Vulnerable children in Notts abusing drugs and alcohol

Authorities in the area have flagged more than 1,500 concerns about children abusing alcohol or drugs over the last four years, according to Department for Education data.

Charity Barnardo's says more should be done to tackle the ‘alarming’ issue of drug and alcohol use among children referred to social care services across England.

Figures for Nottinghamshire show 504 concerns about child-related alcohol misuse and 1,137 cases relating to drug abuse were identified during assessments of children in need between 2017-18 and 2020-21.

In the latest year, assessors flagged 417 concerns about childhood substance misuse – 288 cases involving a youngster's drug use, and 129 their misuse of alcohol.

That figure was down from 487 the year before, but higher than the 358 cases recorded in 2018-19, before the coronavirus pandemic.

Across England, concerns around a child's drug or alcohol use were identified 39,000 times at assessments in 2020-21 – down 7 per cent from the year before, but up 9 per cent compared with 2018-19.

Alarming

Michelle Lee-Izu, Barnardo's interim co-chief executive officer, said the figures were alarming and the impact of the pandemic on young people's mental health could have contributed to their use of drugs and alcohol.

Calling for increased funding for mental health support in schools, she said: “To counter this and help children and young people cope with the trauma, loss and adversity they have experienced, we need a radically different approach to ensure they get the support they need."

National figures could be higher, as the pandemic contributed to a 7 per cent drop in referrals about children in need in 2020-21, mainly driven by a fall in referrals from schools, according to the DfE.

In Nottinghamshire, social services received 10,089 referrals about children in need last year – 10 per cent fewer than 11,184 in 2019-20.

There were 4,580 children in need in the area as of the end of March, the figures show.

They were among 388,000 youngsters across England in need of help and protection from local authority services.

A Government spokeswoman said it was providing investment to charities supporting vulnerable children and giving billions of pounds to local authorities to help them respond to pressures, including for children's services.

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