the amy winehouse resilience programme

Resilience ProgrammeThe drug and alcohol awarenessprogramme for schools.

The Amy Winehouse Foundation works to prevent the effects of drug and alcohol misuse on young people. We also aim to support, inform and inspire vulnerable and disadvantaged young people to help them reach their full potential.

“Drug and alcohol education is something that is not very common in schools, and this must change. We all have a responsibility to empower the

next generation and to encourage young people to lead healthy, productive lives and to minimise the harm caused by drugs and alcohol use.” Mitch Winehouse.

The Amy Winehouse Foundation works to prevent the effects of drug and alcohol misuse on young people. As part of this mission, the Foundation gives support and funding to many charitable projects engaging young people in drug and alcohol related programmes.

The Amy Winehouse Foundation have formed a special partnership with Addaction to deliver targeted drug and alcohol education work in schools.

The partnership will combine the Foundation’s programme for secondary schools with Addaction’s targeted prevention programme, Skills 4 Change, which works with young people affected by parental substance misuse. It aims to create a level of awareness in young people that can prove to be life changing.

Addaction’s Skills 4 Change programme has had great success with 86% of students reporting they are now coping better at school and 74% coping better at home because of what they learned through the programme after 6 months. These are similar to the results found immediately after student’s participation in Skills 4 Change, suggesting that these effects last over time.

For more information about Addaction’s Skills 4 Change programme and the Amy Winehouse Foundation you can visit www.addaction.org.uk and www.amywinehousefoundation.org or see the inserts included in this pack.

Amy Winehouse Foundation


It aims to create a level of awareness in young people, that can prove to be life changing.

Why are we doing this?

With more than 20,000 young people accessing specialist drug and alcohol services in 2011/12 it is clear that drugs and alcohol continue to create significant problems for young people, families and the wider community.

As referenced in the Government’s recent 2010 Drug Strategy, high quality drug and alcohol education is needed to help children and young people feel empowered to make positive choices with regards to drugs and alcohol.

This is an issue that both the Amy Winehouse Foundation and Addaction feel strongly about, which resulted in the formation of a strong alliance between the two, to provide early intervention and prevention to enable young people to make positive and well informed decisions when it comes to drugs and alcohol.

‘ Well, I’ve changed. Before I came here I was like getting in trouble and everything…but when we stopped coming here I did get in trouble once and that’s the only time that I got in trouble. I didn’t do most of my homework. I didn’t help around the house, as in doing washing and stuff, but now I do. I never used to be polite to my dad and my stepmum.’ (Student)

The programme, which is led by a specially selected and trained team of recovery volunteers:

• Increases young people’s awareness and knowledge regarding drugs, alcohol, and anti-social and offending behaviour.

• Increases levels of resilience, self esteem and resistance to peer pressure.

• Helps to reduce substance misuse and anti-social behaviour in the local area.

• Increases knowledge about accessing specialist support and treatment.

• Offers support from Childline – who offer a free, confidential phone and online service for children and young people across the UK.

The programme aims to be available to as many schools as possible.

If you are interested in having the programme come to your school or in donating, please see the inserts included with the necessary information.

What the programme does

‘ The students seemed to like the session and I asked them at afternoon registration and they were positive in terms of feedback. I thought what worked well was the honesty of the speaker and the group work they did… The smaller group tasks did enable them to talk more freely and this is when they began to open up…’ (Teacher)

The programme aims to be available to as many schools as possible.

‘An education system that enables and supports young people to make informed choices - whatever they might be, is vitally important. So, it can’t

be right that children and young people could potentially leave school with little or no drug and alcohol education. In partnership with the Amy Winehouse Foundation, Addaction has made a commitment to educating and informing young people to help them make positive choices when it comes to alcohol and drugs. Supporting parents and teachers is an integral part of the programme. By working together with the Amy Winehouse Foundation we aim to have an even greater impact on the lives of children and young people, to help them feel empowered and to have the confidence to make positive choices.’ Simon Antrobus, Chief Executive, Addaction.

