ABOUT HOPE UK

Children and young people are at the heart of Hope UK’s mission.

Hope UK is a drug education charity – equipping young people to make drug-free choices.

For nearly 170 years, (previously as The Band of Hope), we have equipped young people to make drug*-free choices, working with groups and individuals in formal and informal settings helping them develop the knowledge and skills they need to live healthy lives. Our trained volunteers and staff, who work with children and young people in schools and youth groups, provide interactive, age-appropriate, educational sessions about drugs. Life skills that build confidence, enhance peer resistance and develop helpful, transferable skills are woven into sessions designed to encourage healthy choices and enable children and young people to realise their potential.

Drug Education

As well as bespoke sessions and workshops for groups, we run informal drug education in libraries, local high streets and other public places, engaging with members of the public and allowing them to explore drug issues in a safe and non-judgemental way.

Young People

Our youth organisation – Generation Hope – enables young people to get involved with Hope UK in a variety of ways, from attending residential weekends and skill development workshops to representing the organisation.

Training

We also offer training for adults who work, or have contact, with young people – for example, youth workers, parents, social workers, teachers and street pastors.

“Habits adopted in the teenage years can form behaviour for a lifetime. For example, adolescent binge drinkers are twice as likely as their peers to be dependent on alcohol or taking illicit drugs by the time they reach 30 years, while someone who starts to smoke aged 15 is three times more likely to die of smoking-related cancer than someone who starts smoking in their 20s.”
Sir Liam Donaldson, former Chief Medical Officer.

* ‘Drug’ includes legal substances like alcohol and cigarettes.