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NIGHTCLUB DJs could be told to play "chill out music" under new measures to help curb alcohol-fuelled violence in Southampton.

Council chiefs say clubs have a responsibility to stop their punters spilling out onto the city's streets pumped up by high-powered music.

They believe "chill out hours" would help calm clubbers down before closing time in the early hours.

The recommendation was outlined in a report investigating crime in the city and comes after a council in Brighton banned venues from playing music which encourages violence towards minority groups.

The Southampton Safe City Strategic Assessment, published last month, identified LeisureWorld, Above Bar, Bedford Place and London Road as being among the worst hotspots for crime and disorder in Hampshire.

Southampton City Council communities safety manager Roger Honey said a raft of new measures were being considered.

"In the past we have issued sweets and lollipops (at closing) which initially met with some success and then petered off," he said.

"Most of the venues do lower the tempo before they close so that in itself is a form of chill-out music."

A spokesman for London Road dance nightclub Junk said it already had a policy to slow the tempo of its music before closing at either 3am or 4am.

The strategic assessment report also warned that venues which play a certain type of music attracted a clientele "who may have a propensity towards certain crimes".

"It is also recognised that R&B is affiliated to those who have a propensity to carry weapons," the report states.

Mr Honey said while the number of violent incidents occurring inside clubs was minimal, clubs which played R&B were known to have more trouble.

"We do know that some licensed premises do attract a different type of clientele because of the music they play and some of that clientele would seem to have a greater propensity for violence," he said.

"So we are looking with the police to obviously reduce that risk, but what form that will take in the end we are still working our way through, this is still early days."

Mr Honey warned that those clubs which did not co-operate would have their licence reviewed.

"We have to work with the venues, but if they do have a great deal of problems and choose not to take our advice and work with us then of course we can go back to the licensing committee and ask for change to the licensing conditions."

The move comes as clubs and bars across the city back the Daily Echo's campaign to switch from glass to plastic glasses.

The Last Orders For Glass campaign was launched after new figures showed that more people are being admitted to Southampton General Hospital following glass attacks than ever before.

Doctors and nurses treat around 250 victims of such attacks every year, with many people left scarred for life.

Across Southampton fewer than one in ten nightspots currently use the polycarbonate containers.

2:31pm Saturday 10th May 2008

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