Action taken over Gloucester street drinkers

Police have been taking action over ongoing issues in London Road this week.

Uniformed officers have been putting on extra patrols, alongside plain clothes colleagues, to deal with street drinkers in the area. Mounted officers have also been patrolling the area in recent days.

London Road comes under a Public Spaces Protection Order, which prohibits the consumption of alcohol in public.

The officers took four days of action, during the afternoons and evenings, to engage with the drinkers and offer them support. Where necessary, they have been taking enforcement action.

Where they have witnessed breaches of the Public Spaces Protection Order, they have been confiscating alcohol vessels from the drinkers and tipping it away.

There has also been additional work liaising with the housing managers of Newton and Claremont House.

There have been ongoing concerns from residents and businesses around anti-social behaviour in the area. Many of these are from people with complex emotional and mental health issues.

Gloucestershire Constabulary has been working closely with other agencies for a number of years, such as with Gloucester City Council through the Solace scheme, to provide support to those who need it.

Sergeant Andrew Doyle said: “There has been a number of reports recently of anti-social behaviour in London Road, linked to street drinking.

“As with all our work, our first aim is to engage and support people wherever possible, with enforcement only being used as a last resort.

“However, we take the issue of anti-social behaviour very seriously and have taken this action to ensure that people feel safe in their community.

“Clearly, there are many complex issues for a number of people living in this area. Many require a substantial amount of additional support from all agencies, as they move towards independent living. We want to offer all the assistance we can to help them make that transition smoothly.”