PRESS RELEASE – 08.01.08
Lurgan Catalyst Parent respond to ‘teen drinking’ survey
Lurgan Catalyst Parent, a project of Love for Life, has
responded to the survey reported in the Lurgan Mail last week on
underage drinking, with a call for the community in Lurgan to do
more to tackle the problem. As the survey results indicated,
alcohol abuse is often linked to other risk taking behaviours
among young people and often the local community suffer as a
result of anti-social behaviour.
Michele Wilkinson, Community Development Worker with Lurgan
Catalyst Parent, commented:
“The problem of underage drinking is not isolated to Lurgan, but
can be a problem in any town and community.
“Central to tackling the issue is the importance of educating
and engaging with parents/carers in the Lurgan area. We are
currently running training courses with parents in local sports
clubs, identifying what parents can actively do to prevent their
children making bad choices in the area of alcohol and drugs. It
is vital that parents/carers are engaged in these issues.
“It is only by working together within the local community that
we can effectively challenge the cultural norms around alcohol.
There are a lot of pressures on young people in today’s society
and they need to hear clear messages around the dangers of binge
drinking and engaging in other risk taking behaviours. It is
also important to remember that the majority of young people in
Lurgan and the wider area are making good choices and are not
getting involved in risk taking behaviours like underage
drinking, illicit drug use and underage sexual activity.”
Lurgan Catalyst Parent is encouraging members of the Lurgan
community to sign up to the Catalyst Vision of bringing about
community change so that it’s easier for children and underage
young people to be alcohol, drug and sex free.
The next meeting of the Lurgan Catalyst Parent focus group will
take place on 10th January at 7.30pm in Lurgan Town Hall. All
members of the community are welcome.
Please visit the website www.lurgancatalystparent.org or contact
Michele on 3882 0555 for more information. |
