Underage and Over the Limit

This programme contains some strong language

The Northeast has a drink problem, and teenagers are drinking more than anywhere else in the country.

There are double the national average of under 18s in treatment for drink-related problems.

I started drinking at 11.

I just need to stop. I just don't know how.

Like, the way I'm talking now is, like, I need help.

In places like Newcastle and Sunderland,

kids are drinking on the streets and in remote, dangerous areas.

We need to wait for them getting back.

-Where they going?

-To get the drink back.

-I don't give a

-BLEEP

-what you think, ya mugs.

Over three years,

more than 1,500 minors were admitted to hospital for excessive drinking.

-You sure you haven't been drinking?

-I am sure.

You're a bit wobbly there, mate.

'All the time as a youth worker,

'that's the first time I've came across a 12-year-old drinking.'

But there is help. Youth worker Phil Tye is working on the frontline,

fighting back against the drink epidemic.

Come here, mate. I'm wasting my time, I'll just go home, mate.

'You can't succeed all of the time. You can't win them all.'

-Why do you

-BLEEP

-it all on me?

'Even if you just change one young person's life'

then you've made a difference.

In this film, we'll follow Phil and ask teenagers face-to-face

why they start so early and drink so much.

I think you just get pissed to, like, forget about everything

and I think that's why people take it a bit too far sometimes.

Most young ones these days just drink to be happy.

-RADIO PRESENTER:

-It's coming up to 7:25.

So, who's responsibility is it to educate children about alcohol?

And as the Northeast has the highest rates of alcohol misuse

by young people in the country,

are we doing enough?

Young people's relationship with alcohol

is a worrying issue in the Northeast.

The regions has the country's highest percentage

of 11-15-year-olds drinking.

The summer months see a peak in teenage street drinking.

In Silksworth, Sunderland, a youth group called Youth Almighty

are fighting to stamp out underage drinking in their community.

Phil Tye and a group of volunteers set up the group seven years ago

as a place kids could go to keep away from outdoor drinking.

Phil's lived in the Northeast all his life, and he's seen

a change in the amounts of drink young people are consuming.

The quantities of alcohol they're drinking is greater.

In the past, you had young lads

who would drink cans and young girls would drink wine,

but increasingly we're seeing more spirits, especially vodka.

In July, there were 217 youngsters who came into the centre,

but they are determined to get more in.

Phil has a team of 14 youth workers.

There's been a group of young people drinking in here tonight.

They go out every Friday and Saturday night

and encourage young drinkers to come into the centre.

Phil has heard about a group of teenagers

who are drinking at a local hangout called Barnes Park.

He's heading there to try and find them.

There is some really younger ones within that group, 12/13-year-olds.

There's females within the group.

It's dark, unlit, security would be home by this time of night.

Some of the group have been drinking.

The vulnerability element around the females drinking is a worry.

Working with them from a young age is important for Phil,

as research shows young teenage drinkers are four times more likely

to develop alcohol dependency than a young adult over 21.

'We'll actually make an offer to them, open the centre just for them,

'that's how concerned we are as a project for that particular group.'

There's lots and lots of people - it means they're doing something dodgy.

There's people all over.

Just driving around,

there are groups of kids hanging about on the streets everywhere.

SHOUTING

-Who was it?

-Jordan and all that from Barnes.

That's a bonus.

Phil's spotted the group of young teenagers he's been looking for.

The girls are at the back.

-I don't know who's in-between.

-Jordan.

He's got a bag on his back...

Potentially drink in the bag.

HE TOOTS CAR HORN

Are you not talking, like?

I'll park the car up over there and I'll come back across.

-Where are you going?

-I'm just going to come and talk to you,

I'll park the car over there.

What's the matter? Eh?

Bethany, Courtney, Megan and Jordan are between 13 and 15 years old,

and Phil wants to check if any of them have been drinking.

We've been looking for you cos we're saying that we'll open...

-You've been looking for us?

-Yes.

-Out of everyone, us.

-Yeah.

What we're saying is that we'll open the youth club for you,

just you, on a Tuesday night, is that right? Just for you.

Nobody else. Just you.

Have you not had a drink? No?

Well, that's good if you haven't had a drink.

-Where have you been then?

-Hers.

-Have you?

-Mine.

-Yours as well?

Cos we live together.

-So, if I come down and meet you, will you meet us tomorrow?

-When?

-Where you going tomorrow?

-Barnes.

Cos I'll come and see you.

We're drinking tomorrow.

You're drinking tomorrow? Well, we'll still come and talk to you.

-All right.

-You can come.

-So, where are you having your session?

-Barnes.

-In the park?

-Right. So, where are you going in the park tomorrow?

-I dunno.

We'll see you in there then and we'll talk to you about

how we'll pick you up and get you there every week.

-We need to go.

-Away then.

-Right, bye.

-Well, I'll see you tomorrow night.

-Bye.

-See you then.

Phil's pleased that the kids have told him that they haven't

been drinking and that they're up for coming into the centre.

But, as he leaves, he gets a call alerting him

to another group of teens, this time young female drinkers.

