Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey (SALSUS): technical report 2018

Appendix C: Parent and pupil information letters

Dear Parent/Guardian

Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey (SALSUS)

Your child's class is being invited to take part in an important research study being undertaken at their school. I am writing to provide you with some information on the survey so that you can decide whether you are happy for your child to take part.

Pupils who take part in this survey will be asked to fill in an online questionnaire during class time – it should take around 30 minutes. The questions cover health and lifestyle, including attitudes towards smoking, drinking and drug use among young people. The survey has been running since 1982 and the results have helped in the planning and development of services for young people in Scotland aimed at reducing smoking, drinking and drug use.

The Scottish Government have asked Ipsos MORI, an independent research agency, to run the survey within schools. More than 30,000 pupils in S2 and S4 at a large number of schools across Scotland are being asked to take part - your child's class is one of those which have been invited to take part.

Completed questionnaires will be kept in the strictest confidence and stored securely, and will be used for this research project only. Pupils will not be asked to type their name into the questionnaire so they cannot be identified in the results. Your child's answers to the questions will be looked at alongside those of lots of other pupils. To help us look for any patterns in the results across different parts of Scotland, we will ask pupils to type their postcode into the questionnaire. However, they do not have to provide this information if they would prefer not to. Only the survey research team at Ipsos MORI will have access to individual responses.

If you have any questions or concerns about this survey, please contact me on 0131 226 8677 or by email salsus2018@ipsos.com. The research is being carried out in accordance with data protection guidelines and the MRS Code of Conduct.

The data privacy notice for this project is available at www.gov.scot/Topics/Research/by-topic/health-community-care/social-research/SALSUS

Participation is voluntary and your child will be asked if they wish to take part. If you are happy for your child to take part in the research, you do not have to do anything. However, if you do not wish for your child to take part in this survey, please complete the tear-off slip below and return it to the school within the next 7 days.

Thank you for your help with this important study.

Yours faithfully

Lucy Setterfield, Project Manager, Ipsos MORI

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey (SALSUS)

I do not wish …………………………………… (Print name of child in capital letters) to take part in SALSUS 2018.

Signed …………………………………………... Date …………………………

Name (capital letters) …………………………..

Relationship to child ……………………………. Child's year group: ……………

Scottish Schools Adolescent Lifestyle and Substance Use Survey (SALSUS)

Pupil information sheet

You are being asked to take part in a research study being carried out with young people across Scotland. This sheet tells you more about the study and what it involves.

Why is this survey being done?

SALSUS is an important survey which has been running since 1982. The questions cover your health and lifestyle, including smoking, drinking and drug use. The results of the research will help provide information and advice for young people on smoking, drinking and drug use.

Why have I been chosen?

S2 and S4 classes across different parts of Scotland are being asked to take part by completing a questionnaire. By the end of the research, we will have answers from around 30,000 school pupils. You are being asked to take part because your school and your class were chosen at random to take part in the study.

What does taking part in the research involve?

If you decide to take part you will be asked to complete a questionnaire in class time. The questionnaire should take about 30 minutes to do.

Do I have to take part?

It is up to you to decide whether or not to take part. However, the questions cover things that are important to young people in Scotland today and we really want to know what you think. If you decide to take part you do not have to answer all of the questions if you do not want to and it is ok to stop answering the questions at any time without giving a reason.

Will anyone see my answers?

No one from your school will see your answers. You are not asked to put your name or the school's name on the questionnaire so no one will know who gave what answers. Once you have finished the questionnaire you put it in a sealed envelope so your teacher will not see it.

Only the research team at Ipsos MORI (the company doing the research) will see your answers to the questionnaire. They will put all the answers from all pupils together before they look at the results.

The research is being carried out in accordance with data protection guidelines and the MRS Code of Conduct. The data privacy notice for this project is available at www.gov.scot/Topics/Research/by-topic/health-community-care/social-research/SALSUS

What happens if I decide not to take part?

If you decide you do not want to take part, you will do other work while your classmates complete their questionnaires.

Who do I speak to if I am still not sure whether I would like to participate?

If you have any more questions about the research, please speak to the teacher who gave you this sheet or you can contact Lucy Setterfield from the Ipsos MORI team at salsus2018@ipsos.com or 0131 226 8677.