SHAAP and SARN (Scottish Alcohol Research Network) host the free lunchtime ‘Alcohol Occasional’ programme which showcases new and innovative research on alcohol use. The seminars are held at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

We are now seeking proposals to deliver seminar presentations in the first half of 2020, with a broad focus on Alcohol through the Life Course. We would welcome talks on: foetal health; early years and childhood; the transition to adulthood; early adulthood and midlife; and older years. We are interested to hear from researchers from any discipline who wish to share their findings, and particularly welcome presentations from new and early career researchers. The dates are: 23rd January, 20th February, 26th March, 7th May and 11th June 2020 (all Thursdays).

If you are interested in presenting your research, please contact Felicity Garvie at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.   with a short proposal (max. 300 words) and an indication of your availability. Closing date for submissions: Friday 10th January 2020.

On October 25, 2019 SHAAP released their updated publication 'Alcohol and Cancer: A Guide for Health Professionals'. The new guide has been welcomed by Scotland's Chief Medical Officer, Dr Catherine Calderwood:

"This is a fantastic resource for all health colleagues, and I encourage everyone to use it in conversations with their patients. As the Scottish Government's Alcohol Framework recognises, the link between alcohol and cancer is not sufficiently well known. Initiatives to raise awareness about cancer and alcohol are really important for our population health, and I'm delighted to support this work from SHAAP."

Read the brochure here

Read NHS Health Scotland's 2019 reports assessing different impacts of Minimum Unit Pricing for alcohol since it was introduced in Scotland last year:

- on Alcohol Sales: http://www.healthscotland.scot/media/2587/mesas-monitoring-report-2019.pdf

- on Compliance within retail sector: http://www.healthscotland.scot/publications/minimum-unit-pricing-evaluation-compliance-study

- on impacts on the alcohol industry: Read the report by Frontier Economics

SHAAP and SARN (Scottish Alcohol Research Network) held a very successful extra 'Alcohol Occasional' event on July 9th at RCP Edinburgh, featuring Dutch investigative journalist Olivier van Beemen who introduced his latest book: 'Heineken in Africa: a multinational unleashed'.

Watch an interview with the author.

Read the report

SHAAP is delighted to announce it has today become proud sponsor of the Scottish Women's Football National Performance League and very happy to be associated with positive health messages embraced by Scotland's female footballers. Read the press release

Read our brief report of the event held at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, organised by SHAAP and addressed by Monica Lennon MSP, which brought together alcohol misuse survivors, people in recovery and organisations supporting them in their journey. The summary outlines key priorities identified by the workshops held.

Download

Read about Visibility and Voice within the Addiction Recovery Advocacy Movement and an evaluation of the 'Drink Wise, Age Well' interventions.

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Read SHAAP/Eurocare's new review of international sporting bodies' alcohol marketing policies in relation to young people. The evidence shows that increased exposure to alcohol advertising leads to increased consumption among youth; sporting organisations must take more responsibilitity for preventing alcohol harms and remove alcohol marketing from sporting events.

Find the reports of all the 'Occasionals' lectures that SHAAP/SARN have run from 2013 - 2018 in our newly published booklet.

On 26th October at RCPE, SHAAP will launch its new report, ‘Dying for a drink’, commissioned by the Scottish Government, that discusses alcohol deaths in Scotland and draws on interviews with those affected to highlight the personal tragedies that this continues to cause. The new report also makes recommendations for actions to reduce this in future.

SHAAP’s new report also calls for more ‘professional optimism’, to recognise that people can recover from alcohol problems and to support that process.