Blog: Tackling street drinking in Trowbridge and Salisbury

“It happens every day.” - Shop worker, Market Walk, Salisbury  

Persistent anti-social behaviour (ASB), including shouting and theft, caused by street drinkers in high-footfall areas of Salisbury has been causing distress to retail workers and shoppers. The persistent ASB has caused some businesses to reluctantly take actions such as closing their front doors during the day and operate as appointment only, negatively impacting their trade.  

Local policing teams in Salisbury and Trowbridge have been using a range of intervention methods to support people who have been street drinking and causing ASB. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to supporting vulnerable, alcohol-dependent people whilst improving ASB hotspot locations for people who live and work in Salisbury and Trowbridge. 

Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) in Salisbury  

There has been a PSPO in place in Salisbury since May 2024 to prevent street drinking and the use of catapults. A PSPO is a County Council-led initiative which the police help enforce. People who drink alcohol in the PSPO inclusion zone in Salisbury are subjected to a £100 fixed penalty notice and their alcohol seized. Since the PSPO was introduced, 28 fixed penalty notices have been issued.  

Supporting businesses, shoppers and vulnerable people in Salisbury 

Due to the constraints associated with fixed penalty notices, including issuing them to people who do not have the means to pay them, police officers and PCSOs often take a practical approach to street drinkers and seize and dispose of their alcohol. This stops the individual(s) drinking alcohol at that moment. 

Officers and PCSOs carry out patrols of the city centre in hotspot locations, informed by intelligence, to proactively reduce street drinking and ASB. In addition to regular neighbourhood policing patrols, officers and PCSOs have undertaken 109 hours’ worth of extra ASB hotspot patrols in Salisbury throughout July. This resulted in seven arrests, five stop searches and 25 intelligence submissions.  

Salisbury Neighbourhood Inspector Laura Elliott: 

“My team continue to engage with local businesses and retail workers to gather intelligence and understand what ASB issues are affecting them the most.  

We have found that some intelligence is not being directly reported to the police. We need to understand the full picture of street drinking and associated ASB in order to tailor our patrols to specific locations. I urge people to report all ASB or street drinking incidents to us via 101, ShopWatch (if you are a business) or at a police community engagement event.” 

Multi-agency collaboration in Trowbridge  

"We considered moving premises.”  - Shop worker, Fore Street, Trowbridge 

Prior to intervention by Trowbridge neighbourhood policing team (NPT) and partner agencies, some businesses on Fore Street in Trowbridge had considered moving their premises due to the persistent anti-social behaviour caused by street drinkers. Following intelligence from pop-up community events and direct reports to the local policing team, Inspector Ho Tsang organised a walkabout event for residents and business owners to meet with partner agencies to visit hotspot locations for ASB on foot. The partner agencies in attendance included the Police and Crime Commissioner, Philip Wilkinson, Connect (Wiltshire’s free drug and alcohol service), and Wiltshire Council’s ASB Team. The hotspot locations they visited included Fore Street, The Shires shopping centre, and Trowbridge Park.  

Trowbridge Inspector, Ho Tsang:  

“Partnership working with local authorities, support organisations and the community is paramount to making a positive, lasting change to the community by finding sustainable solutions to anti-social behaviour. 

Our operational priorities are led by intelligence. I encourage members of the community to continue to report instances of anti-social behaviour to the police via 101, online or at community engagement events.”  

The local policing team regularly meet with Wiltshire Council’s ASB and Rough Sleeper teams, Connect (Wiltshire’s free drug and alcohol service), and youth services to discuss joint approaches to tackling ASB. This has included outreach work, such as joint patrols with Connect to build rapport with street drinkers and ensure they have access to the appropriate safeguarding and support.  

Alex Cattelona, Criminal Justice and Engagement & Prevention Manager at Connect: 

“Carrying out joint outreach patrols in Trowbridge with the local PCSOs and Wiltshire Council’s ASB and Rough Sleeper teams has made a real difference to vulnerable substance users. We provide alcohol and drug dependent people with recovery plans and can arrange secure accommodation to support them to make positive changes to their lives.  

During one recent patrol in Trowbridge, someone walked up to the team and thanked them all for their help. Following the multi-agency intervention, this individual was getting the right support for their addiction and was living in secure housing.”  

Community impact 

Whilst interventions have been put in place, including the PSPO in Salisbury, we recognise this is not a fail-safe method to reduce street drinking and ASB. Behind-the-scenes work is taking place in conjunction with partner agencies to make both Salisbury and Trowbridge safer for everyone.  

Salisbury Inspector Laura Elliott: 

“We are currently exploring new ways to monitor persistent ASB offenders and street drinkers in Salisbury in conjunction with our partners including the Business Improvement District (BID), and Wiltshire Council’s ASB team.”  

Trowbridge Inspector Ho Tsang: 

“I am pleased to report that, in Trowbridge, the number of reports of street drinking and associated ASB has decreased following the multi-agency interventions we now have in place.  

We recognise the significant impact ASB can have on the community. We are continuing to monitor the situation and carry out regular patrols of the hotspot locations to deter ASB and ensure vulnerable members of the community are supported.” 

To find out more, take a look at our Instagram page.