Children across Greater Manchester getting vapes off street dealers
Students in Middleton are telling Hits and Greatest Hits Radio people are 'dealing' vapes on street corners and supplying kids as young as 11
A student at Edgar Wood Academy in Middleton has been telling Hits and Greatest Hits Radio Manchester people are 'dealing' vapes on street corners and supplying kids as young as 11.
It comes as schools across Rochdale take further steps to reduce the number of young people vaping.
The council-led initiative sets out the potential health risks of vaping and was developed after school leaders expressed concern about the number of pupils using the nicotine-filled devices, which are designed to be used by adults as a less harmful alternative to cigarettes.
It is part of a wider campaign with a key message that vaping is not for children and not risk free.
The latest move aims to equip schools with resources to become vape-free settings. This includes materials for assemblies in secondary schools and training for professionals working with young people.
Over the past few years the council has seized hundreds of thousands of illegal vapes from local businesses, many containing dangerous chemicals and significantly higher levels of nicotine than found in legal devices.
More than 45 schools in the borough have already signed up for the new campaign, and more than 300 banners and signs have been distributed.
The government banned all disposable vapes on the 1st of June.
Harriet Jade is a student at Edgar Wood Academy, one of the schools working to tackle vaping.
Harriet started vaping when she was 11-years-old and said she knows people who would deal disposable vapes on street corners: "There'd be people, you could get their phone numbers, and Snapchat, and Instagram, who would get them (vapes) off someone and sell them to kids my age."
Harriet has since stopped vaping, after someone she knew became seriously unwell: "She didn't know what was in it, and she got taken to hospital for what was in it, we didn't know what was in it.
"All she saw was the colours and the flavours and that's what dragged her to it."
Harriet is concerned at how young people are now vaping: "I've been seeing primary school kids coming out of primary school and vaping.
"It's like coming into high school and then that's the norm."
"There was some kids who used to, in between lessons, say 'I really need a drag of my vape' and that shouldn't be normal... That shouldn't be in your system to carry on (vaping) in lessons."
Councillor Daalat Ali, deputy leader and portfolio holder for health, said: “While vaping is safer than smoking and an effective way for people to quit, vaping is not for non-smokers and it is definitely not for children given nicotine is addictive and their brain development is more sensitive to its impact.
“Unfortunately however, we do recognise some children and young people may still vape, and this is what is being seen right across the country, which is why we have been proactive in our efforts to support local schools in tackling the use of vapes.
“This has so far included training workshops with school staff and educational assemblies with pupils, alongside one-to-one and group support sessions with young people wishing to quit vaping.
“As part of our ‘get your head out of the clouds’ campaign, we have also introduced over 45 amnesty boxes across local schools to encourage pupils to dispose of vapes they may have, which we hope will be used even further following the recent ban on disposable vapes.”