ALCOHOL IN SCHOOLS/ TERTIARY SETTINGS

Please visit the Young People section to learn more about supplying alcohol to young people under the Minimum Legal Purchase Age (18 years). In particular, visit the following sections: 

• Support young people to be alcohol-free 
• Reduce alcohol supply by others 
• If consumption occurs - Supervise its use 
• Get young people the help they need 

The following information has been directly obtained from the New Zealand Police Information Sheet on school balls:

Advice on school balls

The following advice has been compiled from a range of suggestions from both educators and the New Zealand Police.  This is not designed as a definitive list, but as a guide to assist you in your school ball preparations.

School balls themselves are generally very well run. Any problems lie almost exclusively with the pre and after school ball functions.

Supply of alcohol

Schools can discourage the normalisation of alcohol, signalling to students and adults that alcohol is not necessary to have a good time.

However, if alcohol is supplied, schools and parents need to be aware of their obligations under the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act (2012).

Anyone who supplies alcohol to a person under the age of 18 years commits an offencepunishable by a fine up to $2,000, except if:

• they are the parent or guardian [1] of the minor; OR
• they believe on reasonable grounds that they have express consent [2] from the parent or guardian; OR
• the young person is married, in a civil union or living with a de facto partner.

​​Even in the above exceptions[3], the alcohol may only be supplied to the minor in a responsible manner, for example by taking steps to supervise consumption, providing food, offering low-alcohol or non-alcoholic drinks, and arranging safe transport[4]. 

The law basically superimposes host responsibility onto parents, guardians or those with express consent when supplying alcohol.

For more information, please visit the Ministry of Justice website: http://justice.govt.nz/policy/sale-and-supply-of-alcohol

Before the ball

• Set a final time to gain admission to the ball, and a time before which no one is able to leave. Consider a later end time to discourage students attending after ball functions.
• Notify parents of:
  • the date, time and location of the school ball
  • parental responsibility for safe transport – remind them of students adhering to their drivers licence conditions, and the zero alcohol limit for under 20s  
  • that anyone who arrives affected by drugs or alcohol will not be admitted, and their parents called for transport home
  • policy on pre and after ball functions, and the legal obligations (see below).
• Require parents to sign a permission form before ball tickets can be purchased, including:
  • names of the student and partner
  • contact names and phone numbers to call in an emergency.
• Advise students:
  • that alcohol and drugs are forbidden
  • that anyone found in possession or under the influence of drugs or alcohol will not be admitted or allowed to stay at the ball, and their parents will be called to pick them up
  • that they must adhere to drivers licence conditions, and the zero alcohol limit for under 20s.  

Pre and After Ball Functions

• We would suggest that you strongly discourage your students and parent communities from holding any pre or after ball functions.
• But if parents do choose to hold pre or after ball functions, remind them of their obligations around responsible supply of alcohol, the requirement for express consent, and the $2,000 maximum penalty that applies.

On the Night

• Entry to the ball should be by official ticket only.
• Have staff greet students and check their sobriety - searching for alcohol at school balls is covered in the Ministry of Education Surrender & Retention of Property guidelines[5].
• Allocate sufficient staff and parental support to do continual checking of the attendees throughout the course of the ball. Include regular checks of toilet blocks.
• Provide a supervised chill-out zone for any students who arrive intoxicated/under the influence of drugs, where they will wait until parents/guardians collect them.
• Cover all requirements according to your school’s health and safety policies.

Security

• Notify your local Police Station of your intention to hold a school ball, and to discuss your management plans for this event.
• Note that providing security for your school ball is not a function for Police.  If you require security services they are available through your local security services agencies.

Health education is one of three subjects in the Health and Physical Education learning area (HPE) of The New Zealand Curriculum that is mandated until the end of Year 10. 

Alcohol and drug education is within the ‘mental health’ key area of learning within HPE.

There are a range of evidence-based alcohol education resources to support education in high school settings in New Zealand.

The most comprehensive is a whole-of-school, evidence-based programme called Tūturu - the Tūturu resources have been developed and evaluated in New Zealand and are freely available to support schools. These include resources to integrate learning across curriculum areas, strengthen pastoral care, consult with communities, and strengthen pastoral care pathways. Contact the NZ Drug Foundation for more information.

Other resources include:

• Alcohol and other drug education programmes - guide for schools – available here
• New Zealand Health Education Association Position Statement: Mental health education in The New Zealand Curriculum – available here

We recognise the many competing demands that schools face in the delivery of alcohol education. In relation to external providers, peer reviewed critiques of the resources that underpin the alcohol industry 'Smashed' programme have been published in the New Zealand Medical Journal and are available at:

The practice of the alcohol industry as health educator: a critique

Why are alcohol companies in our schools?

There are a number of interventions that are effective in reducing alcohol-related harm among tertiary students.

In brief, strategies can be grouped into those which

1. control the availability and accessibility of alcohol (supply control)
2. encourage reduced alcohol use (demand reduction)
3. reduce the problems stemming from the use of alcohol (problem limitation).

Supply control - strategies to control the availability of alcohol

• Restrict trading hours of licensed premises;
• Limit number or density of alcohol outlets near campus areas (object to liquor licences - see here);
• Advocate to increase the price of alcohol (e.g. through alcohol tax or minimum unit pricing);
• Implement total or partial alcohol bans on campus (e.g. campus alcohol policies or local government bylaws);
• Prohibit alcohol use/sale at campus events;
• Restrict price promotions (campus or community agreement for a policy to prevent alcohol brands that encourage students to drink more than they would normally);

Demand reduction

• Advocate to raise the minimum legal purchase age to 20 years;
• Restrict alcohol advertising and sponsorship - for example in campus publications (see here);
• Conduct campus-wide social norms campaign;
• Require labelling on alcohol products;
• Implement community-based healthy university approaches.

Problem limitation

• Implement host-responsibility programmes in licensed premises or encourage hosts of parties to be responsible hosts;
• Implement brief interventions for alcohol-related problems for students.

Community-based programmes should emphasise collaboration between students, tertiary institutions and the wider community. The following approaches are useful:

• Whole-of setting approach – see The Okanagan Charter for health promoting universities
  • Action 1 - embed health into all aspects of campus culture, across the administration, operations and academic mandates;
  • Action 2 - Lead health promotion action and collaboration locally and globally;
•  Develop a comprehensive strategic action plan with key stakeholders;
• Identify environmental-level strategies and select multiple best-evidence interventions, this includes:
  • Campus alcohol policies, substance-free halls of residence, ban on alcohol ad in student newspapers, etc;
• Evaluate interventions and report the findings.

Please also check out the Case Study - Campus Watch at the University of Otago. Findings have been published in a peer review paper here.

Other useful information 

• Health Promotion in Tertiary Settings: reducing alcohol-related harm A review to inform policy and practice in tertiary settings
• For more information on how to promote health and well-being in tertiary settings, visit the following link http://twanz.squarespace.com/
• Healthy Universities approach in the United Kingdom - Toolkit & Resources