Warning city drug use could hit ‘epidemic proportions’

The Bradford Council report suggests that drinking and drug use in parts of the Worth Valley area could be going up.

It claims that parents have been observed dropping their children at local parks along with “significant quantities of supermarket alcohol”.

Problems of youths taking drugs such as mephedrone, sometimes known as MCAT, may also on the rise, it is claimed.

Entitled Anti Social Behaviour in the Worth Valley Corridor, the report says: “Anecdotal evidence suggests that the growing popularity of ‘legal highs’ with impressionable young people has the potential to reach epidemic proportions.”

On the subject of under-age drinking, it adds: “Neighbourhood policing teams in the Keighley and Worth Valley agreed to a joint exercise to identify individuals with alcohol. Data was collected over an eight week period in summer 2010.

“Most parents were unaware that their children were involved, although it had been reported at Neighbourhood Forums that in some cases young people had been observed being dropped off in popular locations such as Oakworth and Haworth parks by their parents along with significant quantities of supermarket alcohol. They had often travelled across the district to meet with friends. Internet based social networking sites alerted people instantly to when and where gatherings were taking place.”

The findings have been played down by Worth Valley Conservative councillor Glen Miller, who called the report “badly worded” and an example of “scaremongering”.

He has asked officers to provide him with hard evidence to back up the claims in the report.

“This is a badly worded document which, in hindsight, officers will be feeling that it might have been explained differently,” he said.

“That is not to say there aren’t problems but they are being addressed.”

The report will be discussed by members of the Keighley area committee which meets on Thursday in the Keighley Council chamber.