Brighton and Hove children admit to drink and drugs (From The Argus)

Brighton and Hove children admit to drink and drugs

10:30am Saturday 13th March 2010 in

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Children as young as ten have admitted to often taking drink and drugs.

One in six youngsters questioned in a survey of Brighton and Hove pupils said they frequently abused alcohol, drugs or volatile substances, such as glue.

The TellUs survey, which took into account the views of 601 secondary school pupils from two schools and 408 Year 6 pupils from 11 primary schools in the city, shows a rise of almost 30% on the one-in-eight children in 2008 who said they took drink or drugs.

The figure is significantly higher than the one in ten children nationally who said they took drink or drugs.

And because TellUs relies on children volunteering what they are doing or taking, the true figure for the number of youngsters drinking or using illegal substances could be far higher.

A performance improvement report by Brighton and Hove City Council says substance misuse is an area of concern for the local authority. The issue will be discussed by the council’s Children and Young People's Trust board on March 22.

Tom Scanlon, Brighton and Hove’s director of public health, said it was important to remember that a small sample was used for the research and that other studies showed drug use was dropping.

However he added: “In Brighton and Hove we have got a long history of use of substances and alcohol, not just among children but among adults too and we have got a high number of drug deaths.

“We already know this is a problem and what we might have here is a situation where we see it becoming more of a problem for young children.”

Dee Simson, the council’s cabinet member for community safety, said: “Alcohol and drug misuse by young people is a serious issue that the council, NHS Brighton and Hove and Sussex Police consider a high priority.

“We already run a range of services that help young people, schools and their parents tackle the abuse of alcohol and illegal drugs as well as the new so-called legal highs.

“The joint approach between the substance misuse service Ru-ok and other members of the partnership has made a significant difference in a relatively short time to the care and wellbeing of a particularly vulnerable population.

“It has also successfully reduced antisocial behaviour and kept young people out of danger, identifying young people at risk with the aim to tackle the problem before they end up in A&E or involved in the criminal justice system.”