Radstock Town Council has been urged to look once again into trying to get an order imposed to prevent public drinking in the town.

Councillors were told that back in August 2019, the council had considered whether to impose a Public Space Protection Order. Under a PSPO people would not be allowed to be rowdy around the town and drinking in public could be made an offence.

A resident told the Radstock Town Council meeting today (July 20) that:" The issue of heavy drinking in the the centre of Radstock needs to revisited. It has got a lot worse since the lockdown has been eased."

She told the council that for two or three nights she had been woken up at 1.30 am by people drinking in the Memorial Garden.

She also told them about: " Three middle aged men with an 18 pack of beer shouting and clowning around in Radstock. I have contacted Sue Mountstevens (the Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner ) directly about this problem."

The Mayor Rupert Bevan said that when the issue of disorderly behaviour in Radstock was raised with B&NES they " effectively shrugged their shoulders." But he agreed that public drinking in and around the town would be looked at again and raised, again, with B&NES.

Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs), introduced in 2014, encourage a broad range of powers and tools to help tackle anti-social behaviour locally. PSPOs are aimed at ensuring public spaces can be enjoyed free from anti-social behaviour.

Councils can use PSPOs to prohibit specified activities, and/or require certain things to be done by people engaged in particular activities, within a defined public area. PSPOs

differ from other tools introduced under the Act as they are council-led, and rather than targeting specific individuals or properties, they focus on the identified problem behaviour in a specific location.

The legislation provides for restrictions to be placed on behaviour that apply to everyone in that locality (with the possible use of exemptions). Breach of a PSPO without a

reasonable excuse is an offence.