Winners announced for Awards tackling youth alcohol misuse

The winners of this year's prestigious Mentor UK CHAMP Awards were announced at a special ceremony at the Royal Institution of Great Britain on the 13 th November, 2008.

Panels of children and young people from across Great Britain selected the three winners of the awards. Blue Peter presenter Andy Akinwolere presented the winners with cheques for £10,000 in front of an audience of 300 guests including many youngsters, Government Ministers and MPs from all parties.

Speakers included Baroness Susan Greenfield, Director of the Royal Institution and Patron of Mentor UK and Sarah McCarthy-Fry, MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools and Learners.

From the many outstanding entries the following were declared the winners in their categories.

Schools category

Adolescents Anonymous, Kirklees

This project, designed and scripted by young people, explores the effects of alcohol misuse on three young people at different stages of their lives. The DVD, along with a comprehensive information pack with lesson plans, is shown to 11-14 year olds across Kirklees to promote sensible drinking.

Communities category

P.A.R.T.Y, Youth Alive, Dumfries

This is a twelve week programme where young people are educated in a fun, participative style about the dangers of alcohol misuse and offered positive alternatives to drinking. With binge drinking among young people in Dumfries a serious issue, one of the most rewarding groups was a group of young men from a local school, some with a history of alcohol misuse who completed the course and received the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award as a result. This group of young people, although gifted in many ways were not achieving at school in traditional ways but really engaged well with this project.

Young People's Involvement category

LookOut Alcohol, Lancashire

This website ( www.lookoutalcohol.co.uk ) has been designed by young people for young people. From the idea of a website with a games concept to the design of the characters to the topics covered, primary school children were involved in all aspects of production. It is an interactive site that incorporates age appropriate alcohol education, downloadable lesson plans for teachers, homework based activities and information section for parents and carers.

As well as being presented with cheques for £10,000 at the Awards ceremony each winner will also receive £10,000 worth of mentoring and consultancy support in 2009.

As Eric Carlin, CEO of Mentor UK said:

“The media constantly bombards us with negative images of young people – especially around misuse of alcohol. The Mentor UK CHAMP Awards proves that there are alternatives and that there are great projects out there helping young people make sensible choices and live healthy lives.”

The Mentor UK CHAMP Awards are held every two years and are supported by drinks producer, Diageo Great Britain, as part of their commitment to educating young people on the dangers of alcohol misuse –both now and in the future.

Benet Slay, Managing Director, Diageo GB, said:

“We would like to congratulate and applaud all those who have devoted their time and energy to developing such a wide range of exciting and innovative ideas to help tackle alcohol misuse. We believe that better education and early intervention is the most effective way of changing young people's perceptions of alcohol and improving their understanding of the effects of irresponsible drinking. Initiatives like these, created by young people for young people, can really make a difference among the at-risk groups where support is needed most.”

-ends-

For further information contact Derek Ferguson by telephone on 020 7739 8494 /0781 598 3636 or by email at derek.ferguson@mentoruk.org

For more about the CHAMP Awards please visit www.mentorfoundation.org/uk/awards

Notes to editors

• Spokespeople are available for interview. Case studies and photographs are also available. Please contact the numbers above.
• The shortlist of finalists in full:
• Communities (3 shortlisted finalists)
  
  Strengthening Families, Cardiff
  This programme works with families to prevent and reduce alcohol and drug misuse and other anti-social behaviour amongst young people aged 10-14. They do this through enhancing parenting skills, building life skills in youth and strengthening family bonds
  
  Mitalee Summer School Project, Luton
  Volunteers work with over 300 young people from a wide range of cultural backgrounds, offering them a range of diverse training programmes, workshops on drugs and alcohol awareness, drama and film production, radio broadcast and sporting activities.
  
  P.A.R.T.Y, Youth Alive, Dumfries
  This is a twelve week programme where young people are educated in a fun, participative style about the dangers of alcohol misuse and offered positive alternatives to drinking. With binge drinking among young people in Dumfries a serious issue, one of the most rewarding groups was a group of young men from a local school, some with a history of alcohol misuse who completed the course and received the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award as a result. This group of young people, although gifted in many ways were not achieving at school in traditional ways but really engaged well with this project.
  
• Schools (4 shortlisted finalists)
  
  Alcohol Workshops, Churches Action on Substance Misuse, Wirral
  CASM run one hour Alcohol Workshops which consist of activities such as role play and question and answer sessions that raise the awareness of children and young people to issues relating to personal safety and health if using alcohol and how making the right choices can influence their futures.
  
