed venues, to publicise the fact that violent offenders now face a court-ordered ban from city centre clubs for any violent behaviour .

Messages will be posted to Facebook users warning them of the new initiative, which has already resulted in people being legally excluded from the city's nightspots.

The message reads:

"How would you feel to be UNABLE to enter your favourite Aberdeen pubs & clubs?

"A new exclusion order initiative launched by UNIGHT Aberdeen and Grampian Police means that if you commit an offence related to alcohol-related violence in Aberdeen city centre you may be legally banned from all 21 UNIGHT venues."

The warning continues: "If excluded, attempted re-entry results in your arrest. Banned from one, banned from all. Please think - is it worth it?"

Inspector John Soutar of Grampian Police's Licensing Team commented 'social networking sites are the fastest and most user friendly forms of media and with each club having it's own site with a number of 'friends' attached to the sites, some with as many as 12,000 'friends', it's a logical way of getting a positive message across which will hopefully let all clubbers know that there is a real deterrent to anti social and violent behaviour. All clubs want a trouble free night, the Police want a trouble free night, and I'm sure all clubbers do too. We just want people to know there will be social consequences as well as court consequences for those who choose to ignore the positive message we are trying to get across. Hopefully this will assist in continuing to make Aberdeen an even safer place to have a good night out in'

Shelly Wall of The Office and the Chairperson of the Unight Group said ' All of our venues try to do the right things to keep people safe, unfortunately there are a small minority who spoil it sometimes, we hope this message encourages everyone to keep cool and enjoy Aberdeen. For those that misbehave, you won't be welcome in our clubs and will end up legally banned thanks to the assistance we receive from the Procurator Fiscal Service and the Courts'

Chris Fowler, Manager at The Albyn, said: "The Facebook Flash message has the potential to reach a vast amount of people frequenting the late night economy. It's important to both inform them and warn them of the measures being taken by the Police and Unight Aberdeen working together who want to deter the errant few individuals, intent on creating trouble under the influence of Alcohol."

A spokesman from the Aberdeen City Alcohol & Drugs Partnership endorsed the message going out today from the Unight Aberdeen members, and said, "Violence and anti-social behaviour in licensed premises cannot be tolerated. It is all too often associated with alcohol consumption, with the consequences not only felt by the victim, but also by the police, ambulance and the Accident and Emergency staff at the hospital. I am delighted to see the city centre on-sales licensed trade taking positive action to help tackle the problem."

A NEW EXCLUSION ORDER

Fri 22 Jul 2011 - submited by Shelly Wall

How would you feel to be UNABLE to enter your favourite Aberdeen pubs & clubs?

A NEW EXCLUSION ORDER initiative launched by UNIGHT Aberdeen & Grampian Police means that if you commit alcohol related violent crimes, in Aberdeen city centre, you may be LEGALLY BANNED from ALL the 23 UNIGHT Aberdeen venues! If so excluded, attempted re-entry results in your arrest!!

Banned from ONE, Banned from ALL! Please think....IS IT WORTH IT?

Violent Offenders Face Court Ordered Ban

Tue 07 Jun 2011 - submited by Shelly Wall

Revellers caught committing violent crime in Aberdeen could face a court ordered ban from city centre pubs and clubs under a new initiative, police said today.

The move will see officers work together with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and the licensed trade to further reduce violence and antisocial behaviour in the city.

Chief Inspector George Macdonald said: Due to our positive working relations with a number of partners, we have witnessed a significant reduction in violent crime and antisocial behaviour throughout Aberdeen City. The City Centre in particular has seen serious assaults drop by over thirty percent in the last three years but we know that there is absolutely no room for complacency and the joint working and focus will continue.

We are committed to building on this progress and make no apologies for the strong stance we are taking on this issue. The vast majority of people who come into the city centre to enjoy a night out, do so responsibly and return home safely.

Time and again however, we see the same few individuals involved in a disproportionate number of incidents, almost always related to alcohol abuse.

This minority who cannot control their behaviour, will be targeted and the use of these court ordered exclusions sends a clear signal that it will not be tolerated by Grampian Police, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, the local licensed trade or the people of Aberdeen.

Chief Inspector Macdonald added: Alcohol fuelled behaviour places additional strain on the emergency services, not simply at the time of the incident, but in the case of NHS Grampian, for example, the ongoing treatment can stretch into the days, weeks, and months afterwards. When you factor the impact on victims, family and employers the behaviour of this minority should not be underestimated.

Our message is clear - control your drinking and your temper or you will find yourself legally barred from entering not just one venue but all of those within a specified area. Aberdeen is a vibrant and safe city and we are committed to maintaining and improving that position.

Andrew Richardson, Procurator Fiscal for Aberdeen said, We will ask the court to exclude those convicted of violent offences from the licensed premises where the crime has taken place. We will also ask the court to exclude them from other late night venues in the centre of Aberdeen. This will ensure that the vast majority of revellers can enjoy a safe night out without it being spoiled by an anti-social minority.
The exclusion orders part of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 also enhance the current scheme operated by Unight Aberdeen, a group of licensed premises in the city who have joined together to introduce a barred from one, barred from all policy in or around one of their venues.

Mark Donlevy of Unight Aberdeen said: Unight Aberdeens members are committed to working towards a safe and vibrant nightlife within the city centre of Aberdeen.

The group works hard to ensure that joy and revelry of party goers is not affected by the small minority of people who are in involved in anti-social behaviour and violence within the city centre.

Further to the ongoing banning and sharing of information on known and convicted troublemakers, Unight Aberdeen is now working alongside various agencies with the aim to make the presence of these errant individuals within the city centre not only unwelcome but also a condition legally forced upon them.

Speaking on behalf of Aberdeen Excise License Holders Association, Jack Dempster said: We fully support the use of Exclusion Orders in respect of violent offenders either in or around Licensed Premises.

Our members are continually trying to improve the environment of their premises and the last thing they need is violent behaviour, and all the issues that come with that, detracting from their efforts. Whilst violent behaviour is thankfully not the norm, it is important to get the message out that it will not be tolerated, and that our members will stick together in this regard.

Rigid implementation of the Exclusion Orders will, we feel, go a long way to hopefully reducing such violent behaviour and towards making the city a safer place for everyone.

Chris Fowler of Unight Aberdeen said he expected the Exclusion Orders to have a tremendous impact. He said: A troublesome few have caused substantial or repeated, violence, distress and damage. If these people are deterred from entering the various licensed member venues this will have a tremendous impact on improving the already rising standards all our venues in the city strive for.

Sandy Kelman, of the Aberdeen City Alcohol & Drugs Partnership, added: I fully support the use of this legislation to combat alcohol related violence and disorder.

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