Drug use Among Schoolchildren in Rural Scotland

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Abstract
This paper reports on levels of substance use among a representative sample of 765 schoolchildren aged approximately 12–15 years-attending 5 schools in rural Perth and Kinross District, Scotland. Experience of tobacco was reported by over half of the sample (56.0 %). Of smokers, 53.2 % reported having smoked in the past month. A majority of pupils had consumed an whole alcoholic drink (72.4 %), 55.8 % of whom had drunk alcohol in the past month. Just under half reported having been intoxicated (46.6 %), with a mean number of 17 days reported drunk in the past year. Pupils reported high levels of awareness and exposure to illicit drugs. A quarter reported lifetime experience of drugs (25.4 %). By age fifteen, 44.4 % had tried a drug. Cannabis accounted for most of this drug use (23.0 %), although 12.8 % reported use of more than one drug (the mean number taken was 2). The levels of drug use reported are comparable with national survey results and suggest the degree to which drugs are prevalent in rural as well as urban areas.