What the Understanding Substances Specialist Award is and what your school needs to do to achieve it.
About the Understanding Substances Specialist Award
The Understanding Substances Specialist Award helps schools develop an age-appropriate, consistent and preventative whole-school approach to alcohol, tobacco, vaping and other drugs.
What you school needs to do to achieve the award
The award framework will support your school to review and strengthen:
- leadership, responsibility, staff knowledge and confidence
- policies, procedures and safeguarding practice
- age-appropriate curriculum provision
- prevention and early intervention, and responses to substance-related incidents
- communication with pupils, parents and carers, including clear pathways to advice and specialist support
- monitoring and review of provision
The award framework helps schools make sure that education, policies and responses to concerns reinforce one another.
How long it takes
We recommend that you complete the application within one year, so that your answers stay up to date.
How to start working towards the award
Use our online system to:
- see up to date award criteria and guidance
- tell us you're starting to work towards a specialist award
- send us evidence of your work
- track your progress
- submit your finished work
You can also download a PDF copy of the pdf Understanding Substances Specialist Award criteria(982 KB) .
Guidance and resources
We have advice, training and resources, such as lesson plans and example policies, on our Alcohol, tobacco, vapes and drugs topic page.
After you achieve the award
Your school will:
- receive an Understanding Substances Specialist Award Certificate
- be able to use awards logos to use on your website or letterheads
- recieve further support from the Bristol Healthy Schools Team
Contact us
Get in touch with the Bristol Healthy Schools team to find out more