A new report (attached) from the Higher Education Policy
Institute, Illicit drug use in universities: zero tolerance
or harm reduction? (HEPI Debate Paper 29), suggests a
zero-tolerance approach to illicit drug use may cause more harm
than it prevents, as those who need help do not come forward for
fear of punishment. Drawing on available evidence, the authors
Arda Ozcubukcu and Professor Graham Towl argue that an approach
based on public health and focused on harm reduction is a better
way to deal with students who take illegal drugs.
The report proposes a more tolerant and outcomes-based approach
to illicit drug taking on campus. This prioritises preventing
drug harms over preventing drug use, at least in the short term,
in cases where students are unwilling or unable to quit using
illicit drugs.
Many students experiment with drugs. If they want to come forward
for support in coming off drugs, as the report discusses, higher
education institutions should help them by providing an enabling
environment. Taking that one step further, the paper proposes
that, if students are taking illicit drugs and want to do so less
unsafely, then they need help with this too, rather than risk
greater harm to themselves.
There is a gap between what the decision-makers think and what
the reality is for students when it comes to drug-related
matters, making it challenging to frame the problem accurately.
To contribute to the debate on how higher education institutions
can best help students, the report includes several
recommendations to reduce drug-related harms, including:
- framing illicit drug use as a health issue, rather than as
predominantly a criminal justice issue;
- integrating drug use matters into broader institutional
narratives such as mental health and wellbeing; and
- providing non-judgmental information on drugs through
campaigns, workshops, talks and online materials.
Arda Ozcubukcu, Co-founder and Director at NeuroSight and one of
the authors of the report, said:
‘If students aren’t asking for help in a life-threatening
situation because they worry about punishment, then that’s a big
problem. We all want students to be safe. Harm reduction based
approaches can literally save lives. Tolerating drug use might
feel uncomfortable but what matters is the outcomes. This is a
complex problem which cannot be reduced to the presence or
absence of drug use. Universities have the opportunity to bring
the nuance needed to address this problem and set an example to
other institutions.’
Graham Towl, Professor of Forensic Psychology at Durham
University and the other author of the report, said:
‘The higher education sector already seems to be moving away from
the blunt instrument of “zero tolerance” to a more
evidence-informed approach in tackling our problem with illicit
drug use among students. The tide is turning and we have an
opportunity to make a difference in terms of securing better
outcomes for students in need of help. Our work in this area will
also more than likely save student lives too – what could be more
important than that?’
Mike Barton, former Chief Constable of Durham, said:
‘The use of “zero tolerance” is mystifying both in its prevalence
and its futility. It results in a cruel lottery in terms of its
impact on individual students and creates and fosters a wider
encouragement of unsafe environments for those engaged in already
risky practices.’
John de Pury, Assistant Director of Policy at Universities UK,
said:
‘Universities need a different conversation about drugs. We need
to listen to students to understand and address harms and risks.
Above all, we need an open and evidenced approach that has at its
heart the safety and health of our university communities. I
welcome this HEPI report and the clarity with which its authors
put health outcomes first. It coincides with and informs UUK's
recently announced taskforce on student drug use.’
Notes for Editors
- HEPI (www.hepi.ac.uk) was
established in 2002 to influence the higher education debate with
evidence. HEPI Debate Papers are designed to stimulate informed
conversations about topical issues: they do not represent HEPI’s
official position nor should they be read as reflecting the
position of any individual HEPI staff member. HEPI’s previous
work on drug use among students, which appeared in 2018 and which
comes from a different viewpoint, is available here.
- Arda Ozcubukcu is a Neuroscience graduate with a Master’s in
policy from University College London. She is Co-founder and
Director at NeuroSight, where she helps organisations implement
drug harm reduction policies.
- Graham Towl is Professor of Forensic Psychology at Durham
University and a national adviser on mental health to the
Nightline Association. Formerly he was a senior civil servant and
Chief Psychologist at the Ministry of Justice
