Drugs education charity secures Lottery funding for parents' workshops

Schools are being invited to get in contact with the DSM Foundation in order to book a fully-funded drugs education workshop for parents and carers.

The opportunity has been made possible due to a grant awarded by the National Lottery’s Community Fund. Workshops can be delivered in person or online, with priority given to schools and colleges in England or Wales that haven’t had a DSM Foundation parents workshop in the past, are state-maintained, and/or have an existing relationship with the drugs education charity. Enquiries should be sent to bookings@dsmfoundation.org.uk and are also welcome from settings that do not meet any of these criteria; there may be funding streams available, and all enquiries are dealt with on an individual basis so requirements are met as fully as possible.

The workshops, called “I Wish I’d Known” in line with an award-winning book on drugs for parents and carers written by DSM Foundation director and founder Fiona Spargo-Mabbs, are part of the charity’s core offering. The sessions, which usually last 90 minutes, are very highly regarded by attendees, with many commenting that they find them informative, practical and helpful as well as powerful, thought-provoking and non-judgmental. Recent feedback includes the following:

• “Just to say a massive thank you for the crucial work that you do. An excellent, highly informative webinar delivered in exactly the right tone… keep up the great work.”
• “It was very thought-provoking in equipping parents to have conversations that they may otherwise have avoided because the topic is so difficult… in fact that evening we had a very helpful and engaged conversation with our two teens at the dinner table… I felt empowered and found the conversation went very well.”

The DSM Foundation was established in 2014 following the death of 16 year old Daniel Spargo-Mabbs from an accidental overdose of ecstasy. His family felt that he simply hadn’t known enough to be able to make decisions that would keep him safe, and set up the charity in order to spare other families going through what they had experienced. The aim of the DSM Foundation is to provide young people with relevant, age-appropriate, up to date and evidence-based information about drugs so they develop the skills to make choices that will keep themselves and their friends as safe as possible. However, the adults involved in the lives of those young people also need such information and skills in order to provide appropriate support and advice: NHS surveys regularly show that parents are the most commonly sought out source of information about drugs by 11-15 year olds, and hence the caregiver workshops provided by the DSM Foundation are invaluable.

For more information about the DSM Foundation, go to https://www.dsmfoundation.org.uk/. For more information about the National Lottery Community Fund, go to https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/. Media enquiries about this press release or the work of the DSM Foundation should be sent to media@dsmfoundation.org.uk.