We've got a team within the centre that are picking up intelligence

from Facebook. What they're telling us is that it's potentially

vulnerable females at Tunstall Hill drinking, so we'll go have a look,

we'll identify who is, who isn't, having a drink.

We'll try and work with those that aren't having a drink, and just

really have a casting eye on those if there is anyone under the influence,

just to make sure that they're safe.

We're going to meet the other team there for safety.

We'll meet them there now.

Yeah, we've definitely got young people

heading towards the Venerable Bede school.

Just phoning another team that's spotted a group heading that way.

So it looks like...

We'll meet you there. We'll be five minutes.

Tell them to meet us on the estate.

You can see this area

and the reason why young people head over to this area.

It's absolutely pitch black.

Completely dark. No street lights. No nothing.

We've seen groups of young people heading this way.

We'll just park here.

Kids will come to this area because of the darkness. It is very dark.

It's off the main streets. It's away from the estates.

The chances of the police coming to this area is remote.

Police will confiscate alcohol

and can arrest underage drinkers on the street,

so young people are finding more

and more places off the beaten track to remain undetected.

You can never predict what's going to happen.

Alcohol in adults is unpredictable,

so in young people it can be even more unpredictable.

SIREN BLARES

Sirens heading to Tunstall Hill now.

Let's go round. Let's go round properly. Shh.

Listen.

After half an hour of searching, Phil isn't giving up.

He wants to make sure the girls he can hear out in the dark are safe.

We can hear young people. We just...

We've been in the regular places where they've previously been,

but we just can't find them anywhere.

They know we're out.

They definitely know we're out, don't they?

It's really important that we do try and track down

this particular group of young people.

There is vulnerable girls amongst them, so we're really keen.

We've come this far tonight. It's 9:20.

We really do want to try and track them down,

and give them the advice that they need...

They definitely need to be out of this area,

especially as it starts getting later and later and later.

We'll have one look further down at the bottom.

We'll head towards the Lion.

If there's no-one there, we'll just head back.

After nearly an hour, Phil comes across a group

of 16 and 17-year-olds who look like they're drinking.

There's someone there.

-You all right?

-Aye.

-Just having a drink?

-Having a little shit, like.

HE LAUGHS

-Having a wildy in a tree!

-He's having a wildy!

-I can't believe that!

-I'm desperate, like.

-Nae bother.

They're not the group of girls he's looking for,

but Phil takes the chance to talk to them.

Are you all right? HE MUTTERS

-No, it's not the police. Youth workers.

-Oh, right.

-You all right?

-Yeah, I'm fine.

-Have you had a drink?

-Yeah.

-Yeah?

You can't come up town and not have a drink, man.

-What's the fire engine here for? We heard that.

-Cos we're...

-Been setting fires?

-Yeah, you've got to keep warm somehow.

Dear me.

One of the teenagers is very drunk, and becomes abusive.

Just come to see if you're all right.

Well, what's it got to do with you?

Well, I'm fucking just saying,

I don't give a fuck what you think, ya mugs.

- They don't think owt, man.

'It can be quite scary as a youth worker.

'Your mind's always thinking,

'"This could happen, that could happen, someone could get hurt."'

Phil moves in to calm the situation down.

We were somewhere else and we could hear loads of shouting.

We thought there was something the matter,

so we came to make sure you're safe and all right.

-MUTTERING

-Drinking Coke Zero.

LAUGHTER

It's not Coke Zero? It's Bacardi - I can smell it.

It's not Bacardi. It's Jack Daniels, man. Get it right!

LAUGHTER Right. I'm going to leave you anyway.

Aye, we'll catch you in a bit.

- I don't know why I'm still standing here.

Let's gan on a fucking session, man.

Despite the darkness,

they are still keen to find the group of girls who are out drinking.

Hmm?

-It's quiet.

-But you can hear...

-Aye, I know.

Just got no idea.

After an hour of searching, they head back to the centre.

One group of young females, where we were getting intelligence

from Facebook, that they were in a particular area.

When we got there we haven't managed to track them down,

so that's a bit sad, we haven't tracked them down.

The issues around young females,

the vulnerability issues around when they're potentially going

away from parks, on street corners and things, on the way home,

I think that's our biggest concern amongst all of the staff.

Educating them in the dangers of that is really,

really important for projects like ours.

Barnes Park is a popular underage drinking spot

that Youth Almighty focus on during the summer months.

LAUGHTER

You stash it the day before, get it the next day,

so it's nice and chilled off the weather.

Deborah works with Phil at the centre.

She's one of the longest serving members of the team

and she's a trained counsellor.

What about you, girls?

I think we'll talk to you, cos they're not being as serious.

The lads are a bit wild. So, from your perspective do you...

How old are you first of all?

You're 14?

When you go home from here, how do your parents react?

Do they know you're drinking?

-You either sleep out or sober up before you get home.

-Right.

I'm a bit of a chatterbox anyway.

So basically we're going to introduce ourselves and then just,

you know, you engage in a conversation about

what the weather's like, what have you been up to,

where have you been tonight?

And you tend to just build up a relationship like that.

Obviously once you've got some trust, then you can start

engaging in the smoking, the sexual health, the alcohol.

But if you went in there guns blazing at first, they'd be like,

"Who the devil is this?" And they'd walk away.

