Alcohol 'prohibition zone' planned for Scarborough

Scarborough residents support a ban on street drinking in the seaside town

Drinking on the streets of Scarborough could be banned for the next three years after a plan to curb "urination and defecation" in public was backed by the majority of local residents.

Councillors will now discuss imposing a Public Spaces Protection Order to curb anti-social behaviour in the town centre.

North Yorkshire Council's Scarborough and Whitby area committee is due to meet on Friday to debate the proposal for a "prohibition zone".

Ninety per cent of people who responded to a consultation said drinkers should not be allowed to consume alcohol in public places in the town.

The street alcohol prohibition zone is outlined in red

The consultation, which had 438 respondents, also found a majority of thought Scarborough had a "problem" with drinkers using streets as toilets.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), if a protection order was put in place, failure to comply with the rules could lead to a £100 Fixed Penalty Notice or a fine of up to £500 upon conviction by a magistrates court.

If approved, two different “enforcement zones” would be created with different restrictions - however licensed premises would not be affected.

'Cause alarm'

A smaller street drinking prohibition zone would mean a total ban on the consumption of alcohol, and a wider zone would prohibit the consumption of alcohol in “a manner that causes or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress”.

Meanwhile, the ban on urination and defecation would apply to both areas and could lead to fines of up to £1,000.

North Yorkshire Police said the officers had dealt with more than 1,000 incidents of anti-social behaviour linked to alcohol in central Scarborough over the past three years.

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail].