November 23, 2011 1.07 pm This story is over 156 months old

New police powers to tackle Lincoln street drinking

Street drinking: City Council approves plans for DPPO to tackle street drinking in city centre and surrounding areas.

Plans to tackle street drinking will be put in place in Lincoln within boundaries set by Newport Arch, St Mark’s Shopping Centre, Broadgate and the Brayford Bridge.

The proposed Designated Public Place Order (DPPO) did not receive any opposition under public consultation and has been approved by the City of Lincoln Council.

The measure does not ban drinking alcohol in public but gives power to police officers to ask individuals to stop drinking if they are being a nuisance, with failure to do so resulting in an offence.

The DPPO came as a result of 90 signature strong petition presented to the City Council by residents and then debated in August this year.

The measure is supported by Lincolnshire Police, Lincoln BIG and the council’s Anti-Social Behaviour Team.

City Councillor Fay Smith is pleased police will have extra powers for dealing with people who cause alcohol-related problems in the city centre but acknowledges other partnerships are also important.

Smith said: “The DPPO is a valuable tool for the police, but we are working with partners such as Framework and the Nomad Trust to develop intervention methods to run alongside this enforcement, which aim to get to the root of the problem.”

The first DPPO was put in place in 2006 covering the Arboretum, set up as a pilot to see if it could be effective in other areas of the city.

Source: City of Lincoln Council