Can I ask you why you started to drink? What was the purpose of it?

-Why did you do it?

-I don't even drink a lot.

It's just peer pressure to fit in. That's all it is.

It's just peer pressure and if everybody else was saying,

"Oh, it's so uncool to drink," and stuff,

then I probably wouldn't do it, like.

If you came out with your friends, would you ever choose not to drink?

Yeah. Like, I do sometimes think, like,

"Oh, I'll just miss this week," and stuff like... It's...

It's just all about fitting in if you sum it all up. It's like...

There's always that one person in the group that takes it

the extra mile and, like, they go over the top,

and that's when you get told off by people.

Whereas, like, if you're sitting quietly somewhere and having drinks

with your friends and stuff, then you're all right, I suppose.

-Yeah.

-It's just a stage thing that you go through, to be honest.

We're not even like the biggest crowd.

Like, we do nothing compared to, like, some people.

Some people get drunk every other day,

and some people have to be put in hospital every weekend

to get their stomach pumped and stuff. That's just ridiculous.

Debs leaves Abigail with information about her local youth centre

and continues with her rounds.

What we'll do is we'll cover this area, across the bridge,

-check if there's anybody up the top end.

-Right.

And then just have a bit of a look about and see who else is out.

Have a wander.

As they continue further into the park, they see two very young boys.

One of them looks like he's passed out.

So how long you been out and about?

-Have you?

-Aye.

Can I smell alcohol, mate?

Yeah?

Can I smell alcohol?

I think I can, like.

Have you had a bit to drink or not?

Do you mix with any of them that's drinking or not?

Nah.

No?

You're sure you haven't been drinking?

You're a bit wobbly there, mate.

I think you're just having me on, aren't you?

No?

Debs is trying as quickly as she can to work out if this is an emergency.

The boy seems out of it, and he's only giving one word answers.

Anything else you've been doing you shouldn't have been or not?

You're absolutely soaking, aren't you?

You know at school, do you get discussed much about alcohol

and safe limits and...?

Yeah.

And it's exactly right, you know, and it's important that you have

people to talk to about it if people are getting you into drinking.

I must admit, mate, I am a bit worried about you.

Debs makes sure the boy is safe

and help is on its way before she leaves.

Thank you very much for that, lads.

So your brother will come up, get you some change of clothes

and get you sorted, eh?

Cos he's looking after you and he doesn't want you to get into bother.

All right? So watch what you are doing.

See you later.

If I had came across him and he did not engage in any way,

shape or form, like he didn't, I would've had an ambulance round.

-Uh-huh.

-That's the first time I've came across a 12-year-old drinking.

If he was drinking, you know.

I think between both of us we're thinking he possibly has had...

Yeah, probably.

..but whether he was, like, lying, over-exaggerating it

and then thought, "Oh, if I just stop down here they'll not..."

-Yeah, they're not going to...

-They'll just leave us be.

It worries us massively, you know.

I'm a mam, at the end of the day, as well as being a youth worker.

I wouldn't like it to be my 12-year-old.

Underage drinkers are starting in their pre-teens.

A study has shown that 40% of 13-year-olds who have drunk alcohol

had experienced negative consequences,

including smoking, taking drugs and unprotected sex.

What might start out as just harmless fun,

can have a massive impact on the life of a young child.

It's Saturday afternoon and the group of youngsters from Barnes

that Phil is trying to get off the streets and into the centre

are all heading out to a local park.

Megan, Courtney, Niall and Jordan are all between 13 an 15.

They're best mates and spend all their free time together.

Kids drinking and teenagers,

is it something that does actually happen, or...?

-Yeah.

-Yeah, a lot.

-A lot.

-Too much!

How young are some of them that are drinking?

-Like 12, 13.

-Year sevens.

-Year sevens, to like...

-Just going into secondary school.

And then they go drinking and stuff like that.

-What is there here for teenagers, people your age, to do?

-Nothing.

Nothing. That's why people drink.

I think that is why people drink, to be honest with you.

Cos there's nothing to do, and like, there's no-where open and that.

Most youth clubs are, like, closed.

They closed all the youth clubs in Newcastle, didn't they?

13-year-old Niall has recently stopped drinking.

I don't drink, like, but my mates do.

-Why don't you drink?

-Cos me mam...

I promised me mam that I wouldn't drink any more.

So, I haven't drank for, like, three weeks.

Since me mam told us off.

I was out one night in the street drinking and that,

and I was riding me bike home

and I fell off and I had to go to hospital overnight and that.

That's it really.

And, like, just...not allowed to drink any more.

Not that I was allowed,

just that I'm not going to drink any more cos I didn't really like it.

But these drink, and that.

They're not big drinkers, but they...they drink socially,

if you know what I mean. Like, out and about and drinking all the time.

Like, not all the time, like weekends and that.

And that's it, really.

What's the plan tonight, do you think?

I suppose messing about, walking about up Barnes and that.

Barnes Park.

We're on the move!

Bored and with nothing to do, they wander off to the park.

For a young person growing up in the region,

there are a lack of employment opportunities.

One in four are currently out of work, and the Northeast

continues to be one of the most deprived areas in England.

