A study examined the relationship of young people with alcohol, and identified the factors behind their drinking habits. It highlighted the influence of friends' behaviour, and of alcohol pricing.
Source: Peter Seaman and Theresa Ikegwuonu, Drinking to Belong: Understanding young adults' alcohol use within social networks, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Links: Report | Summary | JRF press release
Date: 2010-Dec
A report said that alcohol consumption by children and young people under 18 remained a significant problem. Although government policy had often focused on how to tackle alcohol as a public nuisance issue, insufficient attention had been paid to the health problems that young drinkers faced.
Source: Tom Smith and Anna Curran, Right Time, Right Place: Alcohol-harm reduction strategies with children and young people, Alcohol Concern
Links: Report | Alcohol Concern press release | Telegraph report | Guardian report | BBC report
Date: 2010-Oct
A new book examined the evidence on alcohol advertising and marketing effects on young people. Methodological weaknesses 'abounded' in studies of the purported effects of alcohol advertising and other forms of marketing. The significance of advertising as an agent that shaped young people's alcohol consumption could be weaker than often thought.
Source: Barrie Gunter, Anders Hansen and Maria Touri, Alcohol Advertising and Young People's Drinking: Representation, reception and regulation, Palgrave Macmillan
Links: Summary
Date: 2010-Oct
A joint inspectorate report said that youth offending teams (YOTs) had made good progress in identifying and addressing alcohol misuse in children and young people: but that further improvements needed to be made.
Source: Message in a Bottle: A joint inspection of youth alcohol misuse and offending, HM Chief Inspector of Probation/Care Quality Commission/Healthcare Inspectorate Wales/Estyn
Links: Report | CQC press release | YJB press release
Date: 2010-Jun
A report by a committee of MPs said that measures to reduce problem drug use by young people were having a limited effect. It was 'unacceptable' that the Home Office had not carried out sufficient evaluation of the programme of measures in the strategy, and did not know if the strategy was directly reducing the overall cost of drug-related crimes.
Source: Tackling Problem Drug Use, Thirtieth Report (Session 2009-10), HC 456, House of Commons Public Accounts Select Committee/TSO
Links: Report | DrugScope press release | Transform press release | Guardian report
Date: 2010-Apr
A report said that the drug and alcohol treatment system needed to be more flexible in order to effectively meet the needs of older teenagers and young adults developing substance misuse problems.
Source: Marcus Roberts, Young People's Drug and Alcohol Treatment at the Crossroads, DrugScope
Links: Report | DrugScope press release
Date: 2010-Mar
A report (by an official advisory body) examined the government's progress in addressing the hazardous use of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs by young people. Despite 'significant progress' there was further work to be done – chiefly around young people's exposure to alcohol.
Source: Pathways to Problems: A Follow-Up Report on the Implementation of Recommendations from Pathways to Problems, Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs
Links: Report | ACMD press release
Date: 2010-Mar