The festive hangovers may have faded but for some, drinking can cause year-round misery.

Alcohol abuse is rife. From tanked-up football fans scuffling on the streets to the victims of drunk drivers, the effects are all too common.

Life for the immediate families of alcoholics can be almost intolerable. Verbal, psychological and physical abuse are not uncommon and loved ones can be left isolated and ashamed. There are also financial considerations with possibly thousands of pounds a year being flushed away.

Christmas and New Year bingeing can exacerbate alcohol abuse and leave relatives feeling even more helpless.

But these victims of alcohol remain largely forgotten.

Lois (not her real name), a 50-year-old mother from East Sussex, said the festive period was the worst time of year for her ex-husband's drinking.

She said he would go on marathon binges five or six days a week. Every New Year she vowed to do something but never knew where to turn.

She said: "He would often spend most of Christmas Day in bed and the very distinctive smell of an alcoholic after a binge would fill the home and cause me to feel sick.

"We could not go to my family as I was too embarrassed and would spend Christmas Day alone in shame and fear."

"I thought that when our children came along the nights out with the boys would stop. They didn't. They actually increased to at least twice or three times a week.

"To his mates he was a laugh, a great bloke to have around. But to us he was a monster.

"When he came home he would throw his weight around and if I didn't do as he wanted he would become violent and hit me.

"These bouts got progressively worse and more frequent. I couldn't work - I barely had the energy to look after the children.

"Debts were beginning to appear and I calculated he was spending £20,000 a year over our budget. At that rate we would have ended up homeless."

While drink abusers have organisations such as Alcoholics Anonymous to turn to, family members may be less aware of groups such as Al-Anon which exist for their benefit.

Lois. joined Al-Anon 13 years ago - three years before she split with her husband. She said the organisation saved her life.

Al-Anon provides help and advice for anyone worried by another person's drinking.

Its sister body, Alateen, assists young people aged 12 to 20 affected by other people's drinking. Lois still attends Al-Anon and her children go to Alateen.

Nationwide, there is no co-ordinated Government strategy for alcohol. This presents particular problems for a city such as Brighton and Hove which relies on attracting tourists to its pubs, bars and clubs.

Graham Stevens, co-ordinator of the city's drug and alcohol action team, said: "There is an absence of a national strategy at the moment. One was flagged up as imminent in 1998 but since then, for various reasons, it has not emerged."

The city council and other bodies are now working on a city-wide alcohol action plan, following a successful conference in October. The document should be drawn up in the spring.

Mr Stevens said: "It will reflect the interests of the leisure and entertainment sector who try to attract people into the city, part of which includes drinking.

"And it will deal with the negative side - disorder, drunkenness, health risks and all alcohol-related violence.

"In the absence of additional funding, which is likely to be the case until a national strategy is in place, we want to sustain the projects we have already."

In 2000, 204 people from Brighton and Hove sought treatment for alcohol addiction at the city's Addaction counselling and advice organisation. This compared with 363 for drug treatment.

Some 65 per cent of suicides in the city each year are linked to excessive drinking - about 25 deaths annually.

The city's community safety manager Linda Beanlands said tackling alcohol was a major issue.

She said the police have to deploy a lot of resources at weekends to deal with drink-related violence but there were steps licensed premises could take to help.

Measures include using shatter-proof glasses and refusing to serve customers who are clearly drunk.

Susan Squires, of Queens Park, Brighton, has had many years' experience dealing with people with alcoholism.

She has vowed to step up her campaign for a new day care centre for street alcoholics in the London Road area.

She said: "These people are ill and need help. We need somewhere for them to go - not just move them from place to place.

"When the day care centre Phase, near London Road, closed a couple of years ago it was the saddest day in many people's lives. I know five people who have already died after going back on the drink."

But other initiatives continue. One is the Equinox centre at the Old Steine where the homeless can take small amounts alcohol to drink away from the streets.

But with children starting to drink at ever-younger ages, the city's drug and alcohol action team realises prevention is as important as cure and extra resources are being pumped into education in schools.

There is a long way to go, but steps are under way to divert youngsters from the slippery slope towards alcoholism. With support and advice groups such as AA and Al-Anon, the spirit is clearly willing.

Al-Anon and Alateen operate a 24-hour confidential helpline on 0207 403 0888. Alcoholics Anonymous can be contacted on 0845 769 7555.