In the face of these challenging circumstances,

the team at Youth Almighty aim to get teenagers into the centre

and focused on their futures.

But before they can even start working with the teams,

they have to set the ground rules.

No weapons and you can't come in drunk.

Go on, stop. No. Well over.

Well over the drink-drive limit.

We do random searching of young people,

we check to make sure they don't come into the site

with weapons or drink or drugs,

so that we can always say that this is a place of safety.

The majority of kids who attend the youth centre

don't drink and stick to the rules.

But tonight Phil's heard that a couple of 14-year-old girls

in the centre have been drinking.

Come here.

-Have you had a drink?

-No.

-So you don't mind getting breathalysed?

-No.

-Eh?

-No.

-Have you been drinking?

-No.

-Right, are you ready?

Go on, keep going.

BEEPING Yeah.

Twice over the drink-drive limit.

Here's a present.

Don't come back.

-That girl needs to leave.

-Hmm?

That girl needs to leave.

No. See you later.

Mm-hmm.

You're going to see?

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Disappointed, but proud of the young people that they alerted us

before the staff did, to be fair, so, I'm proud of the kids,

they know what's acceptable, they know what's not.

Phil keeps a tally on teenagers who come into the centre drunk.

Yeah, we're just putting a marker on the system, so when they do come in

it flashes up and alerts the staff that they're not allowed back in

until at least I've had a discussion with them.

One of the 14-year-old girls who's been excluded from the centre

calls a youth worker to ask if she can come back in.

She's told that she'll have to attend a six-week

alcohol awareness course.

The girl arrives for a one-to-one with youth worker Stevie.

She wants to remain anonymous.

After the session, Stevie catches up with Phil.

-I just want to get some feedback on how it went.

-It was very positive.

She could've went and had a drink with her friends,

but she chose to come here.

What about the night she did come? What's her reason around that?

She was saying it was just peer pressure. All her friends are bored,

so they were just bored and they ended up having a drink,

but her mam does go in the shop for her, as well,

so it's quite easy for her to get alcohol.

For me, I don't think there's any value in us

spending a lot of time if her mam's going to continue to buy alcohol

-and think that's acceptable for her.

-It's easy access, isn't it?

-Mm-hmm.

Her mam definitely needs to understand some of the boundaries.

Us doing the work around that, and then her mam going out

and buying it at the weekend just isn't the answer.

So will you concentrate on that with her and try and get us some consent

-to speak to her mam?

-Right.

-And just try and understand what that's about.

-Definitely.

Cheers, Stevie.

It's good news that the girl has signed up to the alcohol awareness

course, but now Phil has to persuade her mum to stop buying her alcohol.

There is an issue in some parents buying alcohol for young people.

It's a battle, anyway, engaging with young people and educating them

around the effects of alcohol that it can have on their life.

For parents to be supporting and accepting that

that's what their young people are going to do...

Very disappointing from my point of view.

A recent nation-wide survey found that teenagers mostly got alcohol

from their parents and relatives.

The research also found that nearly two thirds of 11 to 15-year-olds

who drank, usually did so at home.

The social differences now of parents and families drinking at home,

young people do see that and, unfortunately,

some young people do see that as being normal.

LOUD MUSIC PLAYS

In South Shields, 18-year-old Laura often has her friends over

to her mum's house on the weekends.

Laura's mum, Meala, has allowed her kids to drink in her home

since they were 15.

She feels it's the safest option.

-THEY CHANT:

-Meala! Meala! Meala!

I don't want my kids standing on street corners making a nuisance

of themselves to other people.

I'd rather them here, in me own home,

making a nuisance in their own home when I'm here, controlling them.

From them being 14, 15, 16, 17,

we have all their friends here.

I'd rather them be here. I don't like them out on the streets.

It's too dangerous for them when they do get little bit over the top.

I know where they are.

ALL SHOUTING

Laura's friend, 17-year-old Lauren, is staying over tonight.

She started drinking at 11.

I need a drink! Toss that drink up!

The more you tell them not to do something, the more they'll do it.

So I've never ever told my daughter, "Don't go out drinking."

I'd rather she sit in the house and have a drink with me,

and I know that way I can control how much she's drinking.

If she gets drunk, if she gets a bit tiddly,

she knows where to go - to her bed. And I know when to put her there.

As the party continues,

some of the teenagers explain why they drink so much.

18-year-old Alex started drinking when he was 15

because he was being bullied.

When I started drinking more often, me mam was going,

"Why are you drinking?"

I go, "Cos, mam, like, I'm sick of getting bullied.

"That's why I'm drinking."

And she went, "I am sorry that you are getting bullied,

"it's just drinking doesn't solve the problem," and all that.

I was going, "Well, mam, it does to me, cos it makes me feel cool."

When I have a drink the night before, I am still a bit drunk

when I wake up, cos I have drank that much.

Which is actually bad.

And I know for a fact that is.

I just need to stop. I just don't know how.

Like, the way I'm talking now, like, I need help.

Alex isn't the only young person using alcohol

to deal with the stress and upset.

Lauren's come straight to the party from her grandfather's funeral.

She thinks drinking heavily will help her to cope.

