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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Use of sniffer dogs in schools is 'success'
Rebecca Smithers The Guardian
Thursday 21 Apr 2005 Sniffer dogs should be used in all secondary schools to help deter teenage drug use, a crime academic said yesterday after hailing a four-year experiment as "very successful". A pilot scheme involving more than 5,500 pupils attending six secondary schools in Buckinghamshire revealed that random drug searches using specially trained dogs helped to keep classrooms free of drugs. It won the overwhelming backing of staff and parents as well as pupils. Professor Allyson MacVean of the John Grieve Centre for Policing and Community Safety at Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College carried out an independent evaluation of the pilot scheme, launched four years ago. Yesterday she said she hoped to see the initiative taken up in schools across the country following the experiment, which was funded by Thames Valley police. The pilot sample was chosen to represent single-sex, mixed, grammar and secondary modern schools, and received two unannounced visits from the dogs and their handlers during the 2003-04 academic year. No drugs were found on any of the youngsters as a result of the visits, although there were "a few cases" in which teenagers were given support for a drug-related problem. Follow-up questionnaires revealed that 98% of parents, 92% of staff and 82% of pupils agreed it was a good idea for dogs to visit schools. The searches typically involved a pair of dogs, both trained to recognise drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy, heroin and amphetamines. One, known as the "pro-active" dog, is normally a compact breed such as a spaniel, trained to perform a "scurry search" of buildings, areas or vehicles. The other, the "passive" dog, is commonly a retriever breed such as a labrador, trained to screen people who may have come into contact with an illegal substance. Prof MacVean said: "A safe, creative educational environment is a key to the future health of the community. One obstacle to this has been a threat of illegal drugs in schools and the targeting of schoolchildren by dealers who are sometimes their peers. "This report shows just how much pupils, parents and staff welcome such an initiative and have confidence that this is an effective part of the overall drugs education strategy." Bill Moore, school improvement adviser for personal, social and health education at Buckinghamshire county council, said: "The real strength of this programme lies in the way people are working together to provide education around drug misuse for all pupils while working to keep our schools drug-free and providing access to support for those few youngsters who need it." It was found that in some cases pupils had used mobile phones to alert their friends to the searches, while some children and staff were nervous of the dogs. One local head teacher whose school took part in the pilot study admitted that the cost of running the scheme - which was not revealed yesterday - might not be affordable for some schools. Irene Perrin, head of Chesham Park community college, said: "We have a funding issue in Buckinghamshire and introducing this could be a real problem for some head teachers who have deficit budgets." Earlier this year the Abbey school in Faversham, Kent, introduced random drugs tests for pupils in a scheme sponsored by the News of the World and Altrix Health care, a a company which manufactures testing kits. All schools are required by law to have a formal anti-drugs policy.
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