Introduction:

Approximately 75 participants attended this conference which was jointly organised by the Alcohol Forum and the Drugs Policy Unit, Department of Health.  This included CAAP training participants, Local and Regional Drug and Alcohol Taskforces, HSE and Department of Health staff and Alcohol Forum staff as well as other interested individuals.

Background to the conference:

Community Action is a process for reaching out and creating partnerships in the community in order to empower local communities, organisations and groups to take action to enable change. In the context of alcohol, the goal is to engage a variety of interested community stakeholders to create and implement a shared vision through agreeing on and devising a community alcohol action plan that targets the community as a whole.

The Alcohol Forum is therefore a facilitator to communities, organisations and groups interested in introducing this approach locally. The Community Action on Alcohol Project (CAAP©) was designed, developed and delivered by Project Lead Anne Timony Meehan, Alcohol Forum.  It is an initiative that sets out to support communities to identify local alcohol related harm issues and priorities and then through the development of an integrated action plan to address these issues under each of the national priority headings: Supply, Prevention, Treatment and Rehabilitation, and Research from a local perspective.  This model seeks to address the whole community system and is not limited to a specific target group. It draws on existing community leadership and strengths and fostering of collaboration between relevant sectors interested in reducing alcohol consumption and alcohol harms in Ireland.

Aim of the conference:

• Celebrate the achievement of the participants that successfully took part in the CAAP pilot project and award them with certificates
• Launch the CAAP Evaluation Report which was compiled by Claire Galligan and can be accessed here
• Call for expression of interest from remaining Task-forces to apply for CAAP 2016

Conference Chair Dr Hilda Loughran, Senior Lecturer School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice, UCD; welcomed everyone to the conference and set the scene of the day’s proceedings.

Outline of the conference: 

Susan Scally – Principal Officer Drugs Policy Unit, Dept of Health

Kieran Doherty – CEO Alcohol Forum

Claire Galligan – Social Research Consultant

Launch of Community Action on Alcohol Evaluation Report.

Presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/helenalcoholforum/claire-galligan-caap-2015-evaluation-report

David Lane – Cork Local Drug & Alcohol Task Force & Southern Regional Drug & Alcohol Task Force

Community Action Case Study from CAAP 2015

Presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/secret/r5jEhbcVKO6qET 

Grace Hill – Tallaght Local Drug & Alcohol Task Force
Community Action Case Study from CAAP 2015
Presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/secret/fpsOwIDPMKJkks 

Hugh Greaves & Marie lawless – Ballymun Local Drug & Alcohol Task Force
Ballymun Alcohol Strategy Case Study – Preliminary Findings
Presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/helenalcoholforum/hugh-greaves-marie-lawless-ballymun-research-preliminary-findings

Anne Timony Meehan – CAAP Lead; Alcohol Forum
Community Action on Alcohol Project 2016
Presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/helenalcoholforum/anne-timony-meehan-caap-project-outline-2016

Susan Scally & Anne Timony Meehan
Presentation of Certificates to participants CAAP Pilot 2015

Suzi Lyons – Health Research Board
Measuring problem alcohol use using routine research data
Presentation: http://www.slideshare.net/helenalcoholforum/suzi-lyons-health-research-board 

Suzanne Costello – CEO Alcohol Action Ireland
HSE Alcohol Programme & Communication Plan 

Conclusion: The conference was a great success and the Alcohol Forum would like to thank everyone involved in making CAAP 2015 possible.  We look forward to receiving expressions of interest from Local and Regional Drug and Alcohol Taskforces for CAAP 2016. This is the first time this kind of Community Action on Alcohol Project has been evaluated and launched nationally in Ireland.  Although this is only the first step; each task-force that has drawn up an alcohol action plan has taken a vital step in making a real change to alcohol related harm in their communities.  We look forward to seeing these plans implemented and real change happening on our island in relation to alcohol harms.