Bob Tait of Drugs Education UK and former member of the Royal Navy Drugs Education Team gave a series of specialist ‘drugs’ lectures to parents and pupils at HMSG and Monmouth School for Boys as part of the Confidence4Life (C4L) programme.
Bob has been working with schools on Drug and Alcohol education for many years. The sessions were tailored for specific age groups (Year 9 and above) and covered everything from legal and illegal drugs to UK and global law on drugs-related convictions. The parents’ lecture in the evening focused on the legal ramifications for students both in terms of their university education and potential, future careers, if caught taking or handling illegal drugs.
Ms J Johnson, C4L Co-ordinator said: “Drugs are set to become ‘a major challenge’ and understanding adolescent motivation is key. Teenagers are particularly at risk, because the drugs affect the parts of the brain that are still developing during adolescence.” She added: “It is vital to include parents in the dialogue about drugs to help young people to behave responsibly and to understand the risks.”
Following the evening lecture, parents commented on how everyone should be made aware of some vital information concerning drugs charges, not only in terms of health risks, but also the potential for passports to be confiscated; drugs testing on specific university courses and careers that are banned following a drugs conviction.
Comments from students were extremely positive, ranging from: “I am so glad I attended the lecture, I had no idea how damaging drugs could be…he knew so much…incredibly useful, everyone should know what could happen if you take a risk…”
