Plan your night out these holidays

Police are urging the public to take greater responsibility for themselves and others this festive season.

While the Christmas and New Year’s break represents a time of year most look forward to, the opposite can be said for law enforcers.

With the holidays seeing higher than usual numbers flocking to the CBD and Southbank to celebrate, station commander at St Kilda Rd Police Station, Sen-Sgt Steve Bills said it always marked as a busy time for police.

“Coming up to the end of the year with Christmas parties, people going away on holidays, the new year’s break, with all that we get a lot more people coming into the city,” he said.

“A lot of the problems that we have coming up to this end of the year is around what we would term public order. So alcohol-related, drug-related and not only violence, but just behavior.”

Sen-Sgt Bills said police were urging the public take greater care when going out this holiday season, by looking after each other, limiting their alcohol consumption and planning their night out.

“You should never find yourself alone at the end of the night working out how you’re going to get home,” he said. “You should have planned for it before you went out.”

“People should consider their consumption and around where they’re going, what they’re doing, how much they’re going to drink and plan for that evening or afternoon or whatever it is, because how are you actually going to get home?”

Police are also reiterating the message of reminding people to take greater care with leaving valuables around when going out, such as handbags, wallets and phones.

Sen-Sgt Bills said a greater level of responsibility would ensure that a night out remained memorable for all the right reasons.

“We’re certainly not anti-people going out enjoying themselves and having a drink and even having too much to drink necessarily so long as you look out for yourself and your friends,” he said.

“You won’t get hassled by the police and you won’t become a victim.”