Your Local Church
a. Has the church got a drugs policy? If not, setting out and agreeing one can be a great help in planning drug awareness work and what might be done to help others.
b. What drug awareness activities are available to children’s, youth or adult groups in your church?
c. If someone with a drink or drug problem turned up at church, would somebody know what to do?
d. Are there other parents and family members within the church who would benefit from the type of drug awareness activities outlined in this pack? Could a ‘double-header’ event be organised with young people and family members meeting in separate rooms at the same time?
Would anyone in the church who works with young people benefit from attending a Hope UK course? Might anyone consider voluntary work in the drug field? (Local drug and alcohol agencies are always looking for people to train as voluntary counsellors. Hope UK has a national Voluntary Drug Educator Training Programme for those wanting to do prevention/education activities which is accredited by the Open College Network.)
The Wider Church Context
a. Might a group of churches get together to organise a Children’s Fun Day with the help of Hope UK?
b. Might a training/awareness workshop be organised for clergy and lay leaders?
c. Might your church host a workshop or conference with Hope UK’s assistance, perhaps for voluntary youth and children’s workers in your area?
Community
a. Have your local schools got policies about drug education and/or what happens if there is a drug incident?
b. Have local Parent/Teacher Associations considered the subject of drugs?
c. Could members invite people who don’t go to church into their homes for a drug awareness morning with coffee and cakes?
d. Could you pray for drug issues within your community?
e. Have you anything to say about local drug issues – to your local Councillor, for example?
f. Are there outreach opportunities that could help meet the needs of socially excluded people?
Inviting Someone to Speak About Drug Issues
Before deciding who to invite, consider what aspects you would like to cover. For example, a drug rehabilitation worker might not be the best person to talk about family prevention issues. On the other hand, a general youth worker should be well placed to talk about youth cultures and the place that drug use has in them.
Some of the possibilities:
• Health care professionals working in areas where they come into contact with people whose problems result from using illegal drugs, drinking or smoking, eg, general practitioners and accident and emergency department staff.
• Teachers who have a responsibility for PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education) or Citizenship in primary or secondary schools who could talk about what schools do about drug education.
• A police representative.
• Someone undertaking general youth work.
• Someone from a specialist drug agency – each area has counselling and rehabilitation work in one form or another (check the information in doctors’ surgeries or ask at the local Citizens’ Advice Bureau).
• Ask Hope UK to provide one of their educational staff or voluntary Educators.
