Why do people drink at home?

Background The past 30 years have seen a shift in the culture concerning the consumption of alcohol in the UK. One of these is the increasing trend for adults to consume alcohol "at home". To date this is a development that has received little research attention. Participants and Methods Four focus groups (FG) of current drinkers who drank at home and reflected the views of both genders, differing age bands and living arrangements were conducted. The setting for the study was an economically deprived seaside resort in the North-West of England. Each focus group had two facilators and was taped, transcribed and subject to thematic analysis. FG A: (n = 15; 9 males, 6 females) young people aged 13-21. FG B (n = 4, 1 male, 3 female) volunteers aged 30-50 some of whom had children and were in relationships. FG C (n = 15, 6 males, 9 females) recruited from a residents association-aged 25-70. FG D (n = 4, 1 male, 3 female), aged 20-30 recruited through a local Lesbian and Gay Group. Results The principal reasons for drinking at home concerned convenience, these included cost, safety, social occasions, fear of under age drinkers, child-care, relief of stress. Lesser themes such as the smoking ban also emerged. Conclusions These findings provide data of import to researchers and public health professionals to allow them to produce and target public health messages that take into account that the majority of drinking now takes place "at home".