As the parent of a pupil attending one of the schools that have decided to use sniffer dogs, I have to say the idea is pointless.

Now you have virtually given the kids permission to use drugs because figures in authority assume they do anyway.

It will not help educate them of the dangers of drugs but will alienate them from the very people they should be able to turn to in a crisis.

It is also an infringement on their personal liberty. Children go to school to learn, not sit next to someone who "might have used drugs" or be arrested on suspicion of having used drugs themselves.

This policy is a waste of police time and will only make matters worse. With the huge truancy problem we have, would it not be better to make school a more pupil-friendly environment?

-Ms R C Hale, Brunswick Road, Hove