National Binge Drinking Strategy Community Level Initiative

National Binge Drinking Strategy

In March 2008, the Prime Minister announced a National Binge Drinking Strategy which provides $53.5 million to address binge drinking among young people. The strategy comprises:

• $14.4 million for community level initiatives to confront the culture of binge drinking, particularly in sporting organisations
• $19.1 million to intervene earlier to assist young people and ensure that they assume personal responsibility for their binge drinking and
• $20 million for advertising that confronts young people with the costs and consequences of binge drinking.

Community Level Initiative

• Third funding round
• Second funding round
• First funding round

Second funding round

The second community based grants round of the Community Level Initiative was advertised on 25 July 2009. Applications closed 21 September 2009.

The following 19 successful community level grants were announced on 16 February 2010.

• $150,000 to CatholicCare Canberra & Goulburn in Canberra for 'GROG Watch', which will provide support and intervention to young binge drinkers referred by ACT Policing and ACT Ambulance services.
  
  
• $250,000 to the Armadale Youth Resources in Armadale for 'Kickin It – Kids Choosing Kreative Interests', to tackle binge drinking in the Armadale area. The two-year project will target alcohol sales to underage youth, provide alcohol education and promote alcohol-free activities, culminating in an autumn festival. The project will include working closely with junior football clubs in Armadale.
  
  
• $217,685 to the University of Western Australia in Crawley for 'Tertiary Alcohol Project 3', a two-year project tackling binge drinking on college and university campuses. The harm reduction project is designed to reduce risk taking behaviour associated with excessive alcohol consumption among tertiary students.
  
  
• $147,650 to the Western Australian Network of Alcohol and other Drug Agencies in West Perth for 'IYAG – Indigenous Youth Against Grog', a two-year project to tackle serious alcohol issues among young people in two communities. IYAG will develop regional and age appropriate, Aboriginal culturally sensitive education and prevention workshops and materials to raise awareness and reduce risks of binge drinking.
  
  
• $148,235 to Big hART Incorporated in North West Tasmania for a one-year project, called 'Smashed', which is aimed at promoting responsible alcohol consumption and exposing risks associated with binge drinking. The project will assist young people in the North West to produce short films on the issue of binge drinking, culminating in a short film competition.
  
  
• $150,000 to Finding Workable Solutions Inc in Kingscote for 'Refocus', a two-year project to engage 600 Kangaroo Island young people in a peer mentoring project. A discussion forum on binge drinking will provide accurate information to 35 peer mentors, who will then share this knowledge at 90 weekend music, dance and film events.
  
  
• $148,380 to the African Communities Council of South Australia in Devon Park for 'African youths of SA stop binge drinking', a two-year project aimed at reducing anti-social behaviour in African youths associated with alcohol intake. The project incorporates a number of activities of both an educational and diversionary nature.
  
  
• $250,000 to the Gindaja Treatment & Healing Centre in Yarrabah for 'Beat da Binge', a two-year project combining competitive sports with traditional and contemporary music and dance, and encouraging young people to take part. The project has been initiated by the Gindaja Treatment & Healing Centre, the Yarrabah Seahawks Sports Club and the Yarrabah community as a whole-of-community response to binge drinking among young people.
  
  
• $215,260 to the Logan City Police and Citizens Youth Club in Woodridge for 'Step Up!', a two-year project that aims to break the cycle of binge drinking by having 'at risk' young people question and reassess the choices they have made about binge drinking – and to realise the negative and harmful impact that drinking excessively has on them, their relationships and their lives in general.
  
  
• $213,900 to the Open Doors Youth Service in Fortitude Valley for 'On the Fringe', a two-year project aimed at preventing and reducing binge drinking in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people. The project includes drafting a manual that will include information on hosting drug and alcohol-free events, peer mentoring programs, and resources and referral information.
  
  
• $142,000 to Queensland Remote Aboriginal Media (Aboriginal Corporation) in Edge Hill for 'Our Body, Our Community, Our Choice', a 15-month project tackling binge drinking in remote Indigenous communities. Young people in these communities will be given the opportunity to develop their own radio programs discussing issues around alcohol and binge drinking and promoting positive lifestyle choices.
  
  
• $150,000 to the Brimbank City Council for the 'Summer Nights' project. Summer Nights will offer drug, alcohol and smoke free events on weekend evenings over summer.
  
  
• $249,967 to St Joseph's Youth Service in Tweed Heads for 'CoolHeads', a two-year street outreach program that will engage young people in the Tweed-Coolangatta area in public places at high risk times (Friday and Saturday nights). The project will offer young people someone to talk to, and provide information, support and follow-up.
  
  
• $250,000 to the Byron Youth Service Inc for 'Project U-Turn', a two-year project that will bring together key stakeholders to develop and coordinate actions to reverse binge drinking trends among young people in Byron Bay.
  
  
• $25,000 to the Gilgandra Shire Council for 'Youth in Action', an 18-month project to help young people realise that there are alternative activities in the area to binge drinking.
  
  
• $149,727 to the New School of Arts Neighbourhood House in South Grafton for 'Clarence Valley Street Cruise', a two-year program to provide recreational alternatives to local youth. The program will be run by New School of Arts Neighbourhood House Inc.
  
