Tomorrow’s blanket ban on legal highs will do little to reduce the harm these substances are having on many young people’s lives, warns research from national youth charity, YMCA.
In the largest survey of its kind on legal highs use among young people, The Big Ban Theory brings together findings from a survey of 1,005 16 to 24-year-olds, as well as focus groups with more than 100 young people across England and Wales.
While the research finds that overall usage is likely to decrease, there will still remain two thirds of young people currently taking legal highs likely to continue to use them in the future.
YMCA believes that to truly affect a change in behaviour and reduce the harms suffered by young people – particularly those taking the more dangerous and addictive substances such as Spice – the ban must go further and be supplemented with impartial information and advice, along with specialist support.
Denise Hatton, Chief Executive of YMCA England, the national council of YMCAs in England and Wales, said: “While YMCA welcomes Government action on legal highs, we have uncovered strong evidence to suggest this will not achieve what is necessary to address the impact they are having on many young people’s lives.
“The ban is likely to have some success in reducing the numbers of young people taking these substances, however, we believe it will do little to address the hidden, darker side to legal highs.
“What we have discovered is that many young people, including those who are highly entrenched in their addiction to substances such as Spice, are likely to be unperturbed by this change in the law.
“Unless the Act is backed up with changes to the education and support currently available, our evidence says that these young people and more will continue to experience harm at the hands of legal highs for years to come.”
Major findings from YMCA’s The Big Ban Theory include:
- Of those young people who currently take legal highs, 64% say they would be likely to use them in the future.
- 57% of respondents first started taking legal highs between the ages of 16 and 18-years-old.
- Of young people who have ever used legal highs, 94% have friends who have also used them.
- 68% of those who have taken legal highs name Laughing Gas as the substance they take most commonly.
Stephen Wooton, 23, from Sunderland, is a former legal highs user who had previously smoked Cannabis.
Now clean, he works on YMCA Sunderland’s Mad 4 U peer-led programme that educates local social workers and young people on the realities of legal highs. Stephen also peer mentors other young people who are trying to stop using legal highs, supporting them through the often difficult withdrawal symptoms.
He said: “I started to use legal highs with friends in 2014 and it took two months to realise how bad it had become. However, by then I was addicted and it felt too late to try and stop.
“It was through YMCA in Sunderland that I got the support I needed, finally giving up after almost two years on Christmas Day 2015. I’ve been clean ever since.
“The ban is a good idea but I don’t believe it will go far enough because it is more important that people are educated on the issues they cause. If they had been illegal when I started using them it wouldn’t have stopped me. If anything, it could have made me even more determined.”
Findings from The Big Ban Theory come from a survey of 1,005 16 to 24-year-olds, half of whom had taken legal highs, and a range of focus groups across all regions of England and Wales.
Read The Big Ban Theory.
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For more information or to request an interview with a YMCA representative or young person, please contact Andrew Mortimer, Communications Manager, at andrew.mortimer@england.ymca.org.uk or call 020 7186 9543.
Notes to editors
YMCA in England and Wales
- Founded in 1844, YMCA in England and Wales is made up of 130 member YMCAs working to ensure that young people have opportunities to thrive and contribute positively to their communities.
- YMCA operates in over 660 different communities in England and Wales impacting upon the lives of more than 600,000 people every year.
- YMCAs provide almost 11,000 beds for young people every night. YMCA is the largest voluntary sector provider of safe, supported accommodation for young men and women.
- YMCA in England and Wales enables nearly 53,000 people every year to engage in education, skills and training to enable them to improve their opportunities in the job market.
- YMCA is the largest voluntary sector provider of health and wellbeing services promoting physical activity
About YMCA Sunderland’s Mad 4 U project
Mad 4 U is a peer-led educational programme made up of homeless or formerly homeless young people aged 16 to 25-years-old from within YMCA Sunderland’s services.
Formed to reflect on young people’s personal experiences of homelessness, the group aims to educate local agencies and fellow young people on the issues of leaving home in an unplanned way.
Mad 4 U currently focuses on raising awareness of the dangers of taking legal highs. It joint works, supporting young people in the local area to combat their addiction and educating them and partner agencies on the issues surrounding legal highs.
Research methodology
The fieldwork for this research was conducted by the specialist youth research agency, YouthSight. The sample consisted of 1,005 interviews with young people between 16 and 24-years-old from across England and Wales. This was split into 500 who had used legal highs and 505 who have never used legal highs. In addition to this, YMCA conducted 16 focus groups across all regions of England and Wales, engaging more than 100 young people.