Well, I started off at the pub today after my grandad's funeral.

I thought, "Oh, well, a drink will help,"

so had about six or seven pints there with me family,

and I've had a three-litre bottle.

But I've finished my three-litre now,

but I'll just go in and I'll pinch everyone else's.

Without them knowing.

It's been a horrible day, but a good day in a way.

Like, I don't like feeling upset, cos I'm, like, a strong person,

and I'm the strong one out me friends.

I'm so used to telling people, like, "Chin up,"

that I build a brick wall for meself to get hurt

or any, like, emotions coming out.

So, when I have a drink, it just seems to make that wall harder,

so I don't get affected by anything.

Or it can crash it straight down to where I've had too much

and I'll just let everything out, or I'd lose me temper.

But I think that's why most people these days, like, drink loads.

Try and get rid of their young problems.

Cos most people in the North these days have always got a problem now.

Cos I think, like, most young 'uns these days just drink to be happy.

Meala says that she wants to keep Laura and her friends safe,

but binge-drinking carries its own risks.

A report last year showed that the Northeast had the highest rates

of adults exceeding the recommended daily drinking limits.

Worryingly, teenagers seem to be copying adult drinking habits.

An underage drinker in the Northeast is, on average,

consuming 15.2 units a week.

That's more than anywhere else in the country.

-All right, everyone just neck it!

-Everyone go, in a circle.

Glen's vodka.

In a disguised bottle, so the coppers canna pull us!

THEY LAUGH

Police! Police!

People just fucking have a laugh, like.

Overlooking the River Tyne

is yet another notorious underage drinking hangout.

It's August bank holiday,

and 16-year-old Robyn is out drinking with friends.

We were just bored and had nothing to do, hardly any money,

so we just thought we might as well go out and see if anyone's out.

I hate staying in, cos it gets us all agitated and - I don't know,

sometimes I like it, but most of the time I like going out,

getting ready and going out straight away.

-You've been drinking?

-Yeah.

But not much, like. So...didn't really enjoy that.

But it's all I had enough for, I mean...

I just scavenged round the house for, like, three quid, and you're sorted.

So, what is it you're drinking?

It's Bella. It's, like, 7.5% and it's 1.5 litres.

It's not the best thing to drink, like,

it's actually not even that nice at all.

But it's all right, though.

Eurgh.

But I'll still drink it, though. It's the cheapest thing to get.

Robyn has been drinking with her mates for the last three years.

I was 13, and I just started drinking.

We went to someone's house and we were drinking,

and, like, we were drinking far too much, and I clapped out.

I couldn't even remember hardly anything.

I got me stomach pumped, and that.

I woke up absolutely ill, I thought I was dying.

Definitely drinking for the craic the night.

-GIRLS SING:

-# ..All day.

# That girl like something off a poster

# That girl is a dime, they say... #

-IYAZ:

-# That girl is the gun to my holster

# She's running through my mind all day-ay

# Shawty's like a melody in my head

# That I can't keep out

# Got me singin' like

# Na na na na everyday... #

We might as well just get a bottle of Bella

and just find people and go out.

There's just nothing at all - like, what's there to do?

-Do you like the area?

-It's not the best.

I wanted to move away down to Lincoln with me dad.

Cos, like, he lives there.

Cos I wanted to get away from here for a bit,

but when it come to it I just couldn't be bothered to do it.

Mam and him split up when I was six, he moved away.

I used to be dead close to him, I was close to him for years.

He's still there for us if I need money, he'll always give us it.

Pays for me contract and that, it's sound, really.

I just want to go and get pissed with them, really.

And see if it's good or not.

MUSIC: "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper

-Oh, my God, this is a fucking...

-What is it?

Jam, this is my jam! This is my jam!

Down it, down it, down it!

ALL: # ...when you gonna live your life right?

# Oh Daddy dear, you know you're still number one

# But girls they want to have fun

# Oh, girls just want to have fun. #

I've necked all me drink, innit?

Pissed out me head!

After drinking for three hours, Robyn and her mates head down

to the local shopping precinct.

It's where they always end their night.

It's like a story.

I mean, you start somewhere and it always, no matter what, ends here.

Every single time.

Dunno how, everyone just thinks it's the place to be, really. Definitely.

INAUDIBLE

Even though it's only a tiny bit, still gets you hammered!

Hammered!

Comin' in high, comin' in low...!

I don't want to go in, but I know everyone will be going in soon,

I know I've got to be in soon.

The next day, Robyn is tired and hungover.

Like, usually when I wake up, I'm like, "Why did I do it for?

"Was it worth feeling, like, rough as I do?"

Sometimes I wake up ill and I feel like

I could...I feel like I'm going to spew me full body up.

Like, all me insides. It's horrible.

When you're head's all boxing, it's like,

you're thinking about loads of stuff.

I think it's like, you just get pissed to forget about everything.

It makes you happier,

and I think that's why people take it a bit too far sometimes.

If you're on a downer, get a bottle of Bella down your neck,

and then that's it, you forget about everything.

Then you wake up and feel, "Oh, God," and then it's all back in your head.

Then you do it again.

Then you wake up again, and you just keep on doing it and doing it

and doing it, and then you forget about it soon. Sooner or later.