  
• $249,500 to the South Coast Medical Service Aboriginal Corporation in Nowra for 'Booze and Bras Don't Mix', a two-year project to tackle the issues and problems of Indigenous binge drinking by giving young Aboriginal men the confidence to manage their drinking and relationships. The project will complement the 'Koori Chicks' project, which addresses young Aboriginal women's binge drinking and covers the more remote areas of Wreck Bay, Jerrinja, East Nowra and Bomaderry.
  
  
• $175,000 to the Tumut Shire Council in Tumut for 'Be Somebody Sober', a two-year project to involve the youth of Tumut Shire in developing and implementing alternative activities to binge drinking.
  
  
• $250,000 to the Barkly Shire Council for a two-year, community-based project to tackle the problem of binge drinking among young people in the Northern Territory. The Barkly Shire Council will work with the Central Australian Youth Link Up Service to implement a youth binge drinking prevention and intervention program in the Alpurrurulam community on the NT-Queensland border, in partnership with community members and key stakeholders.

Top of page

First funding round

The first community based grants round of the Community Level Initiative was advertised on 28 June 2008. Applications closed on 11 August 2008.

The following 19 successful community level grants were announced on 17 November 2008.

• Careworks for the 'Frog Crew' project ($118,000) to support a crew of trained and equipped primarily volunteer youth workers to serve the needs of young people on Friday and Saturday nights in Sydney's Sutherland Shire.
  
  
• Waminda: South Coast Women's Health & Welfare Aboriginal Corporation - in partnership with the South Coast Medical Service Aboriginal Corporation and the South East Sydney and Illawarra Health Service for the 'Koori Chicks' Binge Drinking Project ($248,775) - to increase the confidence of young Aboriginal women to manage their drinking, relationships and sexual health.
  
  
• Newcastle City Council for the 'Miromulliko' project ($249,955) to manage environments in the Newcastle late night inner city in order to reduce the level of harm associated with binge drinking.
  
  
• Broken Hill Community Drug Action Team for the 'Drink Safe Community Initiative' ($236,000) to reduce risky drinking behaviours and develop an ongoing "Drink Safe Community" initiative.
  
  
• Nambucca Valley Youth Services Centre for the 'Mid North Coast Street Team' ($250,000) to engage young people in developing and implementing preventative strategies to reduce the incidence of risky alcohol use.
  
  
• Assisting Drug Dependants Inc for the 'Party Safe Binge Drinking Project' ($243,300) to minimise harm and risky behaviours associated with binge drinking through a number of initiatives aimed at young people in the Canberra region.
  
  
• Sunrise Health Service Aboriginal Corporation for the 'Grog and You' project ($149,944) to reduce the incidence of binge drinking among youth in Indigenous communities east of Katherine in the Northern Territory by providing key life skills, enhancing attitudes and positive behaviour in being responsible with alcohol, and increasing awareness of alcohol's harmful effects to themselves, family and community.
  
  
• King Island Council for the 'Youth Access Program' ($60,800) to provide alcohol-free venues for youth related activities.
  
  
• Lutheran Church of Australia for the 'On Friday Night in Kilburn' project ($248,954).
  
  
• Shire of Katanning for the 'Katanning Alcohol Prevention Project' ($210,730) to provide young people with information, skills and knowledge to make appropriate decisions about consuming alcohol.
  
  
• Milbi Incorporated for the 'Club 500 Binge Drinking Awareness' ($150,000) to target Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth by conducting anti-binge drinking events such as concerts and school visits.
  
  
• Australian Red Cross Society Queensland for the Binge Drinking Harm Minimisation Project ($150,000) to respond to binge drinking, specifically towards the needs of vulnerable target groups in the greater Brisbane and Toowoomba area.
  
  
• Anglicare North Queensland Limited Youth Substance Misuse Service for their Binge Drinking Initiative ($150,000) to provide school leavers with awareness of laws, penalties, standard drinks, drink spiking and many similar activities.
  
  
• Ipswich State High School & Bremer State High School for their 'Post Formal Mystery Tour' ($40,000) for drug and alcohol free alternatives for students to celebrate their end of Year 12.
  
  
• Sunshine Coast Youth Partnership Inc for the 'Drink Safe Coalition' ($250,000) to promote the concept of safe drinking and provide community capacity and engagement to support and proliferate targeted programs, interventions and alternative activities.
  
  
• Russian Ethnic Representative Council of Victoria for their 'Reducing Binge-drinking in Russian/Slavic' project ($150,000) to conduct a broad community education campaign.
  
  
• Victorian Arabic Social Services for their 'Stay Cool: Think before you drink' project ($150,000) to boost resilience and protective factors as well as awareness-raising across the Arabic community.
  
  
• Springvale Community Aid & Advice Bureau for their Binge Drinking Project ($229,904) to increase personal responsibility and decrease risk taking behaviour by engaging young people.
  
  
• City of Greater Geelong for the 'Barwon Safe Parties' Project ($241,030) to address issues related to young people, alcohol and parties.