Frequently Asked Questions

1. Who is providing this test and information?

This health promotion website is provided by the Alcohol Health Network - an independent not-for-profit social enterprise which aims to promote health at work online.

2. Who is this website for?

The AHN is working with the Royal Borough of Kingston's Public Health Department, as well as other local areas / companies to provide individuals with confidential, anonymous and independent online health assessments, helping you to make informed choices about your drinking.

3. What device do I need to do the test?

You can complete the alcohol health check online on a web browser on any computer or smartphone at work, home or anywhere else.

4. What’s the point of doing the test?

The alcohol health check will give you confidential, personalised feedback on your drinking and how your health might be affected. It will help you work out how much you are drinking, whether this is a problem for you and how your drinking compares to the national average.

If you want to make any changes, it will give you help and support in doing that.

5. How accurate is it?

The Drink Test is based on the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test, validated by NICE and the World Health Organisation. The Drink Test website has been approved by Alcohol Health Network’s Advisory Board, made up of academics from University College London.

Websites like Drink Test have been shown to help people to make healthier lifestyle choices.

6. Is it confidential?

Yes. Your alcohol health check, together with advice about how to improve your health is completely free and completely confidential. No one at the Royal Borough of Kingston's Public Health Department will know what you say in your health check, or what feedback we’ve given you.

All the information that you give will be treated in the strictest confidence. The information will be collected and stored in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018. It will be stored in an anonymised format, so you cannot be identified.

We will provide the Royal Borough of Kingston's Public Health Department with anonymised information on the proportion of people who used the site (ie x% of site users were men or women) and what the average drinking levels were. This will help the Royal Borough of Kingston's Public Health Department plan future health promotions effectively.

7. What will happen to my personal data?

The Drink Checker conforms to data legislation which protects your personal data, known as GDPR.

As the alcohol health check is anonymous, we will only collect your personal details if you ask to speak to a counsellor or sign up to health alerts by sms or email.

If you choose to speak to a counselling service that we recommend, we will pass your details onto them securely. Once these details have been obtained by the counselling service, they will be deleted from our servers.

If you sign up to alerts we will ask for your email or mobile number. This will never be shared with anyone else or used for any other purpose. You can opt out at any time and we will delete the details we have.

You can see our Privacy Policy for more details.

8. What if the results show I am drinking too much?

You may get a surprise if the results of the alcohol health check suggest you are at risk of a health problem. If you are worried about your health and you feel you need more advice than we can give online, please go and see your family doctor.

Your doctor has your personal health records and is the person best placed to help you with your health problems. You can also get a list of NHS services here

9. Who do I complain to if I don’t like the website, or contact if I have a query or feedback?

If you have any comments, queries, concerns or complaints about this website, please contact Alcohol Health Network by email on info@alcoholhealthnetwork.org.uk