Booze battle of Waterloo

By Fergus Hewison
BBC London

If successful, the scheme could be expanded throughout Lambeth

For decades, Waterloo has been a magnet for homeless people - many of whom have severe alcohol problems.

Large groups of drinkers would gather on street corners, in churchyards and other spaces. Often their behaviour was extremely anti-social and intimidating.

But now drinking in public places in Waterloo has been banned.

Lambeth Council says it has led to a reduction in anti-social behaviour in Waterloo, but others claim it is not having a dramatic effect.

Carrot and stick approach

The Drinking Control Area (DCA) was set up to tackle the problems of anti-social behaviour associated with street drinking.

Anyone who refuses to comply can have their drinks confiscated and be arrested and fined if they refuse to give them up.

It is a carrot and stick approach with the police enforcing the zone, while the homelessness charity St Mungo's encourages drinkers to give up alcohol and exchange their life on the streets for more permanent accommodation.

The leader of Lambeth Council, Peter Truesdale, who also represents Waterloo on the local authority, claims the DCA has brought major improvements to the area.

The street drinking ban really nips drinking in the bud Peter Truesdale, Lambeth Council leader

He said: "It's improved the area a lot. It's helped get the street drinking under control... and it's taken its place as a kind of whole mixture of things that we're doing to try and ensure that we've got clean safe streets in Waterloo."

A recent report on the DCA, produced by Lambeth Council, says that many groups of hardcore drinkers - known in the area as "drinking schools" - have been broken up.

It also says that although police enforcing the zone have made just six arrests so far, they have been confiscating an average of four lots of drink every day and finding less drinkers unconscious or behaving in an anti-social manner.

And St Mungo's says many more people are using its services.

'Really delighted'

One major concern, voiced before the project was set up, was that drinkers would simply disperse and re-group outside of the controlled zone.

However, Mr Truesdale believes this is not the case.

He told BBC London: "We've watched that very carefully and we've really been delighted by the way in which there seems not to have been very significant displacement.

"We're not exactly sure why that is the case, but we think it is because this is part of a mix of measures and also the street drinking ban really nips drinking in the bud, so it stops it getting established, it breaks up some of the established groups and that seems to reduce the displacement effect."

Michael Ball says drinking is traditionally a problem in Waterloo

The pilot scheme is still being assessed but Mr Truesdale says Lambeth may introduce more DCAs if Waterloo's is successful.

Michael Ball, chair of Waterloo Community Development Group (WCDG) - an organisation that works to regenerate and develop the area, is not convinced the DCA is having a significant impact.

He said: "I haven't noticed much change in the number of drinkers in Waterloo, apart from in the last few weeks with the hot weather, when in fact there's been quite an increase in street drinking.

"The only significant change that I've noticed is that some street drinkers are putting their drink into water bottles, presumably to disguise it."

Mr Ball believes that to solve the area's street drinking problem local people and businesses must work with the drinkers.

'Fantastic drop in drinkers'

He also says that drinking in general - whoever is doing it - is a problem for Waterloo residents.

"Street drinking in Waterloo has been traditionally a problem for local residents, but just as much of a problem has been street drinking outside bars, particularly in recent years as the area's become more and more popular for visitors and tourists and bars spill out all over the pavement, forcing residents to walk in the road sometimes."

But one man with long experience of Waterloo's street drinkers does think things are getting better.

Mick Carroll, from St Mungo's has worked in the area for many years, including when the notorious Bullring roundabout was home to a massive population of rough sleepers.

He said: "Twenty years ago, there were two or three hundred people living under the bullring, there was huge drinking culture there, and there were lots of spin offs from that, there were little drinking schools around the area.

"If you go around today of course you do see some people out there drinking still, but the numbers have dropped fantastically since that time."