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Alcohol Change UK

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Alcohol Change UK
Formation1984
Legal statusRegistered charity
PurposeAlcohol harm reduction in the UK
Location
Region served
United Kingdom
Chief Executive
Richard Piper
Trustee Board Chair
Prof Isabelle Szmigin
Budget£1 million p.a.
Websitealcoholchange.org.uk

Alcohol Change UK is a British charity and campaign group founded in 1984 whose aim is to reduce the harm caused by alcohol. It is best known for its flagship awareness programs Alcohol Awareness Week and the Dry January challenge.

History and organisation

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Alcohol Concern was founded in 1984. In 2007 it became one of the 24 founding member organisations of Alcohol Health Alliance UK, a coalition of medical, charity and campaign organisations related to alcohol.[1] In April 2017, Alcohol Concern merged with Alcohol Research UK,[2] and in November 2018 the merged group was named Alcohol Change UK.[3] It is now recognised as a national agency on alcohol misuse for the UK.[4]

Since September 2017, the charity has been led by Chief Executive Officer Dr Richard Piper, previously of Roald Dahl's Marvellous Medicine Children's Charity.[5] Professor Isabelle Szmigin is chair of the trustees.[6]

Activities

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Annual campaigns

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Main article: Dry January

In May 2012, Alcohol Concern began promoting the Dry January challenge, a national campaign in the UK for people to give up drinking alcohol for the month of January each year. The first Dry January challenge was in 2013.[7] The idea came from Emily Robinson, who gave up alcohol for January 2011 in preparation for a half marathon and joined Alcohol Concern in January 2012 while abstaining again.[8] Public Health England began promoting the campaign in December 2014.[9] In its first year, 4,000 people signed up for the Dry January challenge and it has grown in popularity ever since with nearly 9 million people planning to take a month off drinking in 2023.[10]

Other countries are interested in bringing the Dry January challenge to their own populations with the Dry January campaign being licensed to take place in France, Switzerland, Norway, Germany, South Tyrol (Italy), and the USA.

Alcohol Awareness Week is run and managed by Alcohol Change UK. Each year, Alcohol Change UK sets the date and theme for the upcoming campaign and shares free digital resources for people to take part. The campaign has moved from its previous spot in November and now takes place every July.

Services

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Consultancy and training

Alcohol Change UK offers training and consultancy services for professionals working in healthcare, housing and homelessness, social care, academia, or the emergency services, as well as in the workplace, to improve their policies and practices in supporting people with their drinking. Its flagship Blue Light approach helps to better support people with the most serious and chronic alcohol problems, who often have multiple needs.[11]

Research

Alcohol Change UK funds, commissions, and conducts research to strengthen the evidence base and improve the lives of those affected by alcohol harm.

Advocacy

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Alcohol Change UK acts as the secretariat and public enquiry point for the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Alcohol Harm, which exists to discuss alcohol-related issues and make related recommendations to government. The current chair of the group is Christian Wakeford MP.

Funding

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Alcohol Change UK is an independent charity, with income from an investment fund, grants, donations from supporters, and charges for consultancy and training.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Launch of the UK Alcohol Health Alliance: a new coalition calling for tougher measures on alcohol". Eurocare. European Alcohol Policy Alliance. 23 November 2007. Archived from the original on 10 January 2018. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  2. ^ Sharman, Alice (25 July 2017). "Chief executive appointed to lead newly merged alcohol charity". Civil Society. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  3. ^ "Alcohol Change UK launched as new national charity to reduce alcohol harm". Alcohol Policy UK.
  4. ^ "Alcohol support services". Drinkaware. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  5. ^ Haghpanah, Nusha (19 July 2017). "Dr Richard Piper appointed new CEO of Alcohol Research UK". Alcohol Concern. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  6. ^ "Alcohol Concern". Charity Commission. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  7. ^ Crane, Helen (9 January 2015). "Digital Campaign of the Week: Alcohol Concern's Dry January". Third Sector. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  8. ^ "Dry January - Our Story". Alcohol Concern. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  9. ^ "PHE encourages people to sign up to Dry January". gov.uk. 19 December 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  10. ^ "Why so few baby boomers are doing Dry January | Tony Rao". the Guardian. 4 January 2023. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  11. ^ "Alcohol Concern's Blue Light project. Working with change-resistant drinkers". nhs.co.uk. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Archived from the original on 10 January 2018. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
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