Like, school's stressing me out, all the time.

I'm surprised I haven't turned alcoholic yet.

I just...blag me head. I don't go any more, but...

Just thinking about what to do next.

Robyn's 23-year-old half sister Stephanie

is worried about Robyn's drinking.

She's had to live with the consequences of underage drinking,

and doesn't want Robyn going the same way.

When I was younger, I did go out and drink.

Like, every weekend I went out and drank from, like, 14, I think.

But I didn't drink loads -

like, I used to drink two litres of wine...

Not proper wine, cheap wine.

Like, Bella, I used to drink, and I did used to get drunk,

and I noticed sometimes I'd get into situations

and in the morning I'd regret everything I'd done.

I'd think, "What have I done?"

And you had to feel, like - you had to, like, get a boyfriend

and do stuff, you felt real pressure to do stuff

when you were younger, otherwise you were known as, like...

You weren't fitting in with everyone else.

And no-one wanted to, like, hang around with you.

So, I think I ended up having sex at a really young age,

through drinking, definitely.

I don't think I would've done that if I didn't drink.

Like, and I regret that now, really badly.

Like, I was pregnant at 15 and I had to have an abortion because...

Obviously I was really - I was still in school, and I was really young.

It upset us really badly, but I think it was the best thing,

cos I had me daughter at 17, and that was really hard,

like at that age, so I had to grow up, obviously,

really fast to look after a baby,

but if I'd had one when I was 15, I don't think I could've coped.

I really don't.

Definitely not. And I think that's through drinking -

it was definitely all through drinking.

At 19, Stephanie had to deal with the loss of her boyfriend,

who drank heavily from a young age.

It's an incident that still upsets her today.

I was with me partner.

He used to drink quite a lot when I was younger.

I got with him when I was 15, and he did drink, really, every day.

And it was just wine, you know, cheap wine.

And he ended up drinking one night...

He drank a litre of vodka, he drank a two-litre of wine,

and then he ended up taking tablets, which were blues.

And...subbies, I think they're called, Subutex...

I'm not sure what they were.

And I went down to his flat that day and found him dead on his bed.

He drank from a really young age, really, really young.

And he just couldn't stop.

Like, I used to tell him all the time, "Tony, you need to stop,"

but he didn't ever listen, he just kept drinking and drinking

and - look what happened to him.

And I don't think Robyn realises.

I've told her before, that's what happened to him,

but I just didn't think it's happen to her.

But it can happen to anyone.

GIRL SINGS

Every 18 hours,

someone in the region dies from an alcohol-related illness.

And it's increasing among the young.

In England, alcohol-related deaths amongst 15-34-year-olds

rose by 75% between 1991 and 2011.

The devastating effect of alcohol abuse is what drives youth workers

to go out on the streets to try and stop underage drinking.

Back in Sunderland, Phil has been trying to get the young group

from the Barnes area into the centre,

and he believes that sometimes it's about making a deal

with the teens to get them to stop drinking.

When you first meet a group, as long as they haven't had a drink,

you can sit down with them, and you do planning,

so we'll actually plan what we're doing over the next six

to eight weeks, for example, with them.

And within that six to eight weeks, you have some fun things,

so whether or not it's a trip to Lightwater Valley,

Flamingo Land, theme parks, things like that,

you would put those into the plan and young people

have got to understand that they've got to be working

towards that all of the time.

It's Saturday evening and he's heading out to see

if he can persuade the group to come into the centre.

But, as he arrives, Phil spots one of the boys

with a couple of cans and a bottle.

-What is it?

-It's beer.

I don't think it's legit. I think you've been stitched up.

I wouldn't be drinking that. Someone... Pour that one out.

Cos look at that. Look at that. Someone has matted up, man.

They have, man!

Despite Phil's efforts, the boys ignore him

and walk off with the drink.

Phil suspects they still have more booze on them.

I'm disappointed with the lads.

We'll have a think about it, but to be fair,

we've been working towards taking them to Lightwater Valley.

If he's going to continue to repeat to continue drinking,

obviously, we're working towards them not drinking,

I'm pretty disappointed with them.

Phil's had a difficult night, but the task of tackling underage

drinking in the Northeast has never been easy.

In his seven years of youth work,

Phil has dealt with some hugely difficult cases, but it's

never stopped him from trying to turn young people's lives around.

We only need a certain amount of mats to go up to the wall.

When Scott was 16, he was drinking 12 cans of beer a day.

The first time I drank, I was about 14 years old.

I used to go to the shop, buy 12 cans, have them,

and then that was me done for the night.

The reason why I started drinking as a young kid,

was because obviously, friends, peer pressure,

felt a little bit left out, all of them were drinking,

it looked like they were having a good time, so I joined in with them.

Usually, I would just either stop in the house I would be out

with me friends drinking on the streets and stuff like that.

Scott used to shake when he hadn't had a drink.

That was...that was a bit of an eye-opener,

to see someone at that age that would shake.

-Would you have classed him as an alcoholic?

-Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, I would, yeah. Mm-hm.

When you've got alcohol dependency, even in an adult,

it's hard to see light at the other side of the tunnel.