“ The talk from the Amy Winehouse Foundation was very helpful, I don’t feel so alone any more” (Student)

The aim of the programme is to prevent damage caused to young people by substance misuse and to thereby improve their future potential in life. AWF have developed an innovative national programme to deliver effective education, communication and support within schools. The programme includes: • Parents’eveningstoinformparentsabouttheunderlyingreasonsforsubstance

misuse, the range of substances currently in circulation and to encourage them to have better communication with their children

• HourlonglessonsdeliveredbyAWF,incorporatingalifestorysharesession• ‘Share’sessionsprovideacatalystforfurtherdiscussionaroundtheunderlying

issues that can lead to drug or alcohol misuse. • Interactivediscussiongroupsaimedatbuildingresilienceinstudents.Discussing

issues including self esteem, peer pressure and risky behaviour• Signpostingtolocaltreatmentservicesand/orAddaction’sSkills4Changeteam.Much of the programme is delivered by a team of people in recovery, who are fullytrained,accreditedandsupportedbyprofessionalworkersinthefield.Theyuse their own experiences to give young people a better understanding of the consequences of drug and alcohol misuse. We have been working with students aged 11 – 18 and have had a positive impact on students facing various issues including: self esteem, self-harm, bullying, depression and body image.Ifyouwouldlikemoreinformationabouttheprogrammeandassociatedcosts,please contact us at [email protected].

“ Far too many young people and their families are affected by substancemisuse,includingalcoholand‘legalhighs’.Wewanttochangethat.Oneofthekeyneedswehaveidentifiedisforaneffectiveeducational and support service for young people and their families, workingwithinschools.InpartnershipwithAddactionwehavedeveloped a programme which works with students, parents and teachers to make them better able to communicate with each other and make informed choices.” Mitch Winehouse

ResilienceProgrammeThe drug and alcohol awareness programme for schools

“HavingtheAmyWinehouseFoundationinreallyhelpedmetounderstandmoreaboutdrugsandalcohol.”(Student)

www.amywinehousefoundation.org

Amy Winehouse Foundation, charity registered in England and Wales no. 1143740. A company limited by guarantee. Registered no. 07737209. Registered office: 5 Harley Place London W1G 8QD. Correspondence to Amy Winehouse Foundation, PO Box 70116, London N12 2DW

ResilienceProgrammeThe drug and alcohol awareness programme for schools

www.amywinehousefoundation.org

Addaction’s Skills 4 Change project is there for young people identified as being at risk because of somebody else’s drink or drug problems and to society more generally.It is thought that over a million children in the UK are living with parents who misuse drugs or alcohol. At Addaction, we are all too aware of the problems this can cause.

These children are at an increased risk of developing emotional and social problems as they grow up. In fact, young people affected by a parent’s substance misuse problem are seven times more likely to develop one themselves.

The programme provides training, mentoring and resources to equip schools and other professionals with the skills they need to deliver high quality drug and alcohol education to young people. What’s more, the programme also helps schools to identify and better support those who may be affected by substance misuse at home.

The programme runs over 6 weeks and combines pupil workshops and presentations with staff training and mentoring. An independent evaluation by University of Warwick has shown that the programme is helping schools to

• Improvebehaviour,attendanceandengagementfromtargetedpupils,aswellasimprovingconfidence and self esteem

• Increasepupilsresilience,sothattheyareabletocopewiththeparentsproblemsandmorewilling to access help and support – 74% said they are now coping better at home because of what they learned on the programme.

• Reduceabsenteeismandthenumberofpermanentexclusions-86%ofstudentsreportedthey are now coping better at school.

• Increasetheskillsandconfidenceofteachers.

• Createmoreeffectivelinkswithsupportagencies.

• Workswithteachersandotheradult’svulnerablechildrencomeintoregularcontactwith.

TheevaluatedresultsfoundafterparticipationinSkills4Changeshowthattheseeffectslastover time.

Skills for change gives young people the skills to change their lives and their future. IfyouwouldlikemoreinformationabouttheAWFResilienceprogramme,Skills4Changeandassociated costs please contact us at [email protected].

Addaction - Registered office 67–69 Cowcross Street, London EC1M 6PU Tel: 020 7251 5860 Fax: 020 7251 5890 E: [email protected] www.addaction.org.uk Registered charity no. 1001957 Scottish Charity no. SC040009 VAT no. 735842515 Company registration no. 2580377

www.addaction.org.uk

‘‘ Well, I’ve changed. Before I came here I was like getting in trouble and everything…but when we stopped coming here I did get in trouble once and that’s the only time that I got in trouble. I didn’t do most of my homework. I didn’t help around the house, as in doing washing and stuff, but now I do. I never used to be polite to my dad and my stepmum. She’s (teacher) like someone that I can trust at this school, because I can tell her everything. I got a reward because she thinks that I’m confident enough…’’ (StudentonSkills4Change).



In partnership with

www.addaction.org.uk

If you would like more information about the programme and associated costs, please contact us at [email protected] www.amywinehousefoundation.org


Addaction - Registered office 67–69 Cowcross Street, London EC1M 6PU Tel: 020 7251 5860 Fax: 020 7251 5890 E: [email protected] www.addaction.org.uk Registered charity no. 1001957 Scottish charity no. SC040009 VAT no. 735842515 Company registration no. 2580377