It's hoped 'Dry January' will help people re-evaluate their alcohol intake
According to Alcohol Change UK, around 115,000 new users joined their 'Try Dry' app this January – a record year for people signing up
A recovering alcoholic from Greater Manchester is hoping 'Dry January' has made people re-evaluate their relationship with alcohol.
According to Alcohol Change UK, around 115,000 new users joined their Try Dry® app for Dry January® 2024 – a record year for people signing up.
The charity said: "In terms of how many people have taken part this year, we don't yet have the final figure on total participation for this year's Dry January but we already know that we have had a record-breaking year for people who are new to the Try Dry app and we also expect to see a new record for people who have returned to using the Try Dry app for January 2024.
"But the Try Dry app is only one of the ways in which people can take part in Dry January. We also count those who sign up for our daily emails as actively taking part in the official campaign with us. Last year, our final figure was 175,000 taking part in Dry January. We'll be sharing this year's figure in early February.
"We also conduct annual polling to measure the number of people planning to go alcohol-free in January (i.e. not necessarily taking part in Dry January using our tools and resources). This year we found that 8.5 million people were planning to go alcohol free in January (roughly the same as the 8.8 million in 2023)."
Alcohol Change UK work closely with Alex Clapp, the founder of 'Claritee'.
After a stint in rehab, Alex had the idea of creating a corporate event and training company that challenged the corporate way of 'excessive alcohol dependency'.
They host alcohol-free staff nights out, and corporate entertaining.
Claritee say their mission is simple: "To showcase that a fun and fulfilling life is possible without alcohol. Club Soba is not a recovery program; it's a community for sober and sober-curious individuals, offering tips, resources, and events for those looking to drink less or give up entirely."
At their most recent Manchester event, Alex said: "Having two-three hundred people here all sober, dancing, signing, game play, panellists, speakers, it's amazing.
"Everyone thinks you've got to have alcohol to get rid of your inhibitions. There's people in there dancing, having fun, we've just done laughing meditation, stone cold sober!
"The nice thing is connecting people wanting to do good, whether it's mental health, whether it's stopping drinking, whether it's just trying to actually have the confidence to come to something without having alcohol.
"It's obviously raising money for the best charities, and that's really personal and close to my heart so it means a lot."
Their next Manchester night out, 'Club Soba' is at the Moxy Club on the 8th of February.