Kick Ash Smoke Free Policy

School Name

Kick Ash Smoke Free Policy

 

Introduction

 

At our school, we take seriously our duty to promote children and young people’s wellbeing and their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development (Education and Inspection Act, 2006). We see our commitment to creating a smoke free environment and developing pupil’s knowledge, attitudes and skills in decision making around smoking as part of our work on keeping children and young people safe around drugs and managing risk.  Accordingly, this Policy compliments our school’s Drug Policy.

 

Definition

 

A drug is any substance which affects how a person thinks, feels or behaves (World Health Organisation). The term includes medicinal, non-medicinal, legal and illegal drugs. Therefore drug refers to nicotine as well as alcohol, volatile substances, medicines, illegal drugs and psychoactive substances (legal highs).

 

Aim

 

To ensure a whole-school approach to tobacco in order to protect all members of the school community from the harms of second-hand smoke and to prevent the uptake of, and reduce the prevalence of, smoking across the school community.

 

Objectives

 

• To provide a smoke free school environment for the whole school community.
• To ensure that tobacco education is part of the school’s progressive entitlement curriculum of drug education / PSHE (including the health effects, legal, economic and social aspects of tobacco use).
• To promote the Kick Ash ‘proud to be smoke free’ message to all our children /young people.
• To ensure that all staff promote positive attitudes and behaviour in relation to tobacco.
• To ensure that staff have the knowledge and understanding of policies, procedures and agreed practice to support the implementation of the Smoke Free Policy.
• To involve all staff, governors, pupils, parents/carers and members of the wider school community including outside agencies as appropriate, in the development of policy and practice in relation to tobacco.
• To adopt and support interventions that aim to prevent the uptake of smoking amongst pupils, staff, parents/carers and members of the wider school community.
• To involve the wider school community in interventions to prevent the uptake of smoking in children and young people, by providing stop smoking groups/support for parents and carers and through helping them to talk to their children about tobacco and other risk taking behaviours.
• To provide assistance for pupils, staff and other members of the school community who smoke and wish to stop.
• To ensure that the School’s Smoke Free Policy is applied when children / young people are taken off site.

 

Rationale

 

All members of the school community have the right to work and learn in a smoke free environment.

 

Exposure to second hand smoke (passive smoking) increases the risk of lung cancer, heart disease and other illnesses. Exposure to role models who smoke also normalises smoking behaviour, which can have a significant negative impact on the delivery of the smokefree message.

 

Smoking remains the largest preventable cause of death and illness in England, responsible for over 80,000 deaths per year. It kills half of all long term users. Two thirds of all new smokers in England are young people under the age of 18. Those who start smoking before the age of 16 are twice as likely to continue to smoke compared to those who begin later in life, and are more likely to be heavier smokers (Muller 2007). The earlier children become regular smokers, the greater their risk of developing life-threatening conditions, such as lung cancer or heart disease if they continue smoking into adulthood.

 

 

 Smokefree school sites and non-smoking staff provide positive role models for children and young people and contribute to the development of a health-promoting school (School Smoke Free Policy Template UK).

 

This includes the use of e-cigarettes (electronic cigarettes) due to the following reasons:

 

1. E-cigarettes are not yet regulated and we are still unsure about the safety of the product. They are not due for medical regulation until 2016.
2. E-cigarettes look like normal cigarettes. There are potential regulatory issues around enforcing cigarette bans.
3. There are evidence based Nicotine Replacement Therapy products available on prescription if your staff member is trying to quit smoking or having difficulty with nicotine cravings during work hours.
4. Young people may be influenced by adults smoking e-cigarettes; for example if youth workers or librarians start using e-cigarettes during their paid work time. We are hearing anecdotal evidence of young people purchasing e-cigarettes on-line and selling them onto other pupils at school. 

 

 

Providing a smokefree environment (Procedure)

 

• This Policy applies to students, staff, parents/carers, members of the public, contractors or others working / using the School premises or vehicles and all vehicles used to transport students.
• Smoking is not permitted in any part of the school’s premises and grounds including the entrance area to the school, on land adjacent to the School building (e.g. car parks, garden areas, walkways, playgrounds, playing fields etc.) or on the school road crossing patrol areas. This Policy will apply equally to future premises at the construction stage of any new building and refurbishment or relocation project.
• There are no designated smoking areas provided within the School buildings or grounds.
• The Smoke Free Policy applies to all events / activities held in the School including before and after school sessions, any meetings organised which are attended by school employees as part of their work and/or visitors to such meetings/events.
• Suitable posters, displays and statutory no smoking signage will be displayed in school areas to create a positive visual message which supports a smokefree working environment.
• Smoking is not permitted in any school owned/hired/leased vehicles, as well as private vehicles when used for carrying students or staff on school business. Please note: this is a statutory requirement. Schools also have a duty to reinforce the smoking legislation on buses used for pupil transport.
• This Policy applies when students are taken off site on school excursions/ visits/trips. Staff and accompanying helpers will be reminded that smoking is not permitted when on duty / looking after students.

