HEROIN FEARS OVER SCHOOL DRUG TESTS

RANDOM drug testing in schools runs the risk of encouraging pupils to
switch from using cannabis - which can be traced in the body for long
periods - to drugs such as heroin which are flushed out more quickly,
a report claimed today.

Research commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation warned that
the expansion of testing could lead to more pupils trying to conceal
illegal drug-taking, rather than simply leading to a reduction in use.

The report suggested schools should halt random drug testing because
it may have unintended negative consequences.

In the few independent evaluations which have taken place, evidence
that the schemes led to a reduction in illegal drug use was "far from
conclusive", the report found. Neil McKeganey, professor of drug
misuse research at Glasgow University, said: "In light of this, it
would seem preferable to avoid the ad hoc proliferation of random
testing programmes until such time as there are clear data on
effectiveness.

"If random programmes were to be piloted there would be an obvious
need to ensure that their impact was rigorously and independently evaluated.

"Such evaluation would need to be undertaken on a large enough sample
of schools to be sure that any positive or negative outcomes were a
genuine consequence of the drug-testing programme. Research would also
need to consider the possible impact of a drug-testing programme on
young people's educational experience."

The report is entitled "Random drug testing of schoolchildren: A shot
in the arm or a shot in the foot for drug prevention?"

It pointed out that random schemes only test a small number of pupils
and so were unlikely to uncover serious problems. The study added:
"Imposing drug-testing programmes could undermine trust between pupils
and staff, making it harder to discover whether a positive test is the
sign of a significant drug problem, or experimentation.

"It could also give rise to calls for staff to be tested as well -
something teachers and their unions might resist."