Trading Standards officers and police mounted a joint operation to target underage sales in Ashton-in-Makerfield and Bryn after complaints from members of the public.

They swooped on off-licences alleged to be selling alcohol to young people. They discovered that in the majority of cases adults were willingly going into off-licences and buying alcohol – then passing it on to children as young as 13.

Wigan's chief Trading Standards officer Julie Middlehurst said the teams managed to gather evidence of how children were getting hold of alcohol by talking to residents, confiscating alcohol from young people and observing off-licences.

She said: "It became apparent that young people are getting their
alcohol from other people.
"It has been claimed that adults are going into shops on their behalf.

They then meet up at pre-arranged times to pass the alcohol over.
"When we informed parents many of them were extremely concerned but we also witnessed a number of cases where sadly this was not the case at all.

"This exercise has given us a valuable insight into how children are getting hold of alcohol in one particular area.
"Further work will now take place as a result of the operation and in due course we would like to repeat it in other areas of the borough.

"Action will be taken against those found supplying alcohol to youngsters."

Anyone caught buying alcohol for children can be handed an £80 on-the-spot fine or a larger fine of up to £5,000 if the matter is taken to court.

The children identified as being involved in underage drinking will now be spoken to by their school-based police officer.

Insp Ian Arrowsmith, from the Hindley neighbourhood policing team,
said: "Anti-social behaviour is an ongoing issue that affects communities throughout the country and Greater Manchester Police is committed to responding to the concerns of its communities and to driving down incidents of anti-social behaviour. We will continue to work in partnership with other agencies to target those who engage in anti-social behaviour, and we are concerned that in many cases this behaviour is fuelled by alcohol.

"A worrying trend is that people over 18, who can lawfully purchase alcohol for their own use, see fit to buy it on behalf of those aged under 18. I would like to reiterate that this is an offence, and we will take appropriate action against those who flout the law."