The availability and use of drugs in Slovenian primary schools and in vicinities close to schools

According to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drugs Addiction, preventive programmes and interventions should aim to address drug use in specific settings, such as schools. There are no available data about drug use in schools, especially in an international context; therefore, this study attempted to collect data on the availability and use of drugs in schools and in vicinities close to schools, from students attending Slovenian primary schools. The research study consists of a representative sample of students (n = 1527), parents (n = 1259), teachers (n = 163), and head teachers (n = 60) from Slovenia. The data were gathered with a questionnaire, which consisted mainly of opinion and evaluation scales. Findings: The most important finding of this study was that legal and illegal drugs were easily available in Slovenian primary schools and in vicinities close to schools , and students did use them in these areas. Research findings draw attention to the need for teachers and head teachers to pay special attention to drug use in schools and in vicinities close to schools , although they may not initially see it as a problem