Liver tests in city drink scheme

People have been given free liver tests as part of initiatives in Birmingham during Alcohol Awareness Week.

Experts have toured the city raising awareness of the long and short-term impact of alcohol misuse.

People had tests in Handsworth, Kingstanding and Perry Barr and results were made available on the same day.

One of the consultants, Dr George Georgiou, said Birmingham's overall consumption of alcohol was slightly higher than the national average.

'Dramatically increased'

He said: "When people are young, they feel a little bit indestructible.

"They're not too worried about what's happening at the moment because they feel that they can always change later.

"The truth is people are drinking much more, whereas in other areas in Europe drinking has actually gone down.

"In the UK, particularly in women and young people, it's dramatically increased."

Birmingham Community Safety Partnership (BCSP) and Birmingham Health and Wellbeing Partnership (BHWP) have been taking the lead in the initiatives.

BCSP is made up of the city council, West Midlands Police, Birmingham Health Services, Birmingham Voluntary Services Council, West Midlands Fire Service and National Probation Service West Midlands.

BHWP is made up of the three Birmingham PCTs (Birmingham East and North, South Birmingham and Heart of Birmingham), the city council and other partners from the voluntary and community sector.