Drink sensibly this Christmas and New Year

The poster headline reads: 'the party's over - have fun, stay safe'. Other posters, which are being distributed to hundreds of pubs and clubs across the county, promote personal safety messages and highlight dangers such as spiked drinks.

East Sussex County Council, Sussex Police and the NHS are behind the campaign. They want people to enjoy themselves during the festive break but also think about their own personal safety and the safety of others. Speaking on behalf of the partners, Councillor Bob Tidy, Lead Member for Community Safety at the County Council, said: "Our poster is deliberately hard-hitting but the image we've used didn't happen for real and was set up for the campaign. However, as we all know this scene is sometimes the reality late at night in East Sussex and with the main Christmas and New Year parties coming up the problem could increase.

"We want people to enjoy the festive season and use their local pubs,clubs, hotels and restaurants - but to know their limits when it comes to drinking alcohol. Have fun but stay safe. We hope that bar managers and staff will help us with the campaign by displaying our posters and encouraging their customers to stay safe." "

Earlier this year, the County Council and its partners launched the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy. Our aim is to reduce alcohol-relate dharm to individuals, families and communities in East Sussex. We want to promote sensible drinking as well as improve health services and tackle alcohol related crime, so I am very pleased that we are continuing to highlight these important messages via the postercampaign."

Safety campaigners also say that people should give themselves a break from drinking every couple of days in order to minimise the negative health effects of alcohol. If anyone has concerns about their drinking or someone else's drinking they can call Drinkline - the national alcohol helpline on 0800 917 8282.