INTRODUCTIONSSubstance abuse is the continued use of drugs or alcohol despite negative consequences for the person using them, their friends, family and the community. Drug abuse is generally considered a crime while most individuals view it as a mental health problem. Most people do not seek help due to stigma and fear of the law. This school-based health education program can only be successful if partners from the health, education and social services sectors are actively involved.TARGET POPULATIONThe target population considered is adolescents aged 13 to 17 years old, although there have been cases of drug use among individuals under 17 years old. this age group. The teenagers attend 5 secondary schools in Manchester, in the northwest of England. This population is important due to the high rate of drug use in the region. Although the greatest number of deaths occur in the 40 to 49 age group, most addicts admit to using drugs in their early teens. Manchester, in the northwest of England, will be chosen due to the high rate of drug abuse in the area. PLANNING FRAMEWORK The Getting To Outcomes (GTO) planning model (Chinman et al. 2004) will be used to implement this program as is. suitable for long-term projects. It was originally designed to improve substance abuse programs. The GTO will be important because it is flexible, recognizes existing programs, and has checklists for accountability (Wiseman et al. 2007). However, the use of checklists may be limited and this program will adopt some steps from the Precede-Proceed model. Indeed, the Precede-Proceed model recognizes that there are multiple factors responsible for people's behavior and it describes...... middle of document ...... mrs will use an educational and behavior change approach ( Naidoo and Wills, 2009).EVALUATIONThe project will be evaluated based on the increase in knowledge regarding the effects of drug abuse. An evaluation of process, impact and outcomes (Naidoo and Wills, 2009) will be carried out before, during and after the programs. ETHICAL ISSUES Ethical approvals will be requested from schools where the programs will be implemented. Informed consent will also be sought from parents.CONCLUSIONThis project would be most effective as a long-term project that can also be scaled up for use in other secondary schools. Hopefully the project will lead to a reduction in drug abuse, as we will know more about its consequences and that it is much more than just a habit, but a health problem with several underlying factors..