Drugs Alcohol and Young People

A presentation for the Richmond upon Thames Drug Misuse Task Group

The Drug Education Forum Forum of national organisations committed to

improving the practice and profile of drug education in England.

We believe that drug education should: Include legal, illegal and illicit drugs and substances; Involve not only schools, youth organisations, children and

young people, adults and professionals working in a range of settings but also families and the wider community;

Identify children and young people's knowledge and experience and use this as a starting point for further learning;

Use appropriate methods that are subject to evaluation.

www.drugeducationforum.com

London and Richmond upon Thames

Drug use by young people

Drug and Alcohol Use In London Cost to London Ambulance Service for young

people’s alcohol misuse estimated at £500,000 a year.

More than 1 in 10 arrests of young people in London are for drug offences Second highest in England after Liverpool.

There were 3,367 young people who received treatment in London last year 14% of national total of 23,528

Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in London 2006 to 2008

Mean consumption of alcohol by young people in London who drank in the last week

“After drinking 10-12 units of alcohol, your co-ordination will be seriously impaired, placing you at high risk of having an accident. The high levels of alcohol will have a depressant effect on your body and mind, making you feel drowsy.”

Budget for Substance Misuse Spending by Children's Services in London in 2009 - 2010

£242,100Richmond upon Thames report to DCSF

Drug Education in School

Frequency and Quality of Drug Education in School >60% of schools provide

drug education once a year or less.

“drugs education tended to be identified as a weaker aspect of PSHE education”

“some pupils said that they would like more information on drugs, alcohol and smoking which they thought were more important than some other areas that they did cover within PSHE education.” Source: Personal, Social, Health and

Economic (PSHE) Education: A mapping study of the prevalent models of delivery and their effectiveness – DfE (2011)

Quality and Effectiveness “The lack of nationally provided/quality assured

resources was an issue for some, with a plethora of private sector companies offering consultancy services in the area, but with no clear means of assuring the quality of this provision for schools.”

“There is some indication that those schools which are more independent of LA support (particularly at secondary level), such as voluntary aided and foundation schools, may be more likely to use PSHE education delivery methods that are associated with being less effective, such as provision via drop-down days or through tutor/form group time.”

Government Strategy

Reducing Demand, Restricting Supply, Building Recovery

Reducing Demand, Restricting Supply, Building Recovery. Government Strategy has two broad aims

Reduce illicit and other harmful drug use; and Increase the numbers recovering from their

dependence

Reducing demand with children young people Earliest Interventions Education and Information Targeted Support Young People’s Treatment

Strategy - Education and Information “All young people need high quality drug and

alcohol education so they have a thorough knowledge of their effects and harms and have the skills and confidence to choose not to use drugs and alcohol.”

Government will provide information, advice and support which will enable schools to: Provide accurate information through drug education

and targeted information using FRANK. Use wider search powers to tackle problem behaviours

in school, and to tackle drug dealing in schools. Work with the local voluntary sector and police to

prevent drug and alcohol misuse.

Resources In 2009/2010 overall

direct spend on drugs was £1,022.5 m

Education allocation has decreased year on year from £5.4 m in 2006/7 to £3.9 m in 2009/10. Source: Department of

Health

£406.7m next year for treatment of which £25.4 m allocated for young people. Source: NTA

Allen Review

Early Intervention the Next Steps

“ Early Intervention is an approach which offers our country a real opportunity to make lasting improvements in the lives of our children, to forestall many persistent social problems and end their transmission from one generation to the next, and to make long-term savings in public spending.”

The Early Intervention Review Team 2011

“ Early Intervention may be most effective before the age of 3, but we also need to address those aged 0–18 so they can become the most effective parents possible for the next generation of 0–3s. The 0–18 cycle needs to be addressed over and over again until the repetition of dysfunction from one generation to another is finally broken.”

“ A shift to a primary prevention strategy in the UK is essential to underpin all other recommendations in this report. We shall continue to waste billions of pounds unless and until we base all relevant policy on the premise that all children should have the best start in life.”

School Based Drug Prevention “ Unfortunately, there has been a tendency for

UK schools to develop their own substance misuse and life skills programmes rather than use proven models such as Life Skills Training (LST), which are known to improve outcomes for children.” “ LST is currently provided to about 20 per cent of

adolescents in schools in the US. The curriculum comprises 30 lessons provided by classroom teachers in schools over a three-year period. The classes reduce individual vulnerability and foster resistance to the social influences such as media, family and friends known to contribute to the use of gateway drugs.”

Estimated cost benefit ratio of 1:25

A final thought

Substance Abuse Prevention Dollars and Cents: A Cost Benefits Analysis “The average effective

school-based program in 2002 costs $220 per pupil including materials and teacher training, and these programs could save an estimated $18 per $1 invested if implemented nationwide. ” US government's

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration  (2009)