 

Smoking prevention activities (Procedure)

 

Students

 

 

• Students are not permitted to smoke when in uniform or when representing the School in any capacity. This includes all tobacco products and electronic (e) cigarettes.
• Employees are not permitted to smoke in the view of pupils. Employees who do smoke will be asked to ensure they cannot be seen smoking by students (even if it is off the school grounds).
• Tobacco education is part of the School’s progressive entitlement curriculum of drug education / PSHE (including the health effects, legal, economic and social aspects of tobacco use) which may be delivered across the curriculum (biology, chemistry, citizenship, geography, mathematics and media studies.
• A range of age appropriate methodologies will be used to deliver tobacco education with the aim of preventing the uptake of smoking including E.g. Operation Smoke Storm, discussion strategies, use of new technologies, drama strategies including theatre in education and where appropriate use of outside agencies.
• The School supports tobacco education through the transition phase from primary to secondary school through engagement in programmes such as Kick Ash.
• Parents/carers are encouraged and supported to be actively involved in their child’s drug/tobacco education through home /school activities, drug education evenings etc.

 

Staff

 

• Training on drugs including tobacco is available for all teaching staff as appropriate as well as pastoral staff and those involved in smoking prevention work including: the Head teacher, Year Heads, school governors, pastoral staff.

 

Other Related Polices /Guidance

 

Within the School this Policy is linked to/consistent with:

 

• Drug Education Policy
• PSHE Policy /Healthy and Wellbeing Strategy
• Health and Safety Policy
• Behaviour Policy
• Educational Visits Policy
• Confidentiality Policy
• Equality /Diversity Policy
• Staff Continuing Professional Development Policy
• Disciplinary Policy

 

Responding to smoking related incidents

 

The following procedures will apply when there is non-compliance with the Smoke Free Policy.

 

Staff

 

The Schools Disciplinary Procedure will be followed for members of staff who do not comply with the School’s Smoke Free Policy.

 

The staff member will be offered support to help them quit smoking through linking them with appropriate support in the community.

 

Students

 

In line with the guidance from the Kick Ash Programme, the following procedure will be followed for students in breach of the School’s Smoke Free Policy:

 

The student(s) will be offered the choice to see the smoking cessation advisor in school and begin a programme of support.  If they choose not to seek support, a letter will be sent to parents/carers informing them of the support available and the sanction of (school to add in) applied.

 

In the first instance, support is be offered to quit smoking as nicotine is highly addictive and research shows that children /young people and adults are more likely to quit smoking with support from a smoking cessation advisor and nicotine replacement therapy (NRT).  NRT is available on prescription for 12 years old and above and certain products can be agreed upon with your stop smoking advisor for example; lozenges but not gum.  Free training is available for your school to have an in-house advisor.

 

Non staff members/school visitors

 

Staff are authorised to ask non-employees who breach the Policy to adhere to the Policy.

 

Assistance for those who smoke

 

• Local NHS Stop Smoking Services are available to staff, parents/carers and students who would like to stop smoking (please note: this service should not be seen as a disciplinary action). Free group and one-to-one support may be available for staff and parents/carers through their local Stop Smoking Service (Please insert details of local Stop Smoking Service, details of which can be found at: www.smokefree.nhs.uk).
• The NHS Stop Smoking Service may be able to set up a group for parents/carers and/or staff in school upon request. Students in the first instance, should access services through the school nursing service or their GP Practice, or by contacting the NHS Specialist Stop Smoking Service.
• The School will promote these services regularly within the school and through parents’ /carer’s newsletters/ website etc.

 

 

Monitoring and Evaluation

 

The Policy will be reviewed and developed in consultation with the whole school community. It will be widely publicised (staff induction, staff appointment contracts, handbook, website, notice boards, prospectus, promoted) and will be included in contracts for those hiring the use of the School premises.

 

The Policy will be monitored by the Head teacher to ensure compliance and its successful implementation.

 

The Policy will be reviewed every (state) years and ratified by the Governing Body.

 

Date of Next Review:

 

 

References

 

DiFranza JR, Wellman RJ, Sargent JD et al. (2006) Tobacco Promotion and the initiation of tobacco use: assessing the evidence for causality. Pediatrics 117 (6): e1237-48

 

Fuller E (Editor) 2007. Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in England, 2006. London: Information Centre for Health and Social Care

 

Goddard E (1990). Why children start smoking. London: Office for Population, Censuses and Surveys and Department of Health

 

Muller T (2007) Breaking the cycle of children’s exposure to tobacco smoke. London: British Medical Association

 

NICE Public Health Guidance 23 (2010): School-based interventions to prevent the uptake of smoking among children and young people