An Introduction to Mentor

The authoritative voice on drug and alcohol prevention in the UK An organisation that helps society to understand prevention its potential, the evidence for effectiveness, and its practical application. An organisation that lobbies and campaigns for effective policy and practice An organisation that Undertakes specific projects - where there are learning gaps - evaluates processes and outcomes and promising innovations by others An introduction to - the drug prevention charity What we want to be What we do The BME and Rural Project Our Projects This is an alcohol project being carried out in Scotland where we are working with existing grassroots organisations to produce alcohol misuse resources which are culturally appropriate to the communities needs. Half of the projects have a focus on black, minority ethnic and migrant communities and the other half are from rural communities across Scotland. The CHAMP Awards The Mentor CHAMP Awards recognises and rewards projects that help prevent children and young people from misusing alcohol. Awards are available in three categories; schools, community and youth led projects. The most inspirational projects are rewarded with a £10,000 cash award and up to £10,000 of ongoing consultancy support. The Drug Education Forum The Drug Education Forum brings together over thirty national organisations with a commitment to improving the practice and profile of drug education in England. It holds three meetings a year as well as providing a weekly newsletter with information about the latest research and developments in the drug education field. The EU Kinship Carers Project Recent estimates from the UK suggest that nearly half of kinship carers are looking after children because of the drug and alcohol problems of their parents. Mentor is leading a project working across 7 European countries to find ways of protecting children in these circumstances from the harms that drugs can do. The London Youth Involvement Project Mentor’s London Youth Involvement Project (LYIP) aims to enable young Londoners to input their views into policy around drug and alcohol misuse prevention work with young Londoners. The young people involved will engage with local and regional policy makers, experience volunteering opportunities in the sector and seek the views of their peers. Peer Education Alcohol Project The Peer Alcohol Education Project is being delivered across Scotland to young people at serious risk of alcohol misuse. The project has recruited 12 young people aged 14 – 16 years, to become peer educators. The young people have devised and delivered an alcohol education programme to over 180 young people and are now creating a training programme for professionals and parents. Our Vision A World that provides opportunities for the healthy development of children and young people free from the harm caused by drug misuse. Our Mission To prevent drug misuse through the promotion of the health and well being of children and young people. Our values Care and Prevention Inspiration and Encouragement Strengthening and Empowerment Partnership and Collaboration The need The UK has the highest rate of drug and alcohol misuse in Western Europe. Young people’s use is no exception, more than one in two (57%) young people say they have been drunk in the last 12 months, and one in 10 (11%) say they have used cannabis in the last month. 40% of young adults say they’ve used an illicit drug, and our Accident and Emergency rooms are seeing 150 young adults a day because of alcohol misuse (of which over 30 are under 18 years old). With this comes a myriad of social problems. Families can break down, children’s education and wellbeing suffers, crime increases, job prospects are reduced and health can be irreparably damaged. Estimates put the cost to society of illegal drug use at £15 billion a year, with similar costs being apportioned to the impact of alcohol misuse. 41% of 16 to 24 year olds say they have taken an illegal drug. 22% of 11 to 15 year olds say they have taken a drug — excluding alcohol and tobacco — at least once in their lives. 15% said they took a drug in the last year. 8% said they took drugs in the last month. The principles of drug prevention Goals and objectives of the programme are clearly described The programme is relevant to the drug or drugs being targeted The programme is relevant to the age of those targeted for the prevention project The pogramme is sensitive to the culture & community norms of those targeted Targets for change to promote prevention are consistent The programme content and delivery is informed by a needs assessment The programme consists of strategies that promote participation and retention Planning, maintenance and future directions of the programme involve ongoing participation and input from key stakeholders Skills and knowledge are provided that are relevant The overall project has a plan and budget A sustainability plan exists An evaluation and dissemination plan exists The organization is run by skilled staff. Click on a project to find out more