Plans to ban on-street drinking in Biddulph, Cheadle and Leek town centres are under consideration, and the public have now been given the chance to have their say.

Biddulph Nub News reported previously how Staffordshire Moorlands District Council has published draft Public Space Protections Orders preventing the consumption of alcohol on-street and is asking people for their views on the proposals.

Cabinet Member for Communities, Councillor Mike Bowen, said: "On-street drinking can have a number of undesirable consequences including anti-social behaviour, possibly leading to criminal activity, and an increase in bottles and cans discarded as litter.

"We want people to feel safe in our town centres and for them to be clean, well-cared for spaces free of litter and we believe restricting the drinking of alcohol on the street is one good way of helping to ensure that.

"That's why we are looking at introducing PSPOs to cover these shared, public places and I hope people will support what we are seeking to achieve."

You can view the draft orders on the Council's website here.

Comments on the proposals should be sent to [email protected] or in writing to Mark Hitchen, Moorlands House, Stockwell Street, Leek, ST13 6HQ by 5pm on Friday 26 March.

The order prohibits consuming alcohol or carrying an unsealed container of alcohol in any of the three town centres, and has been approved in an effort to combat anti-social behaviour in the towns.

A Public Spaces Protection Order was already implemented in Biddulph in 2017, which empowered a constable or authorised person to require a person to stop drinking alcohol or confiscate their alcohol, but this order expired in November 2020.

The order will last for a maximum of three years.

The consumption of alcohol will still be permitted on licensed premises and clubs within the town centre, and areas within their curtilage.