The Alcohol Education Trust (AET) welcomes the report of the Education Select Committee on PSHE and SRE Life Lessons: PSHE and SRE in Schools to make personal, social, and health education (PSHE) statutory in schools in a bid to encourage safe, sensible and responsible alcohol use by young people.
AET wants ministers at the Department for Education (DfE) to ensure the inclusion of alcohol education in PSHE in order to help delay the onset of alcohol use by young people.
Recommendations highlighted in the select committee report include reinstating funding for the continuous professional development for PSHE teachers and school nurses, as well as calls for Ofsted to resume its regular subject surveys of PSHE provision.
It also suggests the DfE should develop a working plan for introducing PSHE as statutory subjects in primary and secondary schools.
AET Founder and Director Helena Conibear believes ‘this is a wonderful opportunity to ensure that the entitlement to high quality PSHE, which includes alcohol education for all children and young people in our schools, however they are funded, is met and for them to receive a properly planned curriculum taught by well trained, confident and competent teachers.’
For more information visit www.alcoholeducationtrust.org or email kate@alcoholeducationtrust.org.
Notes: The Alcohol Education Trust charity, with PSHE specialists and teachers as Trustees, provides a widely used and highly evaluated evidence based programme, talk about alcohol for 11- 18 year olds across the UK. It is an early intervention, social norms based programme which significantly delays the age that young people begin drinking and improves knowledge and engagement in PSHE. Schools may order a copy of the 100 page workbook free, which is fully supported online with film clips, activities and interactive resources available online, by emailing kate@alcoholeducationtrust.org or downloading a copy via www.alcoholeducationtrust.org.
With best wishes,
The Alcohol Education Trust