Locals ‘scared to visit town centre’ where street drinking happens ‘all the time’

Fenland District Council extended a street-drinking ban in Wisbech but residents said there is still public drinking ‘all the time’

A street-drinking ban in a market town has been extended despite concerns that it is not being enforced. Fenland District Council approved extending the public space protection order (PSPO) for Wisbech town centre which was due to expire next week.

98 per cent of those surveyed supported extending the PSPO which was first introduced in 2017 and previously renewed in 2020 and 2023. The order grants the police and council officers powers to seize alcohol in public spaces where antisocial behaviour has been an issue.

Cllr Steve Tierney, of Wisbech South, said that the order is not being enforced and residents say they see public drinking “all the time”.

The Conservative councillor said: “Indeed in the areas covered by PSPOs, there are people drinking every single day – pretty much all day.

“What worries me about this is we tell people we have created a rule, and then nobody enforces it, and it creates an idea that the law can just be ignored. That’s something which then spreads and spreads to other parts of the area and could give people a very dim view.”

The PSPO covers a number of areas in Wisbech, including Tillery Park and St Peter and Paul Church. In the report, almost everyone surveyed said they still saw alcohol being drunk in areas covered by the order – just under 89 per cent.

But 98 per cent said they feared antisocial behaviour would get worse if the order was not renewed. Respondents said many people are “scared to visit the town centre because of the drinking” and called it a “blight” on the community.

Cllr Tierney, who said he would support the extension, said: “The police I know are hugely stretched, they have only got so many people, they will tell you how they just don’t have the time to do this all the time. I get that and I don’t know the solution but it still worries me that we are introducing these policies and then the public can plainly see we aren’t enforcing it.”

According to the police, who supported the order’s extension, alcohol-related crime had fallen by 41 per cent since it was introduced. The extension of the PSPO was approved by Fenland District Council’s cabinet on Monday (September 14).