YORK COLLEGE is set to hold its first drugs awareness day.

The day will see a wide range of people involved with drugs visit the college to speak to students, take questions and offer advice.

Staff from drugs agencies and charities, former users, youth workers and community safety officers will all attend the day.

There will also be four screenings of award-winning filmmaker Kevin Curran's look into heroin misuse in York, Stranded On Cloud Nine.

Mr Curran said: "Events like this are extremely important. Traditional drugs education does not seem to have worked, the figures show that.

"This will be based around real people talking about their stories and their lives, it is about the truth.

"The fact that so many people and services are coming together is really encouraging, I am really excited about this opportunity."

The day is set to run on an informal basis, with students offered the chance to "drop-in" to the social area, where the displays will be set up. It has been organised by the college's health advisory staff, working closely with the students' union and various groups involved.

Kay Ford, one of the college's two health promotion advisors, said research had been carried out at the college into what sort of drugs education students wanted.

She said the results were that students wanted information from people working with substance users and ex-users themselves.

Ms Ford said she hoped people would understand the aims of the day - to make young people aware of the various issues surrounding drug use.

She said: "I hope they would take the view that it is better for students to have the information. We want to help young people become better informed about drugs while getting rid of some of the myths around the drugs issue."

Students' union president Chris Smith said the SU was pleased the day had been arranged.

He said: "It is extremely important. Students arriving here are coming to a completely new environment and it might be the first time in their lives that they are exposed to drugs."

The day is set to take place on October 14 from 10am to 2.30pm.

Updated: 09:49 Wednesday, October 08, 2003