A spatial examination of liquor licence density and the level of disadvantage of schools in Ireland

Background

Alcohol is deeply embedded in all aspects of our lives and in such an alcogenic environment, it is unsurprising that alcohol use among adolescents is widespread in Ireland. In acknowledgement of our high per capita alcohol use and related harms, the objectives of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act, 2018 include reducing alcohol use at a population level and delaying or preventing alcohol initiation among children. 

The law prohibits alcohol advertising within close proximity of schools in recognition that alcohol advertising and availability normalises alcohol. However, draft legislation, the Sale of Alcohol Bill, 2022, proposes to increase the number of premises permitted to sell alcohol. Considering that adolescents in Ireland are among the highest globally for levels of binge drinking and considering the inequalities driven by the alcohol harm paradox, this study sought to determine the density and proximity of liquor licences in relation to schools in Ireland and to examine whether this differs depending on the level of disadvantage of the school.

Methods

The addresses of all schools and licenced premises in Ireland were geocoded using Geographic Information System (GIS) software (ArcGIS Pro v3.1.2) to examine the density of liquor licences surrounding schools. Comparisons were made between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged schools; disadvantaged school classifications are ‘disadvantaged Urban 1’ (the most disadvantaged), ‘disadvantaged Urban 2’, ‘disadvantaged rural’.

Results

The mean number of licensed premises within 300 meters of all Irish schools was 2.01 (SD=4.8, median=0, IQR=0–2); for non-disadvantaged schools it was 1.75 (SD=4.43, median=0, IQR=0–2) and for disadvantaged schools, it was 2.61 (SD=5.58, median=1, IQR=0–2). A Mann-Whitney U test indicated that disadvantaged schools had significantly higher numbers of licensed premises within their vicinity than non-disadvantaged schools, z=-6.696(1201) (2757), p<.001.

When examining primary schools, those classified as the most disadvantaged had the greatest density of liquor licenses within 300 meters (7.7). A Kruskal-Wallis test indicated that there was a significant difference in the density of liquor licenses across categories of disadvantage of primary schools, χ2 ([df=3],N=3231)=185.224, p<.001. Non-parametric analysis (Mann-Whitney U) found that there was no significant difference in density between disadvantaged versus non-disadvantaged secondary schools, z=-0.378 (235)(492), p=.705.

Conclusions

This study found a high density of licenced premises within close vicinity of schools in Ireland. Of concern is that the most disadvantaged primary schools had a significantly higher density of licenced premises. These findings emphasise the importance of addressing societal inequalities and the need for greater regulation of licenced premises, particularly around schools and in areas of greater deprivation, in light of potential forthcoming legislation to increase alcohol availability.