Becker J, Roe S (2005) Drug use among vulnerable groups of young people. Findings from the 2003 crime and justice survey. Home Office Research Findings 254. London, Home Office

The UK Government’s Drug Strategy includes a target of reducing the use of Class A drugs and the frequent use of any illicit drug by all young people (i.e., under 25 years of age) and, in particular, by those young people most vulnerable to problematic drug use. The Crime and Justice Survey provides the best available opportunity to examine the patterns of drug use among vulnerable groups of young people. It is a large, national survey of people aged 10 to 65 living in a representative cross-section of private households in England and Wales. The inclusion of a youth boost means that about half of this sample are aged 25 or under. It also contains more information on the background characteristics of respondents than other large-scale surveys such as the British Crime Survey or the Department of Health’s Secondary Schools Survey. This Findings focuses on the prevalence of drug use amongst several different vulnerable groups of young people identified in the Crime and Justice Survey in the 10 to 24 age range.

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Coomber R, Millward L, Chambers J et al. (2004a) A rapid interim review of the ‘grey’ literature on drug prevention in young people aged 11-18 with a special emphasis on vulnerable groups. London: Health Development Agency.

The specific aims of this review are to:

• Highlight what interventions in the grey literature suggest a real potential to prevent drug use and/or reduce drug related harm amongst young people aged 11-18 generally and of those within that age range who are member of `vulnerable' groups more particularly.
• To identify consistent findings/advice as to effective and good practice for general 11-18 populations and for vulnerable groups therein.
• Identify common positions from government departments and other major players
• Identify gaps and inconsistencies in the evidence base and to provide a steer on future research commissioning.

http://www.publichealth.nice.org.uk/page.aspx?o=514766

Coomber R, Millward L, Chambers J et al. (2004b) A rapid interim review of the ‘grey’ literature on risky behaviour in young people aged 11-18 with a special emphasis on vulnerable groups. London: Health Development Agency.

 The specific aims of this review were to:

• Highlight what interventions in the grey literature suggest real potential to prevent and/or reduce generic risky behaviour amongst young people aged 11- 18 generally and with a particular emphasis on `vulnerable' groups.

• Identify gaps and inconsistencies in the evidence base and to provide a steer on future research commissioning.

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Carlini-Marlatt B (2005) Grandparents in Custodial Care of their Grandchildren: A Literature Review. London, Mentor

In the UK there are thousands of grandparents who take on full time care of their grandchildren. A significant proportion of the parents of these children have significant drug problems. Many children in these situations have witnessed and even assisted parents in managing their drug problems.

Mentor UK is working in partnership with the Department of Health, Adfam and Grandparents plus to find out what grandparents, who are primary carers for their grandchildren, need to enable them to provide support and advice about drug-related issues.

This literature review focuses on grandparents in full-time care of their grandchildren including research related to the physical, mental and social health of custodial grandparents, the challenges presented by children and adolescents raised by grandparents and research on positive interventions.

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McCormack M, Walker R (2005) Drug Prevention for Young Asylum Seekers and Refugees. London, Mentor

This paper, commissioned by Mentor UK, looks at drug prevention among young asylum seekers and refugees in the UK. It includes a literature review, an overview of existing provision and identification of gaps in our current knowledge.

Drug treatment services treat individuals once they have developed a problem. The prevention of drug misuse addresses personal, social or environmental factors in order to contribute to delaying or avoiding the onset of drug use and its progression to harmful or problematic misuse. It is based on the principle that drug misuse is preventable behaviour and that prevention can bring about lasting changes in communities.

The UK government and others have stressed the importance of prevention in tackling the structural problems affecting socially excluded communities across the UK.

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Smyth NJ, Saulnier CF (1996) Substance abuse prevention among high-risk youth. Journal of Prevention and Intervention in the Community. 14:61-79.  

The abuse of alcohol and other drugs (AOD) by youth is, once again, on the rise, emphasizing the need for prevention intervention. This article discusses the research on the prevention of substance abuse among youth who are identified as especially vulnerable to, or at high risk of, AOD abuse. The individual, interpersonal, and institutional risk factors associated with substance abuse among youth are described. Research on prevention programs for high risk youth is presented next, with a consideration of the methodological problems associated with this research. Despite the problems noted, the findings suggest there may be some effective methods of preventing substance abuse among high risk youth. The article concludes with a discussion of implications for prevention practice, as well as social policy.

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