Alcohol education
There is widespread concern about the level of alcohol misuse in this country. The government set out its strategy for dealing with this in the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England and in 2007 identified drinkers under the age of eighteen as being particularly at risk.
In 2008, the Drug Strategy 2008-18 (covering alcohol misuse) was launched. It highlights the need to:
- focus on families where parents misuse alcohol
- intervene early to prevent harm to children
- prioritise parents' access to treatment where children are at risk
- and provide intensive parenting guidance and support for family members, such as grandparents, who take on caring responsibilities.
Alcohol education within your universal Healthy Schools provision is covered in three pages on this website, all of which have information, downloads and links:
For Healthy Schools Plus, you need to take your work a step further. These information sheets will help:
This document was developed for the Healthy Schools enhancement model but will also be of use to schools doing Healthy Schools Plus: Planning our change: substance misuse.
Go to information about the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Drug and Alcohol Action Team.
We are starting to gather some alcohol and drugs data.
Resource for youth workers and other professionals
The government has produced Safe, sensible, social: young people alcohol and positive activities which is a guide to delivering positive activities and dealing with young people who have been drinking.
Resource for pupils and parents
The DCSF has launched Why let drink decide? which aims to raise awareness of the link between alcohol and young people's vulnerability to unwanted pregnancy, road traffic accidents and poor marks at school. The Why let drink decide? website is a useful resource for parents has some engaging activities for pupils.
Funding from the Drinkaware Trust
The Drinkaware Trust awards small grants of between £100 and £2,500 to community initiatives designed to promote responsible drinking and reduce alcohol-related harm. Projects funded include public education campaigns, peer-led education schemes, educational theatre work, conferences, provision for educational materials, training, workshops and other educational events. In particular the Trust welcomes applications that aim to:
- reduce alcohol misuse among under-18s; and
- raise awareness about the long-term health harms caused by hazardous or harmful levels of drinking.
The Trust accepts applications from registered charities, other voluntary organisations and statutory organisations and partnerships. An example of a previously funded project is Party Safe, a partnership project between Rivington School and a local group called Youth Express. Young people worked together to produce a short DVD demonstrating the dangers of drinking to excess and showing how quickly things can get out of control. In another project Govan Youth Information Project received £10,648 to create an alcohol awareness exhibition for pupils locally. Although the Trust's programme has no application deadlines you need to make sure that you apply at least two months before your project is due to start. Read more on the Drinkaware website.