  Adolescents Anonymous, Kirklees
  This project, designed and scripted by young people explores the effects of alcohol misuse on three young people at different stages of their lives. The DVD, along with a comprehensive information pack with lesson plans, is shown to 11-14 year olds across Kirklees to promote sensible drinking
  
  Take Risks? Take Care!, Durham
  Through a range of activities this project allows young people to research alcohol and apply that knowledge to scenarios they have designed. They then create dramas which are filmed and used as resources with other groups at community events.
  
  Ludlow Alcohol Project, Ludlow
  As children complete their junior school education in Ludlow and prepare for transition to senior school, this project aims go give them an insight and understanding of the dangers of excessive alcohol use and the impact it can have on the human body and the local community. The children themselves came up with many of the ideas for the games, songs and literature that can be used to educate other young people.
  
• Young People's Involvement (4 shortlisted finalists)
  
  LookOut Alcohol, Lancashire
  This website ( www.lookoutalcohol.co.uk ) has been designed by young people for young people. From the idea of a website with a games concept to the design of the characters to the topics covered, primary school children were involved in all aspects of production. It is an interactive site that incorporates age appropriate alcohol education, downloadable lesson plans for teachers, homework based activities and information section for parents and carers.
  
  The Peer Education Project, Dundee
  Secondary and primary school pupils plan and deliver their own peer led sessions on drugs, alcohol and smoking prevention. As part of this project, young people created and alcohol awareness DVD and resource pack to be delivered to primary schools
  
  Truth Is: A Denton Alcohol Free Poster Campaign, Newcastle
  Denton's poster campaign began when a group of students from All Saints College began working on a campaign to promote the idea of their local area being an alcohol free zone. The young people secured funding which went towards designing a campaign which included postcards, banners and posters all highlighting the message that Denton is an alcohol free zone in relation to underage drinking. The posters feature the young people themselves as models.
  
  Wasted, Space2, Leeds
  The aim of this project was to work with a group of primary school children who were being ‘tracked' through their transition to secondary school. Using a series of games and arts activities organisers explored positive and negative thoughts on the use of alcohol. The outcome of these activities were then used to create a book about being alcohol aware which acted as a springboard for discussion within school, family and the community.
  
• Mentor UK CHAMP AWARDS 2008 – FACTS AND FIGURES

  FACTS

  Guidance issued by the Government in 2004 recommends that education about alcohol should start in primary school, before drinking patterns become established.

  Research by Alcohol Concern in November 2007 shows that hospital admissions amongst under-14s for alcohol poisoning continues to rise, as does the overall number of young people undergoing some form of treatment for alcohol problems.

  It also found that the average pocket money in 2007 for twelve to sixteen-year-olds is £9.53 a week. A combination of rising disposable income and stable alcohol prices means it is now 65% more affordable to buy alcohol than it was twenty years ago.

  According to the national Drugs Education Forum, friends or parents are the most common source of youngsters being given alcohol, along with asking someone else to buy it. Buying or stealing alcohol was much less common.

  FIGURES

  In 2007 evidence shows that up to one in ten 10-11 year olds had drunk alcohol in the previous week and that this rises to one in five 12-13 year olds and more than one in three 14-15 year olds. (1)

  Over one in five 14-15 year old females got drunk in the last seven days. This is slightly more than males of the same age. (1)

  Most of those that drink, drink at home, although substantial numbers of 14-15 year olds use other venues. (1)

  Of those who do drink at home, over one in three do so with their parents always knowing about it. (1)

  Among those 11-15 year olds that do drink, the average weekly consumption has doubled from 5.3 units in 1990 to 10.5 units in 2005. (2)

  Rising levels of alcohol related mortality and illness in adults raises the question of whether problematic drinking by young people is a precursor for misuse in adulthood. (3)

  1. ‘Young People into 2007', Schools Health Education Unit, 2007
  2. The Information Centre, 2006
  3. ‘Acquire', Alcohol Concern's Quarterly Information and Research Bulletin, Autumn 2006

• Mentor UK is a registered UK charity (no:1112339) and company limited by guarantee (no:5609241) that works in conjunction with its partners in the International Mentor family. Our mission is identical: to focus on the prevention of drug misuse in our efforts to promote the health and wellbeing of children and young people and to reduce damage to their lives. Mentor aims to support the effective use of human, financial and intellectual resources to achieve its goals. www.mentorfoundation.org/uk
• Diageo Great Britain is the sales and marketing division of Diageo in Great Britain. Diageo is the world's leading premium drinks business, owning such brands as SMIRNOFF®, GUINNESS®, GORDON' S ®, BELL' S ® and BAILEYS®. Diageo believes it has an important role to play in reminding consumers about making intelligent decisions when drinking alcohol. Diageo Great Britain is a member of The Portman Group, promoting responsible drinking. Visit www.drinkaware.co.uk for information and guidance on responsible drinking