EVERY off-licence visited during an undercover police operation refused to serve alcohol to underage children, the Oxford Mail can reveal.

Police hailed Wednesday night’s operation in Headington, Marston, and East Oxford a success, claiming the 100 per cent pass rate followed months of work to hammer home the law to licensees.

Staff at all eight shops targeted in the operation refused to sell alcohol to two 14-year-olds, demanding to see proof of age. The teenagers were only able to buy soft drinks and packets of crisps.

The attempted purchases were witnessed by police officers in plain clothes, posing as customers, and the Oxford Mail.

Pc Chris Miles, of the Headington neighbourhood team, said: “This is the first time we have had 100 per cent pass.

“We have gone from having the majority of them failing to half, and then one. It’s brilliant.”

Police asked the Oxford Mail not to reveal which off-licences passed the checks this week, for operational reasons. However, during similar operations in the past, they have named shops which sold alcohol to under-18s.

Police organised the checks after a tip-off that some off-licences were selling alcohol to under-age foreign language students.

Intelligence showed students often asked for cheap vodka and whisky, along with plastic cups, police said. Officers were also told some shops had ‘scouts’ outside, keeping watch for police.

Residents had complained to police about groups of more than 100 foreign students gathering in Headington’s parks and, more recently, South Park, drinking into the early hours and leaving empty bottles and cans scattered aroundfor park rangers to clean up.

Pc Miles suspects students are persuading passing adults to buy alcohol for them and pledged to tackle this problem.

He said: “I would say the foreign students are still getting it from these places, but it’s people over 18 who are buying it. It means we will have to adjust the way we do things.

“We need to do a bit more walking around, phone calls, following up intelligence and finding out exactly where it’s happening.

“Licence-holders need to be asking who is outside their shop and asking people if they are buying it for themselves.

“If you ask them that question, it puts them under more pressure. Some people are quite honest and will say who they’re buying it for.”

He warned that anyone caught buying alcohol for under-18s could get an £80 on-the-spot fine.

Police licensing officer Alex Bloomfield, said: “I’m pleased. Chris’s team have put a lot of work into educating licensees and it’s good to see that it has improved.

“There are other issues now with proxy sales and it’s more difficult for licence-holders to challenge that. It’s down to vigilance and being aware of what’s going on at the front of their shop.”