New approach to drug and alcohol teaching in the Borders
Wednesday, December 12 2007
Scottish Borders Council has launched a new teaching programme that will give primary school children a greater understanding of the risks associated with drugs and alcohol and enable them to make informed and safer choices.
The initiative, developed in conjunction with the Borders Drug and Alcohol Action Team, will be delivered in all Borders primary schools by the end of the next academic year.
Councillor Catriona Bhatia, Executive Member for Education, said: “The new education pack for teachers is comprehensive and covers the issues around drugs and alcohol at an appropriate level for each age group. It also deals with one of the most important tools in keeping children safe - helping them to resist peer pressure and to have the self confidence and knowledge to steer away from the dangers that drugs and alcohol can bring to young lives.
“Although it is usually drugs misuse which gets media attention, in the Scottish Borders and in Scotland generally we have a very real problem with alcohol misuse. On any Friday or Saturday night in any Scottish town we see young people who are suffering from the effects of alcohol intake, perhaps unaware of the danger to their health and personal safety.”
To complement this new curriculum and to ensure that it is delivered effectively, teachers are being given training and support to increase their confidence and expertise.
And it’s not just teachers. To ensure that all staff and volunteers who work with children and their families are aware of the new approach, training in schools is also being given to nursery nurses, additional needs assistants, playground assistants and other staff.
To date, half of SBC’s primary school staff have been trained in delivering the new curriculum. By the end of the next school session in June 2009, all 750+ primary teachers will be fully trained.
Divisional Commander Charlie Common, of Lothian and Borders Police, said: “This is another great piece of joined up working between the police, the education department and Borders Drug and Alcohol Action Team.
Also launched this week was a new website, Ask Kenny (www.scotborders.gov.uk/askkenny) which gives children of all ages and their parents an opportunity to ask the Borders Drugs Awareness Officer, Kenny Houston, questions about drugs and alcohol.
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