Meeting focuses on drink crime (From Witney Gazette)

Meeting focuses on drink crime

POLICE and other groups from across Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire will meet near Witney tomorrow for a regional conference focusing on tackling alcohol-related crime and disorder.

The conference, called Safer All Round, will be hosted by Thames Valley Police.

The meeting, at the Witney Lakes Resort, will bring together regional representatives from police, trading standards departments, licensing authorities, Nightsafe schemes, national Pubwatch, environmental health, community safety partners, anti-social behaviour co-ordinators, the Security Industry Authority and NHS South Central.

The conference aims to showcase successful partnership initiatives tackling underage or excessive drinking being used in parts of Thames Valley and reinforce the close partnership-working that already exists across Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.

Inspector John Fox, alcohol and violent crime co-ordinator for Thames Valley Police, said: "This conference is part of a regional alcohol campaign that we have been working on with partners since May last year (2007).

"We are committed to reducing excessive and underage drinking with the help of our partners. Events like today's conference are vital to continuing to develop successful ways to tackle alcohol related crime and disorder in the Thames Valley and make the region safer for all."