Sessions use a non-judgemental, harm-reduction and motivational-interviewing style rather than a lecture on rules, research shows shame-based approaches push vaping further underground rather than reducing it. The course reflects DfE's wider tobacco and vaping strategy and NHS Smokefree guidance, and supports the Personal Development judgement in Ofsted's Education Inspection Framework, which expects schools to help pupils understand risks to their physical health. Where a pupil discloses supply to other pupils, follow your school's usual safeguarding and behaviour procedures alongside this course.
Objective: Pupil can describe how nicotine dependence forms and separate facts from common myths about vaping.
Check-in: Quick, no-judgement check: 'How's it been going since we last spoke?' Keep the tone curious, not interrogating.
Input: Explain what's in a typical vape (nicotine, flavourings, other chemicals) and how nicotine creates a short dopamine hit followed by a dip, the cycle that drives repeated use. Bust common myths (e.g. 'vaping is basically harmless') using plain, non-alarmist facts.
Activity: Pupil sorts a set of true/false statement cards about vaping and nicotine, discussing each one. Pupil marks on a simple diagram where the pupil would currently sit (never tried, tried once, occasional, regular).
Reflect: Ask: 'What surprised you most from today?' Agree no target yet, Week 1 is about understanding, not commitment.
Watch for: Watch for bravado ('I could stop any time') or shame responses, both can mask how hooked a pupil actually feels. Keep tone matter-of-fact throughout.
Parent/carer take-home: If this comes up naturally, ask an open, curious question like 'what do you know about what's actually in a vape?' rather than starting with rules, this keeps the door open for honest conversation.
Objective: Pupil can name at least two personal triggers for vaping, including social pressure situations.
Check-in: Ask how the pupil has felt about the topic since Week 1, any moments it came to mind?
Input: Introduce the idea that vaping triggers are often social (offered by friends, fitting in) as well as emotional (boredom, stress, habit). Explain that naming a trigger is the first step to having a plan for it.
Activity: Pupil builds a personal trigger map: who, where, and when vaping is most likely to happen. Rank each trigger by how hard it would be to say no.
Reflect: Which trigger felt hardest to admit to? Agree to simply notice (not necessarily resist) one trigger this week.
Watch for: Peer pressure is often the hardest trigger to discuss honestly, pupils may minimise how much friendship groups influence use. Normalise this rather than challenging it directly.
Parent/carer take-home: Notice, without commenting, any moments this week where the pupil seems to be around vaping-related pressure (friends, social media). This is for your awareness, not to raise with the pupil unless the pupil brings it up.
Objective: Pupil can rehearse at least two refusal responses that feel natural to use with friends.
Check-in: Review the trigger noticed last week, what happened?
Input: Introduce a few practical refusal scripts pupils actually find usable (a short 'no thanks, trying to cut back' or changing the subject) rather than formal assertiveness scripts that can feel unnatural with friends.
Activity: Role-play two or three offer scenarios, letting the pupil pick and adapt the script that feels most natural to the pupil's own voice and friendship group.
Reflect: Which response felt most like 'actually you'? Agree to try it once this week if the opportunity comes up naturally.
Watch for: A script that sounds too formal or adult often won't get used in the moment, prioritise pupil's own wording over a 'correct' answer.
Parent/carer take-home: No specific task this week, the focus is on the pupil trying something with friends, which works best without a parent watching for it directly.
Objective: Pupil can describe one practical strategy for reducing use or staying vape-free this week.
Check-in: Check whether the refusal response got used, and how it went, without judgement either way.
Input: Introduce simple reduction strategies for pupils who vape regularly (delaying by 10 minutes, swapping a fidget or drink for the habit moment) alongside staying-vape-free strategies for pupils who don't currently use.
Activity: Pupil picks one strategy that fits the pupil's situation and rehearses using it in a role-played moment of boredom or stress, the two most common non-social triggers.
Reflect: What would make this strategy easier to actually use at school? Agree one small, realistic step for the coming week.
Watch for: Avoid framing this week as pass/fail, a pupil who vapes less, or delays a first use later in the day, is real progress worth naming.
Parent/carer take-home: If the pupil mentions trying something different this week, respond with simple acknowledgement rather than a big reaction either way, this keeps the door open for the pupil to keep talking.
Objective: Pupil has a personalised plan and knows who to speak to at school if the pupil wants support later.
Check-in: Review progress across the five weeks, what's changed since Week 1's 'where am I now' scale?
Input: Summarise what's been covered: how nicotine dependence works, personal triggers, and refusal or reduction strategies that felt usable.
Activity: Co-create a one-page plan: known triggers, the refusal or reduction strategy that felt most natural, and a named member of staff the pupil feels comfortable going to if the pupil wants more support.
Reflect: What's one thing you feel more confident about now? What would help most going forward?
Watch for: Agree a review point rather than ending support abruptly, nicotine dependence, even mild, often needs more than five weeks to fully shift.
Parent/carer take-home: Read through the plan together if the pupil is happy to share it, and make sure the pupil knows who at school to go to, this matters more than any single conversation about the vaping itself.