Young people in England are drinking less. Evidence from multiple surveys shows a consistent
pattern over 10-15 years of reduced participation in drinking, reduced consumption levels
among drinkers, reduced prevalence of drunkenness and less positive attitudes towards
alcohol. Similar changes are seen across the UK, Europe, North America and Australasia. The
downward trends are also not limited to alcohol. Declines are also seen in smoking and illicit
drug use among young people.
This report launches a new four-year study funded by the Wellcome Trust, which aims to
examine the patterns and causes of the decline in youth drinking. In this first publication, we
bring together data from two long-running, nationally-representative surveys, the 1988-2016
Smoking Drinking and Drug Use amongst Young People in England surveys (SDD) and the
2001-2016 Health Surveys for England (HSE), to present the most comprehensive picture to
date of the downturn in alcohol use among young people aged 8 to 24
