The Gillard Government is very serious in ensuring that they are taking a stand against youth binge drinking.

In line with this campaign, the government announced that they will be giving AU$10 million in order to fund 26 community level projects across Australia. Each project will receive funds of an estimated amount of AU$500,000 each in the third round of grants under the Community Level Initiative. This is part of the Labor Government's National Binge Drinking Strategy which aims to fight against combat risky drinking. Mark Butler, Minister for Mental Health and Ageing and Amanda Rishworth, Federal MP for Kingston teamed up with youth workers during the Re-Engage Youth Services in Christies Beach, South Australia in order to announce the recipients of the said funding.

"Fighting risky drinking, particularly among young people, remains a priority for the Government," Mr Butler said.

"With around one in six young people aged 14 or older putting themselves at risk of alcohol-related injury from a single drinking occasion at least once a week, it is obvious that we must find new ways of reducing such harmful behaviour.

"Binge drinking is a community-wide problem and the solution lies in community-supported, grassroots projects, and especially those which encourage young people to take more responsibility for their own actions.

"Local communities know best what activities will and won't work, and these grants will empower grassroots groups to form strong partnerships within their communities and deliver local solutions to tackle binge drinking."

Ms. Rishworth welcomed the funding for the Southern Adelaide and the Fleurieu peninsula communities.

"The staff at Re-Engage provide excellent support services to over 250 young people and their families in the Southern region and almost 400 young people and their families across South Australia, and I'm so pleased the Government will be supporting their important work into the future," Ms Rishworth said.

"The Re-Engage project is innovative and will support our whole-of-community effort to delay the the onset of alcohol consumption and reduce binge drinking."

A snapshot of the projects being funded include:

Re-Engage Youth Services, will receive $497,445 to run alcohol-free youth events and use social media, art and a phone application to deliver health promotion messages in the communities of Marion and Onkaparinga where youth binge drinking is a significant social health issue.

The Gap Youth Centre Aboriginal Corporation will receive $500,000 for the Off The Street project, which will provide a safe alcohol-free entertainment venue for young people on Saturday nights in Alice Springs.

CuriousWorks will receive $95,439 for the Western Sydney Alcohol Awareness Video Initiative, which will provide education and skills training for young people in the Penrith area as they develop and produce videos promoting the harms of binge drinking for their peers.

The 26 grants will be administered by the new Australian National Preventive Health Agency. Projects are expected to commence in early 2012.

Details of the successful projects could be found here.

For all inquiries, please contact the Minister's Office on 02 6277 7280

Background

The 2010 National Drug Strategy Household Survey found:

One in five people aged 14 years or older consumed alcohol at a level that put them at risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury over their lifetime.

Those aged between 18-29 years were more likely than any other age group to consume alcohol in quantities that placed them at risk of an alcohol-related injury, and of alcohol-related harm over their lifetime.