More than 40,000 people in the Cowdenbeath Area are now safer in pubs and clubs thanks to the introduction of anti-spiking tests by development group My Cowdenbeath.

Supported by funding from Fife Council’s Cowdenbeath Area committee, seventeen bars and venues in the area now carry test kits and anti-spiking resources.

In the year to April 2023, police received 6,732 reports of spiking across the UK and in a 2022 YouGov poll, 10% of women and 5% of men said they believed they had been spiked at some point.  The average age of spiking victims is just 26 years and 74% of those spiked were women.  According to data from the National Police Chief’s Council, 80% of spiking incidents happen in public places, like a bar or nightclub, although there’s also been incidents at house parties.

Common drugs used in spiking are Ketamine or GHB and these can cause a range of effects on the body, some similar to alcohol, including confusion and disorientation, nausea and vomiting, hallucinations, paranoia, poor co-ordination, inability to communicate clearly and memory loss / blackouts.  Victims also report longer term effects, such as poor mental and emotional health as they process the common feelings of embarrassment, shame, loss of confidence, self-blame and trauma.

With a simple dab of your drink on either end of the test strip, using a finger or straw, the test will show and immediate positive or negative result.  People are urged to contact 101 to report any incidents of drink spiking, or 999 in an emergency.

The resources have been rolled out over the last 8 weeks and one of the venues to accept the kits has been Shorty’s Social Club on the High Street in Cowdenbeath.  Thomas Wilson, owner at Shorty’s said: “We’re delighted to support this really worthwhile cause. It’s vital that people have confidence to feel safe when they come to a night out and we want to demonstrate that drink spiking is a disgusting crime and won’t be tolerated in our venue. It’s brilliant to see so many other venues in the local area standing together and doing the same thing, all to help keep our customers safe throughout the year. Hopefully the heightened awareness and these resources will spread so widely over the community that anyone tempted to spike a drink thinks twice about it in this area now.”   

The idea for the project was developed during a discussion at a meeting of Cowdenbeath Community Council, which organiser Stuart Duffy recalls:

“Last year we heard really positive feedback about the festive safety campaign from the Police and all credit should be given to the local community team here in Cowdenbeath for promoting safety at this time of year.  I had asked whether the test kits were available all year round, but resources didn’t allow for that, so we decided to look into providing them to venues ourselves.  We’re so grateful to our local councillors who supported the initiative, and to all the 17 venues who now stock them, and hope that the work here can maybe inspire some other areas in time too. The key message is that drink spiking in Cowdenbeath will not be tolerated.”

Convener of the Council’s Cowdenbeath Area committee, Cllr Alex Campbell, said:

“Making sure our night time economy is a safe place and enjoyable experience for everyone is an important priority. This project builds on the very successful festive season campaigns by Police Scotland and we were pleased to be able to support My Cowdenbeath to make the drink spiking test kits available. Thanks go to all the venues who have signed up so far, each of them helping to keep everyone safe in the area throughout the year.”

The quick and easy testing strips are available for free at the bar in the following locations:

Cowdenbeath – The Cross Guns, Partners Bar & Nightclub, The Beath Inn, Shorty’s Social Club, Wee Jimmies, The Junction Bar, The Glen Tavern and The New Woodside Hotel.

Lochgelly – West End Bar, Shardys, Minto Lounge and Torleys

Kelty – The Kings

Ballingry – The Craigie Bar

Cardenden – The Railway Tavern, The Queens Hotel and the Village Inn

If your venue is located in the Cowdenbeath Area and is interested in stocking the small kits, you can email info@mycowdenbeath.scot to order the resources. You can also read more about drink spiking, the effects on victims and the consequences for perpetrators, on the My Cowdenbeath website at www.mycowdenbeath.scot