New licensing rules aim to reduce alcohol-related crime in Huddersfield and Dewsbury town centres
Huddersfield: So, there’s some big news coming out of Huddersfield and Dewsbury. They’re rolling out tougher rules about selling alcohol in the town centres. It’s all about tackling the issues linked to alcohol-related crime.
They’re introducing something called a ‘Cumulative Impact Assessment’ or CIA for short. This will help limit the number of new off-licences and places where you can buy alcohol to drink elsewhere. The idea is to keep things safe and reduce the chaos that can come with too many places selling booze.
The CIA will look at how having a lot of licensed spots in one area affects things like crime and public safety. They want to make sure that kids are safe and that the towns don’t turn into wild party zones.
On January 15, the council will decide whether to adopt this CIA. If they give it the green light, it’ll kick in right away and stay in place for three years, unless they need to review it sooner.
Now, while this doesn’t change how they usually handle licensing applications, anyone wanting a new license will have to show they’re not going to make things worse. The council and local authorities, like the police, will want to be sure that new licenses won’t add to the existing problems.
They’ve already consulted the public about this, and it seems like a lot of folks agree that there are too many places selling alcohol in Huddersfield. About 64% of people think it’s a problem, and many support the idea of a CIA.
In Dewsbury, opinions were a bit mixed. Some people felt there were too many licensed places, while others weren’t sure. But still, a decent number of folks think a CIA could help out.
One local mentioned that the easy access to alcohol in Dewsbury is causing issues with street drinking, making it uncomfortable for shoppers. Another person pointed out that Huddersfield gets pretty rowdy after dark, and they suspect it’s all fueled by alcohol.
The council report backs this up, saying that alcohol-related crimes are a real concern in both towns. They’ve got data from West Yorkshire Police showing that these issues have been around for a while, especially during the pandemic.
So, it looks like Huddersfield and Dewsbury are taking steps to clean things up a bit. Let’s see how it all plays out!
