Quarter of pupils admit drinking alcohol in previous week

A quarter of children in England admitted to drinking alcohol in
the previous week, according to a statistical bulletin from the
Department of Health, writes Clare
Jerrom.

In 2003, 25 per cent of pupils aged 11 to 15-years-old had drunk
alcohol in the previous week and this percentage has remained
stable around this level since the mid-1990s.

The bulletin published this week and which contains the most
up-to-date information on alcohol use and misuse also found that in
2002, the average weekly alcohol consumption in England was 17.0
units for men and 7.6 units for women.

However, 27 per cent of men aged over 16 drank more on average
than 21 units a week and 17 per cent of women drank more than 14
units a week. While drinking at these levels has remained stable at
27 per cent for men since 1992, drinking at this level among women
rose from 12 per cent in 1992 to 17 per cent a decade later.

Statistical bulletin from:- http://www.publications.doh.gov.uk/public/sb0415.htm