Increasing the number of young people on the path to success

The Drug Education Forum has produced a briefing note on the Public Service Agreements that affect services for children and young people around drug issues.

• PSA 14, which will be trying to increase the number of children and young people on the path to success; and
• PSA 25, which is aimed at reducing the harm caused by alcohol and drugs.

As will be clear from the way they are dealt with in this briefing paper PSA 14 is the more significant in terms of children and young people.

You can download the briefing paper here.

In The Guardian’s annalysis of the Comprehensive Spending Review I was interested to see this:

Behind all of the headline spending figures, the difference in this year’s pre-budget report and comprehensive spending review is the bonfire of targets.

The number of public service agreements (PSAs) has been slashed from 110 to 30. Instead of individual departmental targets, these new PSAs will be shared across Whitehall.

Filed under: drug policy, drug prevention, drug strategy, key documents , Public Service Agreement

Key Documents

I’ve just added a page to our static website which has some of the key [on-line] documents for drug education in England. I’d be grateful for any additional thoughts on things to include.

At the moment the list reads as follows:

Guidance:

Drugs: Guidance for Schools - The DfES guidance to schools about drug education and drug issues in school

Joining Forces - Guidance for the police about working with schools on drug education and drug issues. This document also applies to the police service in Wales and Northern Ireland.

Drugs; Guidance for the Youth Service – a document produced by DrugScope and Alcohol Concern for those working in informal education settings. [This is published tomorrow]

Drugs: Guidance for Further Education Institutions - a DrugScope document.

Statistics:

Drug use, smoking and drinking among young people in England in 2005 - an annual government survey of pupils between 11 and 15 year olds.

Statistics on Young People and Drug Misuse: England, 2006

Trends in Death Associated With Abuse of Volatile Substances 1971 – 2004 - this is an annual report and includes data on deaths amongst young people.

Underage drinking: findings from the 2004 Offending, Crime and Justice Survey - Findings paper from the Home Office.

Ofsted:

Drug Education in Schools – 2005 report evaluating the quality of drug education programmes observed in schools.

Healthy Schools Healthy Children? – an evaluation of the contribution of education to pupils’ health and well-being.

Every Child Matters / National Drug Strategy:

Every Child Matters: Change for Children Young People and Drugs

Updated Drug Strategy 2002

QCA:

Units of work - useful materials for teachers.

ACMD:

Pathways to Problems: Hazardous use of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs by young people in the UK and its implications for policy – the 2006 report by the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.

Filed under: key documents