Children are turning their backs on drink and cigarettes

Schoolchildren are turning their backs on alcohol, new figures reveal today.

Government findings show that one in five 11 to 15-year-olds say they drink - a six per cent drop in the past seven years. Nearly half of pupils say they have never drunk alcohol, compared with two in five in 2001. But pupils who do consume alcohol do so at worrying levels - an average of six pints of beer or one and a half bottles of wine a week.

The NHS Information Centre survey, based on 7,831 pupils aged from 11 to 15, also showed smoking in this age group fell to its lowest level in 25 years last year. Six per cent regularly use tobacco compared with 10 per cent in 2001.

Drug use is falling although a quarter of respondents said they have tried drugs at least once, and 10 per cent said they had taken an illegal substance such as cannabis and ecstasy in the last month. This compares with 12 per cent in 2001.

NHS Information Centre chief executive Tim Straughan said: "Drugs and alcohol appear to have a decreasing hold on 11 to 15-year-olds, which can only be a good thing for future generations."