|
Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
|
|
UK: County Council rejects random drug testing throughout
The Whitehaven News
Friday 08 Oct 2004 COPELAND'S schools will NOT be urged to carry out random drugs tests on pupils, despite the availability of a "revolutionary" new testing kit. Cumbria County Council has this week reiterated its policy that it does not recommend random testing in schools. The decision follows news that a new drug test kit, Preventx, is being made available to schools across the country. Manufacturers claim that the new kit can be administered in just five minutes, and can give an immediate result with more than 97% accuracy. They say it will allow teachers to monitor problems more efficiently, will give parents peace of mind and will deter youngsters from dabbling in drugs. Vivian Brunt, a senior staff member from a Lincoln school, said: "We are delighted that this product is being made available to schools. By enforcing a compulsory drug testing policy we can eliminate a lot of the social, behavioural and educational problems that schools today increasingly face." Preventx bosses quote research which states that 1.5 million pupils in Britain had taken drugs, and more than 700,000 pupils starting UK high schools in September will be exposed to illegal drugs. A spokesman for Cumbria County Council said the council's education service does not recommend random drugs testing in schools. He added: "It offers guidance to all schools to enable them to produce their own anti-drugs policy. "The governors are responsible for introducing the policy and the head teacher for implementing the policy. "Both the education service and schools are committed to eliminate the misuse of drugs by pupils." The spokesman added that individual incidents are dealt with between the pupil, the family and the school.
After you have finished reading this article you can click here to go back.
|
This page was created by the Cannabis Campaigners' Guide.
Feel free to link to this page!