1. Reviewing the school drug
and alcohol policy
Responding appropriately
to substance misuse and
taking a proactive role
Claire James

2. In contrast to
what you might
think from the
media...

3. Smoking, drinking and drug use are falling
Trends among 14 year olds over the past decade.
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
Ever taken
drugs
Drank alcohol
in the past
week
Regular
smoker
Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in 2011, Office for National Statistics

4. However...
1 in 7 13 year olds say they
have been drunk at least
twice.1
1 in 10 15-16 year olds have
had unprotected sex after
drinking.2
1 in 5 15 year olds smoked
cannabis in the past year
(and 1 in 20 took a Class A
drug).3
1. WHO (2012) Health behaviours in
aged children
2. ESPAD (2009) The 2007 ESPAD rep
3. Fuller, E. (2012) Smoking, drinking
drug use

5. Different schools face different challenges
Gangs
Parental
drug use
Young people
with money
to spend
Local
drinking
culture
Legal
highs

6. Some pitfalls for the unwary
School strip search: Drugs
found hidden in pupils'
underwear
Private
school
rocked by
drugs
scandal
School
excludes
pupils over
positive
drugs tests
11 pupils
barred in
school drugs
scandal

7. Schools can help safeguard pupils
from drug and alcohol harms
 By drug education that helps equip pupils with
the knowledge and skills they need
 By clear school rules and effective responses to
drug incidents
 By supporting pupils at risk of drug-related
harm, and those with drug or alcohol misuse in
their family
 By raising pupils’ academic achievement and
attachment to school – major protective factors
schooldrugpolicy

8. Drugs: Guidance for schools
(2004) 126 pages
Comprehensive guidance
including drug education
Drug Advice for Schools (2012)
14 pages
Summary of what is required in
the drug policy, focusing on
dealing with incidents and
pastoral support.

9. Drug Advice for Schools: Key Points
 Early access to support for pupils
with drug or alcohol issues (or
affected by family use)
 A written drugs policy available
to all staff
 A senior member of staff to have
responsibility for policy and
liaising with the local police and
support services.

10. Responding to drug related incidents
A school’s response is most effective when:
 it is supported by the whole school community;
 drug education is part of a well-planned
programme of PSHE education delivered in a
supportive environment, where pupils are aware
of the school rules, feel able to engage in open
discussion and feel confident about asking for
help if necessary;
 staff have access to high quality training and
support.
“
”

11. Toolkit for reviewing your drug and
alcohol policy
 Complements
government guidance
 Tools for consulting
teachers, parents and
pupils
 Drug incident scenarios
 Checklist for reviewing
drug education

12. Functions of a school drug policy
 Clarify legal requirements and responsibilities
 Safeguard the health and safety of pupils and others
 Clarify the school’s approach to drugs for all inside
and outside the school
 Give guidance on drug education
 Enable staff to manage drug incidents
 Ensure a consistent approach, in line with school
ethos
 A basis for evaluating education, prevention and
incident management

13. Drug education
 Learning to manage risk – one of the factors Ofsted
look at in assessing behaviour
 Most effectively taught within a PSHE (life skills)
framework
Within the school drug policy:
 How drug and alcohol education will be taught and
how this fits with the school’s ethos;
 How teaching approaches will develop pupils’
skills, attitudes and values, as well as their knowledge;
 How the needs of all pupils will be taken into account;
 Policy on using external visitors;
 How drug education will be monitored and assessed

14. Policy revision and consultation
 Senior leadership
support
 Working group
 Key local contacts
identified
 Consultation with
school community –
teachers, pupils
parents

15. Pupils
Staff
Parents
Police
Local
authority
Governors
Working
group
Drug and
alcohol
services
Community

16. To discuss with police:
 Is there a local protocol for managing
incidents?
 When the school could manage an incident
internally and what support might be available
 When police should be involved
 Dealing with suspected illegal substances
 Information-sharing
 Sharing information about
underage sales

17. Why consultation is
important
• getting people to buy in to it
• raising awareness and understanding during
the consultation process
• making a better policy by talking through
issues with those who have to implement it.

18. Case study: Pupils at risk of exclusion consulted
about school drug policy
A group of Year 10 pupils at risk of exclusion
including both confirmed and suspected cannabis
users were consulted about the school’s drug policy.
They discussed the issue of informing parents/
carers when a pupil is found using cannabis at
school and agreed that this would be a deterrent if
it were policy.
The pupils gave suggestions about how young
people should be questioned by the school and
what support could be offered.
Case study from Southwark LEA cited in Drugs: Guidance for schools, 2004

19. Just another piece of paper?
?... or a tool driving prevention and early
intervention?
There needs to be…
 Support from the senior leadership team
 Input from the whole school community
 Monitoring and evaluation

20. Case study: Impact of early intervention
Nottingham DrugAware
Clear policies and external support for early
referrals, combined with curriculum based on
needs assessment
 Increase in referrals to early intervention
services (outnumbering number of incidents)
 Reduction in permanent exclusions because of
drug and alcohol misuse
 Indications of reduced prevalence

21. What is Zero Tolerance?
“In this school, we will make every attempt to
identify drug and alcohol issues before they
become problematic. Zero tolerance means we
will intervene quickly, every time, without
hesitation and ensure that effective early
intervention practice is used to respond to the
issue.”
(Thanks to Anna Power, Nottingham Early Intervention
Team, for this definition)

22. Alcohol and Drug Education and
Prevention Information Service
 Guidance for schools and practitioners on drug
and alcohol education
 Guidance on prevention and early
intervention, including family misuse.
 Shared resources and good practice
 Local and national networking
 Research and policy information
www.mentoruk.org.uk/resources/schools
claire.james@mentoruk.org