Staying in is the new going out for Scots youngsters

YOUNG Scots are shunning pubs and clubs in favour of partying at home on the cheap, a new study has found.

More than half of 18- to 24-year-olds now celebrate special occasions without going out as they attempt to save money in the tough economic climate.

It is a blow for venues as younger people are traditionally more likely to drink out than their older counterparts.

A study by market researchers Mintel found that 55 per cent of under-25-year-olds drink at home for a special occasion - compared to 41 per cent of all ages - and a fifth said they were now entertaining at home more than ever before.

However, as the economy starts to recover they are spending more on the alcohol they choose to drink at home.

While across all ages the average spend on a bottle of supermarket wine was 6, this rose to 8.35 among younger drinkers.

And - with Holyrood expected to pass minimum pricing legislation in an effort to tackle alcohol abuse - half of 18- to 34-year-olds admitted that "without discounting I would probably buy less wine than I do".

Jonny Forsyth, Mintel's senior drinks analyst, said: "Younger drinkers are changing.

"While pre-recession it was all about drinking out of home and the austerity of the recession forced them back indoors to make savings - post recession, younger drinkers are taking the going-out attitude into the home.

"This means they are hosting celebrations and events in home - and splashing out on higher- end alcohol.

"Attitudes have shifted as they have been having more big nights at home, initially because they were forced to due to economic pressures - but now they have found that it has its advantages over going out.

"It appears, that for younger consumers, staying in really is the new going out."

The at-home drinking market is estimated to be worth some 15.6 billion and has grown by 20 per cent since 2006, although that equates to a fall of 0.5 per cent when inflation is taken into account.

Between 2006 and 2010 penetration of in-home drinking remained static despite overall drinking being in decline, as people drank more at home where drinking was much cheaper.

However, between 2009 and 2010, this dynamic has changed, with in-home drinking declining from 75.4 per cent in 2009 to 71.9 per cent in 2010.

When it comes to what people consumed at home, white wine tops the list, having been drunk by 44 per cent of people in the past six months.

Red wine comes a close second on 40 per cent, followed by lager on 39 per cent, ros on 2 per cent, and white spirits on 28 per cent. However, while volume sales of ros wine rose by 7 per cent and white by 2 per cent, sales of red wine have declined by 3 per cent.