Drugs at Private Schools

[abignael]

I have a DD in Sixth Form at a Surrey private school (day school) and I was recently looking at schools for my DS for the 11+ next year. I asked for her opinion on schools in the local area and was shocked that most her responses included references to the pupils there being “druggies.” I was particularly appalled when she told me that pupils at a school where I know a housemistress frequently smuggle in Ketamine and take it in their dorms. Apparently this is not uncommon at private schools - particularly boarding ones according to her. I won’t name the schools as I feel dragging their names through the mud at the behest of a teenage girl is inappropriate but could anyone enlighten me on this?

There are certainly regular searches with police dogs at the boarding school my friend’s DS goes to. Occasional expulsions for drug possession too.

Going back 25 years my boarding school was one of ‘the easiest places in Xxx to get drugs’. Rich kids…go figure. Never pushy about it though, I was around it and was offered and just said no.

This was my experience some 15 years ago as well. Prolific drug use and alcohol abuse too.

This is common in all schools, not just private schools. The only difference is that the kids in private schools are buying more expensive drugs…

Less common in our private than the state.

Back in the dark ages when I was at school, there were more drugs in private schools than state, as the pupils had the money to buy them.

Drugs and schools is not a new problem.

Absolutely true in my experience

I guess that’s unsurprising. It was very concerning the way she implied it was the “done thing” at the schools. My dds school has drugs dogs as well, I’m just v shocked at how common she made it seem. I doesn’t help that the other things I know about pupils in the school she told me about don’t exactly make them seem lovely but the way it was described made it seem like the 13 year olds were smoking weed during prep.

Likewise.

It was always a running joke that the local state school kids were on White Lightning down the park, we (not me, I was more of an Archers and Lemonade/Malibu and coke kinda gal) were the more expensive drugs/class As.

More money, less parental oversight (for the boarders at least).

Yes much more drug and alcohol use than the local state school.
More money, less supervision. It's not new was the same 20 plus years ago when I was at school also.

I went to a shitty comp and quite a few kids there were dealing or taking drugs. Mostly spliff but also E / speed. One of them was cutting the speed with rat poison before she sold it (apparently it produces some of the same effects but is cheaper).

So not just a private school thing…

Dh is 50 and he went to one of the top English academic schools that still continues to be a top performer

it was rife when he was there, it was the 90s so it was E’s/hash/acid
kids with lots of money and busy parents that had summerhouses/boats/cottages on estates away from adult supervision
nothing got way out of hand he says and at my own standard comp there was a big of experimenting in the later half of yr13

I went to both types of school. Comp mates had little access to money so it was more about cheap alcohol. (Now vaping and cheap cannabis )
My later V expensive school, as others said, for me = mates with ton of money and freedom. Drugs far worse.

There are a lot of drugs in every school. I've worked private and state A LOT

My DC 's current state school, MC area I suppose, has less drug activity and availability than my public school of early 1990s.

Yep, another big public school alumni here - soooo many drugs when I was there (90s) - mega rich kids = loads of money, absent/lazy parents (why else send your kids away?!) and a sense of epic entitlement. From what I understand from friends who have recently sent their kids to public school / chosen to work as teachers (nutters!) it’s the same now. My kids’ day school is way more tame - of course there’s still drinking and some drugs but it’s no way near the same level.

More money, more expensive drugs.

"Rich kids have the money to buy drugs." This is literally the first thing I said when someone asked for my opinion of (day) private school, 6th form, that DD had recently finished at. Had shocked me, too.

Drugs were not rife at DD's previous (state) school, where my other kids attended, too. None of my kids had friends there who routinely used drugs, 2 DC didn't even have friends who ever drank booze, at the state school. I feel like illegal drug use goes with that famously confident arrogant "privately educated school kid" attitude.

Staff being involved is a new one on me, though.

My memory as someone who went to a state school that had a huge number of private school kids join at sixth form:-

State school kids would get drunk and have sex in the park
Private school kids would take drugs and have sex at young farmers / the tennis club

I went to a very academic private girls’ school with day/boarding. Rife with drugs, self-harm, eating disorders, bullying. Would never send a child of mine to such a school. Stuff like that happens at all schools, but the volume and scale is just so much higher. 1/3 of my year had an eating disorder that I know of; 1 girl died and another girl was institutionalised for years. I remember so many people had self harm scars. There was a culture of hushing up this sort of thing as it was seen as shameful by the school/parents.

There was no escaping that hot-housing, competitive culture - day pupils stayed until at least 16.30, maybe 18.00. Back in by 8am. Sport on Saturdays. Drugs were widespread - mostly weed and coke, a bit of ecstasy. A lot smoked. Nearly everyone drank in the park from 14. This was late 1990s-mid 2000s.

My near 100% in my 4 A Levels was not worth the lifetime of depression, anxiety, and, worse, still being caught up with the eating disorder 20 years later. I’ve managed to make it more disordered eating than eating disorder, but never fully recovered.

@marmite2023

There was a culture of hushing up this sort of thing as it was seen as shameful by the school/parents.

I am afraid it is still a common approach in private schools because they don't want to become seen as a school where there is bullying and drugs. Everything in private schools is swept under the carpet and rather than dealing with the issue they throw the kid out.
This is one of the reasons why I would not sent my DS to even allegedly good private school. In essence those schools are money makers machines that promote their exaggerated greatness.

There are drug takers in all schools, and drinkers. Nothing new about that, it happened when I was a teenager and when mine was at school. You'd hear intriguing whispers about it. Teens often want to push boundaries and experience different things. Obviously there will be some casualties but they usually outgrow it and eventually become pillars of society.

Lots of my peers in private school did drugs, better quality drugs than what I expect you'd find down the state school though. Despite drugs being so rife I don't know anyone whose had their life negatively affected by them.

all sixth forms have this kinda problem it’s nothing to do with private or not. Toxic culture yrs 11-13, esp post COVID

Drugs are rife in private schools

Money
Bigger houses with gardens and garden houses for parties
They become popular for hosting parties not because they are necessarily friend material