Dealers told: keep drugs out of our pubs

A new scheme which funds drugs awareness courses for licensees in Derby has proved so successful it may now be extended to other areas.

Derbyshire Police decided to send a group of Derby licensees on the British Institute of Innkeeping drugs awareness course after a raid on the Normanton Hotel in Derby led to 19 arrests for drug-related offences.

Eighteen publicans from the surrounding area - which is renowned for its drug problem - were sent on the course, which was funded with money from the Single Regeneration Budget Scheme.

Crime reduction officer for Derbyshire police, Steve Dibble, told thePublican.com that the police are now hoping to extend the scheme.

"The area is renowned for being a bit of a problem but by educating publicans we are hoping to stamp out the drugs problem. We are educating all licensees on what signals to look for and how to prevent people from taking drugs onto their premises," he said.

Kate Harrison, who runs the Mafeking pub in Derby, said she would advise anyone who got the chance to go on the course. "Because the Normanton Hotel was raided the police thought it would cause a ripple effect with other pubs in the town seeing the problems of drugs, so we were sent on the course as guinea pigs," she said.

"Since I've come back I've removed items from the pub so that there are no blind spots and I've put mirrors up in strategic places. I've also been concentrating more on staff training, put posters up and now a member of my team goes into the men's toilets every now and again just to let the customers know that we won't put up with it."