In a young person, it's a lot more difficult.

I got to the point where I was pretty much drinking every night

by myself, so I used to just sit in the house,

get some cans in and just drink.

Alcohol is like a drug, isn't it? It's addictive.

The drinks industry know what they're doing.

It's made so you like it, so you become dependent on it,

that's how they make big bucks. That's what it's about.

It doesn't surprise us at all, that,

that some young people do become dependent.

Phil gave Scott the support he needed to stop drinking.

Sometimes they do need to hit rock bottom to get a shock,

to realise that their life can't go on like that,

but sometimes, people don't have to hit rock bottom,

they just really have to find someone that they can trust,

someone to confide in, someone they can talk to.

And Scott's example - give him something.

Give him something he was good at, give him some responsibility.

Set some boundaries and ground rules,

that's exactly how we got through it with Scott.

Yeah, it's the best thing I've really done, started to free run...

It has changed my life completely.

Me weekend routine is to come here, train with these,

obviously we do get some kids coming in asking us to learn them stuff,

so we help them out, we learn them, show them how to do it,

talk them through it, to do it safely, without injuring themselves.

It's the one thing I love to do, really.

Four years I've done it for and I plan on carrying on doing it.

Never quitting it.

If it wasn't for Phil helping us get this far,

I think I would probably still be drinking now.

Now it's all about free running, pushed the drink out of it,

try and avoid that.

APPLAUSE

I don't think kids are aware of what

they can actually do to affect their life.

I think the way they see it is just a bit of fun on the weekend,

but, it can drag them further into it than that.

They can leave themselves with no job,

have no future and just living on the drink.

Scott is not the only teenager who Phil has met

drinking as heavily as he was.

Recently, he had a 16-year-old girl at the centre

who was drinking excessively.

When we sat down with her and totted up the amount that she drank,

it was, it was shocking, and it shocked her.

It actually shocked her enough into not doing it again.

She was consuming 100 units of alcohol in a week.

Absolutely astounding. I've never seen anything like that before.

Never seen anything like that since. I hope I never, ever have to.

It makes you all the more determined

when you do find people drinking very low levels of drinking.

You really have to nip it in the bud.

Although this was an extreme case,

many underage drinkers can soon build up a tolerance.

Some kids are starting so young that they can become

dependent before they are legally allowed to drink.

At last count, there were 320 16-year-olds

or younger in treatment for alcohol dependency in the Northeast.

In South Shields, 17-year-old Lauren has been drinking for six years.

Her tolerance levels have increased as she's got older

and she has to drink more to feel the effects.

She's round at her friend Laura's house for some drinking games.

-Ring of fire or ring of death?

-Ring of death! Ring of death!

-Who's playing?

-Me!

I started drinking at 11 years old

to show off in front of my friends, to try and fit in.

-I got eight out of that.

-Two!

SHE BURPS

Give us a second.

You're an arsehole!

-I've just finished drinking.

-Are you taking the piss?!

We don't stop drinking until we're, like, too drunk to drink, really.

We drink until, if we fall over, then I think that's enough.

Or they put me to bed, and I still walk home!

More than seven in ten people in the region

associate alcohol consumption with family breakdown.

Many young people seem to be

dealing with family difficulties by drinking.

Hey!

16-year-old Robyn's been drinking almost every weekend

over the summer. She's round at her half-sister Stephanie's house.

Stephanie thinks that Robyn's drinking is to do with her

missing her dad since the break-up of her parents' relationship

and with him moving to Lincoln.

I think I'm just used to it. It's been ten years now.

Do you wish he was here, though? I do. I wish he was here.

It's been ten years. I don't see what difference it makes.

-It's just normal.

-I think he should come and see you more.

I think it would be good if he did come down a bit more often.

I know. I really think she misses him.

'I don't think, I think she just wants her dad back.

'When he does come down,'

he usually books a hotel, and she loves it.

We love going to stay with him and stuff,

and she doesn't bother about drinking or nothing then.

She's absolutely fine.

I think she might drink to get away from that, like,

she might feel upset and she might feel happier when she has a drink.

I think she's got a lot more hidden. She's not an open person.

She doesn't like sharing with other people.

If I ever did have a kid, I'd want the dad to be around,

because obviously I would need help,

and I'd get tired looking after a baby, wouldn't I? Yeah. Aw!

Can I have a love?

Stephanie knows firsthand how drinking can leave girls

vulnerable to dangerous situations, and she's been trying to get

Robyn to understand how risky her behaviour can be.

You know when you get really drunk and you fall asleep places and

people leave you, and you're left by yourself in the middle of a field?

What would you do if someone came along and...

Knock them out and then run home and go to bed.

You wouldn't be able to, though, you don't think about it properly.

-Has anything happened? No.

-But it could, though.

-But it hasn't.

-I'll let you know when it does.

-I used to be your age,

exactly the same when I was younger,

-so I'm trying to tell you to stick in and not drink.

-And not drink?

Yeah, you'll get in them states.

It was one time I got in them states because I was drinking absinthe.

When was the last time I drank?

-Last weekend.

-Right, and I didn't get in one of them states.

I was fine. I got home OK. I'm here now, aren't I?

Nothing happened. Thank you.

No, I'm being serious.

I just think that you shouldn't drink as much as what you do

when you're out. You don't even know that you're drunk.

You ring me up, going, "I'm really sober." And you're really drunk.

-Every teenager loves drinking, OK?

-But why? What do you get out of it?

A howl. A complete scream out of it. That's what. A howl.

Being so young, it's hard sometimes for teenagers to realise

that regular drinking can affect their health.

Starting younger and drinking more, the damage can be done early on.

The Northeast is currently witnessing a 300% increase

in alcohol-related liver disease in 30 to 34-year-olds.

20 years ago, the disease would typically be found

in 50 or 60-year-olds.

The challenge for youth workers is convincing young teenagers

to think about the long-term effects of alcohol.

It's nearly two weeks since the drinking incident outside Barnes Park,

but Phil's got some good news.

The group have agreed to come up to the centre.

Somebody's left the door open.

-Go on, shut the door.

-I have.

-You haven't!

-I slammed it!

So, I've got a deal for you.

Tomorrow, obviously, it's the launch date of Houghton Feast,

so that's when they do the parade and the roasting of the ox,

fireworks, the fair.

Then there's a deal, though.

The deal is you come here on the Saturday night, we'll pick you up,

you come here and the lads help us with finishing

that gym and setting it up, right?

So we'll do something fun tomorrow night, and then on Saturday,

you can help finish off that gym.

Just for us. So are you happy with that? Stop calling us Uncle Phil.

It's real progress for Phil.

It feels like the group are starting to engage with him.

What time shall I pick you up? Where at?

The following night, they all head to Houghton Feast.

Rewarding the group and keeping them off the streets is working.

My belief for this particular group is they deserve that,

they've made the effort, they've come, they stuck with us.

I've got commitment that they'll come on Saturday night

and that again keeps them off the street on that Friday and Saturday night.

The worst possible time where peer pressure could potentially

lead them to do things that we wouldn't want them to do.

-Are you frightened?

-No, I love rides, me.

I'm too old to do this!

Growing up, Phil wasn't all that different

from the kids he's helping today.

And he knows the value of putting faith in young people.

I was naughty, and I was through school,

I think I got excluded a few times from school,

different things that I did.

'There was no-one on the side of me as a young person at that stage.

'My parents did, my parents stuck by us,

but once you've done that once, that was it.'

Whenever there was something the matter,

the finger was always pointed at you.

'That's why I do it. It's young people that need

'that extra little step and that extra little help.'

One question for you, and answer us honestly -

is this better than being in Barnes Park?

-ALL: Yeah.

-There you go. Result.

Can you see what we've been trying to do with yous?

By doing things, having a laugh, doing things exciting,

showing that there is an alternative on a Friday and Saturday night

cos there is, isn't there? We can do all sorts of things.

For Phil, keeping the group off the street for one night

is a step in the right direction.

But making sure they come back night after night

is going to be a big challenge.

-ALL: Thank you!

-You're welcome. I'm glad you've enjoyed it.

Over at Stephanie's, Robyn's having a night in.

Even though it's Friday,

she's not going out drinking with all her friends.

She seems surprised that she's actually enjoying her night in.

-Have you farted?

-No, I just burped there.

Do you miss it, drinking?

-Not really, no.

-Not bothered?

-No.

If I wanted to really do it, I could.

Do you know what I mean? I just have to find things to do.

I'd rather be sat in with you having a howl

and being warm and comfy.

And there's a toilet.

THEY LAUGH

Go and put the kettle on. We'll sit here reading the Gazette.

We'll have a game of bingo.

Back at the centre,

Phil and his team are checking September's attendance figures.

768. 768 different young people have been in here.

It's over three times the numbers they had in during July.

It's clear how important the facility is for local teenagers.

Absolutely brilliant. It's a shame we couldn't do that

much more across the city of Sunderland. We shall see.

We shall see.

The Barnes group are sticking to the bargain

and are in the centre helping Phil with the gym.

As part of the renovations of the centre,

we always involve the young people in it. It helps them to believe

that this is theirs, as well, which it naturally is,

it's their environment. If you help them to do all the things,

take part in the renovations, the activities,

they become more accustomed to respecting the place.

All the hard work paid off. At least you can say it's yours.

Knock the light out.

Once a young person is tarred with a brush,

sometimes it sticks with them, and it's about someone standing up

and defending them young people as well, to say,

"Let's put things into perspective,

"let's see what they really have done,"

and fight their corner if they need someone to fight their corner.

-Are you coming tomorrow?

-Aye.

-What time?

I don't know, whatever time I want.

Let's say 6:30. Come up a bit earlier.

I've done my part of the job.

Did you? You did a good job as well.

Result!

I've been working with them closely for about six weeks now.

I think that says it all. You know you've done something right.

I've never gotten something like that before.

"Thank you so much."

They've all signed it.

I'm immensely proud that

they think we've made a difference to their lives.

I can keep saying, "I think I have," and I have,

but when you get something like that, you know you have.

# I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart

# I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart

# Love, we need it now

# Let's hope for some

# Cos we're bleeding out

# I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart

# I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart. #